Founder of Mt. Gox Bitcoin Exchange Mark Karpeles Disputes Lawsuit Filed in Illinois

The founder of now-defunct Bitcoin (BTC) exchange Mt. Gox Mark Karpeles has filed a motion to dismiss a legal case filed against him in Illinois, according to a report by Financefeeds August 25.

The class action in question was originally filed in Illinois by Gregory Greene and Anthony Motto, two former clients of Mt. Gox who sought to hold Karpeles responsible for the money they have lost in the exchange’s collapse and bankruptcy back in 2014. Law 360 website reports that the plaintiffs accused the defendant of criminal conversion, negligence and fraud.

The plaintiffs alleged that Mizuho Bank, Ltd., which serviced the official account of the Mt. Gox exchange, was a trap, as they could deposit money to their accounts, but could not withdraw it from them. They claim that Karpeles conducted his business in the U.S. state of Illinois through the Mt. Gox exchange and its parent company Tibanne K.K.

Later in August, U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman asked the court to name Karpeles as the main defendant for the claim. The hearing was to be held on Tuesday, August 28, but Karpeles responded in time before the deadline to oppose the case.

According to Financefeed’s article, Mark Karpeles has filed a motion to dismiss Greene’s and Motto’s case, insisting that Northern District Court of Illinois lacks personal jurisdiction over him due the fact that he is a French citizen currently residing in Japan.

Karpeles further argued that he has not “purposefully directed his activities at the forum state or purposefully availed himself of the privilege of conducting business in that state” nor does the “alleged injury arise out of the defendant’s forum-related activities.”

On August 23, Mt. Gox began accepting claims from its creditors as part of its civil rehabilitation proceedings, as Cointelegraph reported last week.

Mt. Gox was founded in 2010, and by 2013 it became the world's leading Bitcoin exchange, reportedly processing over 70% of all BTC transactions worldwide at that time.

It had first faced challenges in June 2013 when all the withdrawals were suspended for two weeks. In February 2014 Mt. Gox’s website went dark, the exchange service was closed, and the company ultimately filed for bankruptcy.