On May 21, the bankruptcy trustee for Mt. Gox advised depositors that the bankruptcy case in Tokyo was proceeding.  The information contained in the email was limited in scope, guarded and of little use in understanding the trustee’s view of how the bankruptcy ultimately may resolve. 

Some news outlets tried to “read the tea leaves” about what this notice meant for the recent proposal by Sunlot Holdings Limited (“Sunlot”) to reopen the exchange.  The bankruptcy trustee’s notice says nothing about the Sunlot proposal, so attempts to discern whether the trustee supports or opposes that proposal are pure speculation.  

In addition to contacting them via email, the bankruptcy trustee posted this information at the Mt. Gox website (in both English and Japanese): 

      “Since May 21, 2014, the bankruptcy trustee has sent emails titled ‘Announcement of Commencement of Bankruptcy Proceedings’ in sequence. However, such emails are sent for the purpose of providing information regarding the commencement of the bankruptcy proceedings for the bankrupt entity to those whose email addresses are known to the bankrupt entity and who may have bankruptcy claims. Receipt of such email does not mean that you are certified as a bankruptcy creditor or that you can participate in the bankruptcy distribution. To participate in the bankruptcy proceedings and to receive the bankruptcy distribution, after separately filing proofs of your claim as provided in the Bankruptcy Act of Japan, investigation thereof is necessary. It is possible that, on investigation of your claims as provided in the Bankruptcy Act of Japan, your claim may not be approved. The bankruptcy trustee owes no legal liability to anyone due to the transmission of this document.”

The email notification (in both English and Japanese) that was received by at least one depositor included some additional information, but nothing beyond what had been provided in the “Frequently Asked Questions” at the Mt. Gox web site. This includes the date of the initial meeting of creditors (July 23 2014, in Tokyo), the deadline for filing proofs of claim (November 28, 2014, but not the format for filing those claims), and that he would be reviewing the claims. 

In substance, the notice is similar to the initial notice of commencement of case typically issued in American bankruptcy proceedings, though it is more definitive in informing recipients that receiving the notice does not mean that their claims are allowed.