Mt. Gox to field inquiries via call center in Japan

Embattled former Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox is undoubtedly being hounded by questions from investors and users. The company has seemingly been forced to setup a dedicated call center in Japan in order to take, and hopefully answer, inquiries.

The establishment of a call center in Japan is just the latest in the saga of Mt. Gox, a company based in Japan, who has come under the microscope for problems and controversies related to the highly-debated cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. What started out as a good friendship between the exchange and investors is quickly turning into a nightmare, especially for users.

Mt. Gox's problems came to a head last week when it suddenly vanished without a trace from the Internet, fueling rumors that the company was on the verge of insolvency. Later that day, a "Crisis Strategy Draft" document was leaked, revealing that the disappearance was just a part of the company's emergency maneuvers to handle the flood of problems, supposedly for the sake of protecting the image of the Bitcoin currency.

This document was later confirmed by Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpeles himself, emphasizing that the steps were merely suggestions rather than set points of action. However, perhaps more shocking is the revelation that the company lost as much as $338 million worth of bitcoins due to a bug. Seemingly confirming its financial problems, the company filed for bankruptcy, revealing that it had a debt amounting to $63.6 million.

Naturally, Mt. Gox became the target of a class-action suit filed by former users, with at least one user reporting to have lost $25,000 because of the company. Aside from that, it is not hard to imagine it would be receiving hundreds of questions about its status, which it will now answer through the Japan call center. The center will start its operations on March 3, Japan time, and will only be entertaining calls from 10 AM to 5 PM, also in Japan time.

VIA: Ars Technica