Summary:
- New Exchange Launch: Mark Karpeles, the former CEO of Mt. Gox, is launching a new crypto exchange, EllipX, in Europe later this month. The platform will be based in Poland and is designed to prioritize transparency and user-friendliness.
- Mt. Gox Users Benefit: Karpeles announced that former Mt. Gox users will receive a 50% discount on trading fees at EllipX through NFTs released a few years ago, although only a small portion of affected users have claimed them.
- Compliance and Structure: EllipX will comply with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) and promote transparency through third-party audits. Karpeles likened the platform’s structure to that of the New York Stock Exchange but for crypto, with separated entities handling trading, brokering, and clearing.
- EllipX Wallet: The EllipX Wallet, which launched last month, uses multi-party computation technology to improve ease of use, removing the need to write down recovery phrases.
- Expansion Plans: Initially focused on crypto-only services, EllipX may expand to offer banking and fiat currency options later.
Mark Karpeles, the former CEO of the infamous Mt. Gox exchange, is making a return to the crypto industry with the launch of EllipX, a new cryptocurrency exchange set to go live in Europe later this month. The platform will be based in Poland, a country Karpeles is familiar with from his days running Mt. Gox. In an interview with The Block during Korea Blockchain Week in Seoul, South Korea, Karpeles shared his vision for the new platform, which is designed with transparency and ease of use in mind.
EllipX aims to distinguish itself from existing crypto exchanges by focusing on a structure similar to that of the New York Stock Exchange, with separate entities handling the trading, brokering, and clearing of cryptocurrencies. Karpeles, who will serve as chief technology officer, emphasized that this structure ensures transparency and minimizes risks. To guarantee the platform’s integrity, EllipX will conduct regular third-party audits and comply with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).
The platform will initially launch as a crypto-only exchange, but Karpeles hinted at potential future expansion into banking and fiat currency services. At its core, however, EllipX will focus on user-friendliness, leveraging its new EllipX Wallet. Introduced last month, the wallet uses multi-party computation technology, simplifying the user experience by eliminating the need for cumbersome recovery phrases.
As part of his comeback to the crypto space, Karpeles is also working on launching Ungox, a non-profit organization that will provide a rating system for crypto projects and exchanges, aimed at enhancing investor protection.
In a gesture to former Mt. Gox users, who were left devastated after a massive hack drained over 950,000 Bitcoin from the exchange in 2014, EllipX will offer a 50% discount on trading fees. This discount will be available to those who claim NFTs Karpeles issued for Mt. Gox users a few years ago, though only a small fraction of the affected million users have claimed them to date.
Despite the turmoil that marked Mt. Gox’s collapse, Karpeles appears determined to use the lessons learned from the past to shape a more transparent and user-friendly exchange in EllipX, aiming to win back the trust of the crypto community.
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