MtGox recognition hearing adjourned; representative refuses to travel

By Kali Hays

New York, April 15 - MtGox Co., Ltd.'s hearing for recognition in United States Bankruptcy Court has been adjourned for a second time, according to an order filed April 15 with the U.S. Bankruptcy court for the Northern District of Texas.

The hearing has been rescheduled to May 20, and the previous hearing date of April 14 will be converted to a status conference.

The company has also requested an emergency hearing to be set for April 15 regarding the refusal of its foreign representative, Robert Marie Mark Karpeles, to comply with court orders requiring his travel to the United States to complete his deposition on April 17.

The company has asked that the deposition of Karpeles be continued to May 5, because Karpeles received a subpoena from the Department of the Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) requiring him to appear in Washington D.C. on April 18.

The company further stated that Karpeles is in the process of obtaining legal counsel to represent him regarding the FinCEN subpoena and that "until such time as counsel is retained and has an opportunity to 'get up to speed' and advise Mr. Karpeles, he is not willing to travel to the U.S.," according to the emergency motion.

Subsequent to Karpeles' refusal to complete his deposition, company creditors Gregory Green and Joseph Lack asked that the court schedule an immediate hearing to terminate the company's provisional relief, because it was granted based largely on evidence provided by Karpeles.

The court denied the creditors' request, ruling that "a possible continuance of Mr. Karpeles' deposition does not per se seem to constitute grounds to hear the motion any earlier than May 6," which is the date a hearing on the termination motion is currently scheduled.

MtGox is a Tokyo-based online bitcoin exchange operator. The company filed Chapter 15 bankruptcy on March 9 under case number 14-31229.

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