Bybit suffers record crypto heist with losses estimated to reach $1.5 billion

Bybit, one of the big names among crypto exchanges, witnessed a colossal attack that has left the company counting losses in digital assets worth approximately $1.5 billion, which analysts are saying constitutes the biggest heist in Crypto history. The hack that happened this week compromised one of the platform’s offline Ethereum wallets.

The attack was confirmed by the Chief Executive Officer of the company, Ben Zhou, in a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), where he stated that the hackers got control of the wallet, allowing for the transfer out of approximately $1.46 billion worth of other tokens. Blockchain analysts, including ZachXBT, have tracked the suspicious activities, with funds having begun flowing into new addresses in no time and being sold off simultaneously. Arkham Intelligence confirmed the outflows of about $1.4 billion.

This attack broke the previous record for crypto theft, set in 2021, when hackers stole $611 million from Poly Network. Bybit’s unlawful access has been termed by the blockchain analytics firm Elliptic as the largest crypto heist on record and one that is possibly the largest theft in any industry. Co-founder of blockchain security firm Halborn Rob Behnke has called that an unprecedented incident, stressing that the attack was on such an exceedingly large scale with utmost sophistication.

While the hacker’s identity remains debatable, many investigators have set their eyes on North Korean-associated cybercriminals as perpetrators behind the attack. This country’s hacking division, Lazarus, has been associated with several audacious cryptocurrency thefts and also remains a focus in the probe with regard to this breach.

Immediately following the attack, Bybit’s CEO stated that user funds were safe, and withdrawals were ongoing. He also stated that they had taken out bridge loans with partnering firms for approximately 80% of the funds required to cover the missing assets and that Bybit would be pursuing legal options against those responsible for the incident and reclaim funds lost. Zhou was communicating via livestream on X when he made the statement.

The company also processed over 70% of withdrawal requests, an act that was meant to calm its users’ tensions. Zhou further specified that at this time, Bybit is not buying any Ether specifically to recover from this situation.

The hack pointed to yet another growing concern regarding crypto exchanges and their security ever since they became a prominent target for cybercriminals.