WazirX exchange suspends trading after $230 million hack
The company said it could not maintain sufficient reserves
22.07.2024 - 13:05
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Last updated on Aug 6, 2024
What’s new? Indian centralized crypto exchange (CEX) WazirX has suspended trading following an attack on July 18, when a private key compromise resulted in $230 million in assets being withdrawn from its wallet. On July 21, exchange officials said the attack affected its ability to maintain a 1:1 collateralization of assets, which was the reason for the temporary suspension.
What else is known? The company is conducting a security audit and data verification and expects to open the ability for users to withdraw funds in the near future. The exchange’s representatives thanked users for their patience and support, promised to update information regularly, and assured that the safety of clients remains the top priority of WazirX.
More than $100 million worth of Shiba Inu (SHIB) meme tokens were withdrawn from WazirX wallets, as well as native tokens of the Polygon (MATIC) blockchain, PEPE meme tokens, USDT stablecoins and native tokens of the Gala Games (GALA) gaming platform.
WazirX offered the hacker a refund payment and invited cybersecurity and blockchain experts to participate in tracking and freezing the funds for a reward of up to 10 000 USDT. The exchange later increased the reward for the hacker from 5% to 10% of the stolen amount, or up to 23 million USD.
However, IS firm Slow Mist said the hacker is likely a North Korean group called Lazarus, which will not return the funds. The US authorities have linked it to funding the DPRK government’s weapons of mass destruction program. Since the hack, most of the stolen assets have been converted into Ethereum coins.
As noted by an anonymous blockchain researcher under the nickname ZachXBT, cases of recovery from Lazarus hacks are incredibly rare. When $30 million was recovered from the $625 million Ronin Bridge hack in 2022, Chainalysis experts noted that it was the first time funds linked to DPRK hackers had been recovered.
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