Bybit Hit by Record-Breaking $1.4B Crypto Hack: Details

In a shocking turn of events, Bybit, one of the world’s leading crypto exchanges, has suffered what experts call the largest crypto theft in history. 

According to reports, the hackers stole over $1.4 billion of Ethereum (ETH) from the exchange’s cold wallet, sending shockwaves through the crypto industry.

Bybit Hack Becomes Largest Crypto Theft In History

According to blockchain analysis firm Elliptic, the scale of this attack surpasses any previous crypto-related security breach. “This makes it the largest crypto theft of all time, by some margin,” said Elliptic co-founder and Chief Scientist Tom Robinson.

Per the report, the next biggest was the 2021 Poly Network hack, which saw $611 million stolen. This particular incident was also as horrific as the firm’s present ordeal.

Meanwhile, After the incident, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou swiftly turned to social networking X to reassure customers about the firm’s state and users’ funds. He stated that the exchange remains financially stable despite the loss. 

“Bybit is solvent even if this hack loss is not recovered. All client assets are one-to-one backed. We can cover the loss,” Zhou wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

How the Hack Happened

Based on the information available at the time of writing, it was disclosed that the hackers deceived Bybit’s cold wallet signers into conducting a malicious transaction. Unfortunately, this granted them control over the wallet. 

Reports show that the wallet involved seems to have transferred 401,346 ETH ($1.1 billion) along with other forms of staked ether (stETH) to another wallet. This new wallet is now selling mETH and stETH on decentralized exchanges, according to Etherscan. 

So far, about $200 million worth of stETH has been sold. Sadly, the attack comes when many exchanges are increasingly scrutinized over security vulnerabilities. 

In addition, a spokesperson from CertiK, a blockchain security firm, commented, “Given the scale of the alleged exploit, this breach raises serious concerns regarding centralized exchange security and the evolving threat landscape in Web3.”

Meanwhile, blockchain intelligence platform Arkham Intelligence has stepped in to help track down the hackers. Through an X post, they announced to the public that a bounty had been created for anyone or groups that could identify the people who had carried out these criminal actions.

“We’ve created and funded a bounty to help identify the person or organization behind today’s [over] $1 billion Bybit hack,” the firm posted on X, offering a reward of 50,000 ARKM tokens for helpful information.

Industry Reactions and Next Steps

It is worth mentioning that the firm hack has drawn reactions from across the crypto community. For instance, Binance founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) encouraged Bybit to take immediate action.

“Not an easy situation to deal with. Might suggest to halt all withdrawals for a bit as a standard security precaution,” he wrote in response to Bybit’s updates.

Despite the large amount stolen, some industry experts believe Bybit will recover. Flashbots Strategy Lead Hasu opined that “Bybit has way more than $1.4 billion in revenue per year. They are good for the money and will make all customers whole.”

Earlier this week, a group of scammers impersonating Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launched a fraudulent cryptocurrency, taking advantage of the growing trend of celebrity and politically backed memecoins.