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A crypto heist on major crypto exchange Bybit has propelled the hacker into the ranks of one of the world's largest Ethereum (ETH) holders.
Following the exploit, the attacker now holds enough ETH to surpass even Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and investment giant Fidelity, making them the 14th largest ETH holder globally.
Alex DovbnyaThis fact was highlighted by Coinbase director Conor Grogan in an X post: "The Bybit hacker (most likely N.K.) is now the 14th largest ETH holder in the world. They hold roughly 0.42% of total supply, more than Fidelity, Vitalik, and 2x what the Ethereum Foundation holds."
According to a screenshot shared by Grogan, the Bybit hacker now holds assets worth $1,371,119,571. By holdings, the Bybit hacker holds 499,395 ETH valued at $1.37 billion, which is twice what the Ethereum Foundation holds; 0.206 BNB worth $135.61; and 93 USDT worth $93.
What happened?
A hacker gained possession of one of Bybit's Ethereum cold wallets, the exchange's CEO, Ben Zhou, disclosed in a post on X on Friday. An estimated $1.46 billion in assets moved out of the wallet in a series of suspicious transactions.
The hack is taken to be the biggest cryptocurrency theft in history, exceeding the $611 million taken from Poly Network in 2021. It was perhaps the "largest incident ever, not just crypto."
Tomiwabold OlajideAccording to research firm Nansen, the funds stolen from Bybit on Friday were more than $1 billion in Ether, with the remainder consisting of ETH derivatives such as stETH. The breakdown is given as 401,347 ETH worth $1.12 billion; 90,376 stETH worth $253.16 million; 15,000 cmETH worth $44.13 million; and 8,000 mETH worth $23 million.
According to Nansen, the tokens were initially moved to one wallet before being distributed to more than 40 others.
The attacker, suspected to be the North Korean group Lazarus, converted all Ethereum derivatives to Ethereum before transferring the ETH in $27 million chunks to more than 10 more wallets. According to Nansen, funds are still in many of the wallets that got the tokens.
Subsequently, the exchange has taken out bridge loans with partners and has secured about 80% of the funds needed to replace the loss, according to Bybit CEO, who added that the exchange will seek to recover the funds and take necessary legal action against the hackers.
Dan Burgin
Vladislav Sopov