Bybit Exchange Suffers $1.4 Billion Hack as Hackers Convert ETH to BTC

• Hackers stole $1.4 billion worth of Ethereum from Bybit through exploitation while this money gets cleaned into Bitcoin by utilizing Chainflip’s services.
• According to Samson Mow a rollback of Ethereum should be implemented similar to how Ethereum handled the 2016 DAO hack by creating a hard fork to prevent losses.
• The major exchanges Binance, Bitget, and MEXC extend financial support to Bybit through liquidity-stabilizing loans after its security failure.

Bybit suffered a cryptocurrency hack by hackers who stole $1.4 billion worth of Ethereum creating one of the most significant exchange breaches ever recorded. This cyberattack is credited to Lazarus which operates as part of the North Korean hacker network and has caused widespread apprehension within the cryptocurrency field.

Experts note that the current Bybit hack shares resemblances with a $69 million Phemex hack that occurred in January.

Bybit CEO Confirms Hackers Laundering Funds

Bybit’s CEO, Ben Zhou, confirmed that the attackers are converting stolen Ethereum into Bitcoin through the cross-chain protocol Chainflip. He called on blockchain networks to block transactions related to the stolen funds. Bybit also plans to introduce a bounty program, encouraging community efforts to track and recover lost assets.

Prominent Bitcoin advocate and Blockstream CEO Adam Back criticized Ethereum’s security framework. He highlighted past vulnerabilities within Ethereum’s EVM, claiming billions of dollars have been stolen from it over the years. Meanwhile, former Blockstream CSO and current JAN3 CEO Samson Mow suggested that Ethereum developers consider a rollback, similar to the 2016 DAO hard fork, to prevent the hackers from liquidating the stolen assets.

Exchanges Step In to Assist Bybit

Several major cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance, Bitget, and MEXC, have extended support to Bybit. Collectively, they have provided over 114,500 ETH and 12,652 STETH in loans to help stabilize Bybit’s liquidity. Binance CEO Richard Teng and former CEO Changpeng Zhao expressed their backing for Bybit, emphasizing the importance of security and collaboration within the industry.

Multiple well-known hacking incidents have connected the Lazarus group to stolen funds that supposedly help North Korea fund military activities. The tracking and fund recovery actions by Bybit will receive sharp scrutiny because they determine the market response to this significant security breach.