Bybit buys $742 million worth of ETH after hacking

Author: Brayden Lindrea, CoinTelegraph; Translated by: Wuzhu, Golden Finance

According to blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain, cryptocurrency exchange Bybit appears to have snapped up nearly 266,700 Ethereum worth $742 million in two days after being hacked and lost $1.4 billion.

Lookonchain said in a February 23 X post that the wallet address associated with Bybit, “0x2E45...1b77” purchased 157,660 Ethereums worth 437.8 million through OTC transactions from cryptocurrency investment companies Galaxy Digital, FalconX and Wintermute. Dollar.

Another $304 million Ethereum purchased through centralized and decentralized exchanges using the wallet address "0xd7CF...A995" is also "probably" related to Bybit.

Arkham data shows that the address "0xd7CF...A995" interacts with Binance and MEXC hot wallets.

Ether transfers from Galaxy Digital, FalconX and Wintermute to the "0x2E45...1b77" wallet address on the Bybit link.

Multiple transfers were sent to these wallet addresses to make up for the corresponding amount. The first purchase from "0x2E45...1b77" occurred at 4:44 pm UTC on February 22.

The transfers come as Bybit hopes to recover from a $1.4 billion hacking attack by the official North Korean hacker group Lazarus Group on February 21.

The $1.4 billion hack is the largest hacker in cryptocurrency history, accounting for more than 60% of all cryptocurrency funds stolen in 2024.

In another article, Lookonchain estimates Bybit has now received 446,870 Ethereum from loans, whale deposits and purchases, worth about $1.23 billion — nearly 88% of the stolen $1.4 billion.

Ethereum has moved to the wallet address associated with Bybit since the hack. Source: Lookonchain

On February 22, Bybit's customer withdrawals also exceeded US$5.3 billion. Reserve Certificate Auditor Hacke said the crypto platform’s reserves still exceed its liabilities and the user funds are still fully supported.

CoinGecko data shows that Ethereum fell from $2,831 to $2,629 in seven hours, a drop of more than 7%, but has since rebounded to $2,765.