WazirX Freezes $3M in USDT After $230M Hack

After four months of extensive recovery efforts, WazirX, India’s largest crypto exchange, has managed to freeze $3 million in USDT tied to its $230 million security breach from July 2024. This marks a significant step in the exchange’s attempts to trace and retrieve stolen assets amid ongoing legal and restructuring efforts.

The Complex Path to Recovery

The July 2024 breach compromised 45% of WazirX’s reserves, initially targeting Ethereum-based ERC-20 tokens stored in hot wallets. Following the incident:

  • On August 28, the Singapore High Court granted WazirX’s parent company, Zettai Pte Ltd, a four-month moratorium to restructure liabilities and continue investigations.
  • Rival exchange CoinSwitch filed a lawsuit the same day, seeking recovery of $9.7 million in locked funds, including substantial ERC-20 tokens and other assets.
  • By September, analysts at Arkham Intelligence tracked $50 million of the stolen funds moving through Tornado Cash, with the largest single transfer of $10 million in ETH occurring on September 25.

In October, WazirX announced plans to disclose 240,000 wallet addresses and balances in a court affidavit to boost transparency during its debt restructuring.

Freezing Funds: A Breakthrough

Freezing $3 million in USDT represents WazirX’s first major victory in recovering stolen funds. The exchange stated this achievement reflects the combined efforts of ongoing investigations and legal proceedings spanning multiple jurisdictions.

Co-founder Nischal Shetty revealed during a November town hall meeting that the exchange is committed to recovery efforts and plans to resume trading by February 2025.

Links to North Korea’s Lazarus Group

The recovery update coincides with a joint statement by the U.S., Japan, and South Korea, attributing the WazirX hack to North Korea’s Lazarus Group. The statement underscored the threat to global financial stability, citing the group’s role in funding unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.

This aligns with WazirX’s efforts to deny threat actors access to stolen funds, aligning with international goals to disrupt malicious cyber activities.

One of 2024’s Largest Crypto Hacks

The WazirX breach ranks as the third-largest crypto hack of 2024, following:

  1. DMM Bitcoin: $308 million lost.
  2. PlayDapp: $290 million lost.

These incidents highlight the growing threat of cyberattacks in the crypto space and the urgent need for enhanced security measures.

WazirX’s ability to freeze part of the stolen funds is a promising step, but the road to full recovery remains challenging. With plans to reopen trading and expand transparency initiatives, the exchange hopes to rebuild trust and stability in the wake of this significant breach.

This article is for information purposes only and should not be considered trading or investment advice. Nothing herein shall be construed as financial, legal, or tax advice. Bullish Times is a marketing agency committed to providing corporate-grade press coverage and shall not be liable for any loss or damage arising from reliance on this information. Readers should perform their own research and due diligence before engaging in any financial activities.

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