WazirX India Suspends Withdrawals After $234.9M Theft Reported

WazirX India, one of the country's leading cryptocurrency exchanges, may have been compromised, with $234.9 million potentially stolen. Cyvers Alerts, a cybersecurity monitoring service, sounded the alarm, noting multiple suspicious transactions involving WazirX's Safe Multisig wallet on the Ethereum network.

According to Cyvers Alerts, the stolen funds were moved to a new address, with each transaction being funded by TornadoCash, a known cryptocurrency mixer often used to obscure transaction trails. 

The suspicious address has already converted assets like $PEPE, $GALA, and $USDT into Ethereum (ETH) and continues to swap other digital assets.

Hackers' Holdings

According to on-chain data, the hacker still holds $$206,807,656

Reports indicate that the hacker currently holds:

• $96.12 million in Shiba Inu (SHIB)

• $52.52 million in Ethereum (ETH)

• $9.8 million in MATIC

• $4.6 million in SHIB 

• $3.2M in FTM 

• $2.8M in LINK

• $2.3M in FET

• $2.2M in JASMY and more

Alpha Research further reveals that attackers are actively selling the assets 

WazirX's Response and Market Impact

In response to the breach, WazirX stated they are aware of the security breach. 

WazirX issued a statement: 

"We're aware that one of our multisig wallets has experienced a security breach. Our team is actively investigating the incident. To ensure the safety of your assets, INR and crypto withdrawals will be temporarily paused."

The news has already impacted the market. SHIB's price fell by 6%, and FLOKI dropped by 2% following the announcement. This incident highlights a growing trend where cryptocurrency exchanges become prime targets for hackers.

Recent Exchange Hacks

This breach is the latest in a series of high-profile exchange hacks. On May 31, 2024, DMM Bitcoin, a prominent Japanese cryptocurrency exchange, experienced a significant security breach, losing approximately $305 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC). 

The unauthorized leakage involved 4,502.9 BTC, which the hacker divided across 10 wallets in batches of 500 BTC. DMM Bitcoin has since taken measures to prevent further unauthorized outflows and has restricted all spot buys on the platform.