Poloniex Exchange Hacked: Over $100 Million in Cryptocurrencies Stolen

Unravel the dramatic events of the Poloniex hack, where over $100 million in digital currencies were stolen, and delve into the intriguing response by the exchange, including a white-hat bounty offer by Justin Sun, and the resilience of cryptocurrency prices in the aftermath.

Cryptocurrency Exchange Poloniex Suffers Over $100 Million Loss in Recent Hack

On November 10, 2023, the cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex fell victim to a hacking incident, resulting in the theft of over $100 million in cryptocurrencies.

The specifics of the stolen digital currencies have not been disclosed, with initial reports estimating a loss of around $60 million. However, subsequent reports have indicated that over $100 million in cryptocurrencies have been siphoned off.

The stolen digital assets include tokens issued on the Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tron blockchains. PeckShield has reported the estimated losses as follows.

Reports suggest that the theft of these cryptocurrencies may have been due to the leakage of private keys.

Partial Asset Freeze Successful | Full Compensation Planned

Despite reports of over $100 million in cryptocurrencies being stolen in the hacking incident, Poloniex stated in a post around 12:30 on November 10, 2023, that "investigations are ongoing, but there are no issues with financial standing, and the affected funds will be fully compensated."

Additionally, Justin Sun, who acquired Poloniex in 2019, reported in a post on November 11 that "the Poloniex team has successfully identified and frozen some of the assets linked to the hacker's address."

Reward Offered for Hacker's Capture

In the Poloniex hacking case, where an unidentified hacker stole cryptocurrencies, Justin Sun has proposed a reward: "If the stolen cryptocurrencies are returned, a 5% white-hat bounty will be offered." Sun's proposal includes returning the stolen ETH, TRX, and BTC within 7 days, with the offer of a 5% reward of the returned assets.

He also warned that if the funds are not returned within 7 days, law enforcement agencies will get involved.

This proposal mirrors a similar situation in September, when HTX (formerly Huobi) experienced a hacking incident. In the HTX case, it was reported that the hacker returned the funds following the proposal.

Despite the Poloniex hacking incident, there has been no significant decline in cryptocurrency prices. In the case of Tron (TRX), its price surged just before the incident, with a 5% increase in the last 24 hours.