Bybit succumbed to a hack recently, but has swiftly managed to bounce back. The crypto exchange has re-attained a 1:1 backing of client assets. Alongside, it has also fully closed the “Ether gap.”
Background
- Bybit succumbed to a ~$1.5 billion hack on Friday, February 21
- On-chain investigations by crypto sleuth ZachXBT brought to light that the Lazarus group was behind the hack
- His submission featured an in-depth analysis of test transactions and connected wallets used before the exploit
- Alongside, he also chalked out multiple forensics graphs and timing analyses
- Hackers gained access via a manipulated user interface and URL
- This allowed them to alter the smart contract logic and redirect the funds to an unidentified address
- Right after, the stolen assets were split across multiple wallets and swapped on decentralized exchanges
- Right after the hack was brought to light, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou confirmed that the exchange would be “solvent” even if the hack loss was not recovered
Why should you pay attention?
- On-chain analytics platform Lookonchain brought to light, the exchange has received ETH worth more than $1.2 billion
- As far as the bifurcation is concerned, around $400 million worth of assets were purchased via OTC trading
- Meanwhile, $300 million was sent directly by exchanges
- Approximately $300 million were sought as loans, while the remaining synced with addresses belonging to crypto funds
Who said what?
- Ben Zohu, the co-founder and CEO of the exchange, emphasized,
“Bybit has already fully closed the ETH gap”
- Thanking Zach, the Bybit team said,
“Big shoutout to ZachXBT for always keeping the space sharp. Your work didn't go unnoticed — much respect”
- Meanwhile, Cobie notoriously said,
“Someone gotta convince Eric Trump to get Zachary a presidential medal”
Zooming out
- All deposit and withdrawal activity on Bybit has fully recovered to normal levels
- In fact, the total deposits have already started exceeding the withdrawals
