A Tokyo-based cryptocurrency exchange called Bitpoint has suspended operations after it lost $32 million to a hacking last night.
The company that runs the exchange, Remixpoint, discovered that ¥3.5 billion worth of various digital currencies had disappeared under its management.
Bitpoint Hacked and Suspends Operations
According to the exchange, the funds went missing from a hot wallet (a wallet connected to the internet), but other funds held in cold wallets or offline haven’t been affected. The hacking was brought to light when an error appeared in the exchange’s outgoing funds transfer system.
Roughly ¥2.5 billion worth of the missing currency is owned by its customers; the rest is owned by the firm. The company has said it will compensate the customers for the loss. Soon after the announcement, shares in Remixpoint plunged almost 20%.
Though we know the amount taken, Bitpoint has not detailed what exact virtual coins were stolen; however, it holds various cryptos including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Ripple (XRP).
At present, Remixpoint is analyzing the hack and has given no further details.
Cryptocurrency Hacking
The Bitpoint hack is further proof of the danger with cryptocurrency. So far in 2019, there have been eight large-scale crypto exchange hackings resulting in the loss of millions of dollars.
The most recent hack happened on June 27, when Singapore-based exchange Bitrue had $4.2 million stolen.
Prior to that, on June 6, crypto exchange GateHub was also a victim of a hack whereby nearly $10 million worth of Ripple (XRP) was stolen.
In May, major exchange Binance faced its second major hacking. The hackers withdrew 7,000 Bitcoin, valuing approximately $40 million USD at the time.
>> Ripple (XRP) Slips Below $0.34 Mark as Selling Intensifies
Hacking is a notorious issue in the crypto-space; hacks claimed $1.7 billion USD in 2018 alone.
Hacks have even managed to shut down exchanges completely. In 2017, the South Korean exchange Youbit shut down and filed for bankruptcy after two separate hackings.
Tokyo-based MtGox exchange faced the same fate. At one time, it handled almost 80% of all global Bitcoin transactions; however, it was shut down in 2014 after 850,000 Bitcoins (worth half a billion US dollars at the time) was stolen from its wallets.
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