In a surprising turn of events, cryptocurrency exchange Bybit purchased around 266,700 ETH worth $742 million in just 48 hours. Blockchain analytics company Lookonchain has kept an eye on this significant transaction following a disastrous $1.4 billion hack that sent shockwaves to the digital asset space.
Tactical Moves In The Aftermath Of Crisis
The exchange responded strategically to two different funds. Through a series of over-the-counter transactions with industry heavyweights FalconX, Galaxy Digital, and Wintermute, the first, “0x2E45…1b77,” acquired 157,660 ETH worth $437 million. This wallet demonstrated Bybit’s determination to maintain its market position despite the most recent setback. This address carried out its first transaction on Feb. 22.
It seems that #Bybit has bought 266,694 $ETH($742M) after being hacked.
0x2E45…1b77(related to #Bybit) bought 157,660 $ETH($437.82M) from Galaxy Digital, FalconX, Wintermute via OTC.
0xd7CF…A995(likely related to #Bybit) bought 109,033 $ETH($304.12M) from DEXs and CEXs.… pic.twitter.com/8FfGZo18OU
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) February 24, 2025
Key participants in this coordinated response include Tether, THORChain, Avalanche, CoinEx, Bitget, and Circle, which are actively identifying and blocking blacklisted addresses to prevent the laundering of stolen assets.
Industry-Wide Collaboration To Seize Stolen Assets
In a remarkable demonstration of unity within the cryptocurrency sector, prominent platforms have united to address the repercussions of the hack. Within a single day, $42.89 million in stolen funds were blocked, demonstrating the significant results of their collective efforts.
A coordinated effort led to the freezing of $42.89M in just one day. Thanks to the following teams for their swift action: @Tether_to: Flagged address and froze 181K USDT @THORChain: Blocked the blacklist @ChangeNOW_io: Froze 34 ETH @FixedFloat: Froze 120K USDC + USDT…
— Bybit (@Bybit_Official) February 23, 2025
The Structure Of A Complex Attack
The security lapse that led to these events exposed a significant vulnerability in Bybit’s infrastructure. The attacker implemented a sophisticated strategy, employing a masked URL technique to compromise the multisig cold wallet contract logic of the exchange.
This manipulation led to the unauthorized transfer of over 401,000 ETH, which is considered one of the most significant security violations in the history of cryptocurrency exchanges.
Utilizing Transparent Recovery To Regain Trust
Despite the attack, Bybit’s recovery effort is gaining steam. According to Lookonchain, strategic ETH purchases, whale deposits, and loans have netted the exchange 446,870 ETH, or $1.23 billion, since the incident.
Bybit CEO Ben Zhou has reassured users about fund security. Bybit has offered $140 million to security researchers and ethical hackers who help recover the stolen assets to show its commitment to asset recovery and security.
Blockchain analytics firms Arkham Intelligence and Lookonchain have illuminated Bybit’s relationship with purchasing wallets. Despite their lack of Bybit property status, Binance and MEXC transaction patterns and interactions strongly reflect an institutional tie with the exchange.
Featured image from Gemini Imagen, chart from TradingView
