On 18 July 2024, WazirX, one of India’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, was the victim of a significant security breach that led to the loss of $230 million worth of cryptocurrencies. The incident marks one of the most substantial cryptocurrency exchange hacks to date, impacting a large portion of the exchange’s overall deposits, which are estimated to be around $500 million.
The Breach
WazirX confirmed through its social media channels that one of the exchange’s multi-sig hot wallets was compromised in the hack.
A hot wallet, often connected to the internet for faster transaction processing, typically stores a portion of an exchange’s assets. At the same time, the bulk is kept offline in more secure cold wallets.
However, in this instance, the hacker successfully drained 47% of the exchange assets from this hot wallet.
The hacker’s identity remains unknown at this press time. The stolen funds were moved to an external wallet identified as “0x04b2,” and the assets are now beyond the exchange’s control.
Overview of The Stolen Assets
The hacker made off with various cryptocurrencies, reflecting the diversity of assets stored on the platform. The stolen tokens include:
- 5.43 trillion Shiba Inu (SHIB) tokens
- 15,298 Ether (ETH)
- 20.5 million MATIC tokens
- 640.27 billion Pepe (PEPE) tokens
- 5.79 million Tether (USDT)
- 135 million Gala (GALA) tokens
- and much more.
These tokens represent a significant portion of the exchange’s liquidity, with the attacker promptly dumping almost 640.27 billion Pepe tokens, valued at approximately $7.6 million, into the market. This move not only deepened WazirX’s financial blow but also disrupted the market value of PEPE tokens, potentially affecting other holders globally.
Response from WazirX
WazirX addressed the attack through its official social media channels, acknowledging the breach and informing users about the situation’s status. The exchange is likely working closely with law enforcement security firms to track the movement of the stolen assets and identify potential vulnerabilities in its system.