Justin Sun said he expects functionality for other cryptocurrencies to gradually be reinstated with full services returning by next week.
HTX to restore services ‘within 24 hours’ after $13.6M hack
“Huobi HTX has now properly handled this attack,” the crypto exchange stated.
Justin Sun-related crypto platforms hacked 4 times in 2 months
Justin Sun’s cryptocurrency exchange HTX has been hacked twice since rebranding from Huobi in September 2023, raising questions from the crypto community.
Justin Sun Confirms HTX, Heco Chain Exploited After $100M in Suspicious Transfers
HTX withdrawals and deposits have been temporarily suspended, and all losses will be covered by the exchange, Sun said.
Poloniex crypto exchange resumes withdrawals after $100M hack
Hacked cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex said it has mostly completed restoration efforts and is preparing to resume operations after suffering the major hack on Nov. 10.
Ethics watchdog rats out Circle for links to Tron in letter to Sens. Warren, Brown
The Campaign for Accountability wanted to let the anti-crypto senators know that the threat of terrorist financing with crypto was worse than they thought.
$5 Million Reward: Justin Sun’s Bold Move Against Poloniex Attackers
Crypto exchange platform Poloniex was attacked by a bad actor, losing over $60 million of its customer’s funds. The Justin Sun led the exchange and launched an investigation, which remains ongoing, to determine the identity of the attackers.
Poloniex Makes Offering To Attackers
The crypto analytics platform Nansen data indicates that over $68 million in tokens left Poloniex over the past day. The image below shows that the attacker stole assets in ETH, BADGER, REN, OKB, NEXO, and 170 other tokens.
Nansen also confirmed that the biggest losses were suffered in top assets, Ethereum and USDT, with around $11 million each. Other tokens such as ELON, USDC, SHIB, and GLM saw inferior losses but still in the millions of dollars.
A few hours ago, as mentioned, the exchange launched an investigation and Justin assured its users that the platform keeps a “healthy financial position.” In that sense, Sun, also the founder of blockchain TRON, claimed that users will be reimbursed for their losses.
The platform is currently exploring a partnership with other crypto exchanges to recover the fund. Sun stated:
We are offering a 5% white hat bounty to the Poloniex hacker. Please return the funds to the following ETH/TRX/BTC wallets. We will give you 7 days to consider this offer before we engage law enforcement.
In the crypto community, some users praised these efforts to recover the fund and encouraged the attacker or attackers to take the bounty for “pointing out vulnerabilities” in the platform’s security. However, other users were critical of the measure. One community member stated:
(…) a white hat doesn’t steal funds and then ask for a bounty, whatever you’re promising, law enforcement will be involved. It’s like saying you can beat someone to death but if you take them to the hospital you’ll be safe (…).
Who Is Behind The Poloniex Attack?
It remains to be seen if the attacker will accept the offer. In the crypto space, many cyberattacks have been conducted by state-sponsored hacker groups, such as the infamous Lazarus Group, allegedly working for the North Korean Government.
According to a report from our sister website, Bitcoinist, this group stole billions of dollars from the nascent industry in the past two years. The terrorist group is allegedly a key component of the country’s nuclear program. Jason Bartlett, a researcher at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), said:
Cryptocurrency offers Pyongyang a new kind of currency that is substantially less regulated and understood by national governments, financial institutions, and international organizations.
However, cryptocurrencies also operate as an important tool for law enforcement agencies to track down and cut funding for rogue entities. Due to blockchain technology’s transparency, some criminals stay clear of digital assets and crypto exchanges.
As of this writing, Ethereum (ETH) trades at $2,077 with a 7% profit in the last 24 hours.
Cover image from Unsplash, chart from Tradingview
Poloniex Hot Wallets Hacked With $114M Seemingly Stolen: On-Chain Data
Cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex has had its hot wallets drained by hackers with an estimated loss of around $60 million.
HTX claws back $8M in stolen funds, issues 250 ETH bounty to hacker
HTX was drained of 5,000 ETH in late September, and moved swiftly to get the funds back from the hacker.
Inside Job Suspected As Huobi Wallet Falls Victim To $263,000 Exploit
According to multiple reports, iToken, formerly known as Huobi Wallet, fell victim to a crypto heist in the last week, leading to the loss of $263,000 worth of users’ assets. The incident draws much attention following recent police investigations into some of Huobi’s former staff.
$263,000 Drained From Huobi Wallet – Could There Be An Internal Involvement?
Providing more insight on this latest exploit, prominent security firm Peckshield reported that this event occurred on October 3, with the drainer stealing a total of $263,000 USDT and 92 TRX minted on the Tron network.
Thereafter, the bad actor proceeded to swap these stolen funds for approximately 2.9 million TRX, of which 1.4 million TRX was transferred to the ChangeNOW exchange, and 1.5 million TRX was moved to Binance.
#PeckShieldAlert @iToken, formerly known as Huobi Wallet was suspected to have been drained of ~263K $USDT & 92 $TRX on #Tron ~3 days ago.The drainer swapped these stolen funds for ~2.9m $TRX and subsequently transferred them out. ~1.4m $TRX was sent to #ChangeNow, and ~1.5m… pic.twitter.com/yv4sTfj8cV
— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) October 7, 2023
Currently, there are speculations that this heist was orchestrated by the internal staff of Huobi as such development would be unprecedented. In September, the Chinese Police were reported to have arrested a former Huobi team member for implanting a Trojan horse virus that resulted in the exposure of the private keys and mnemonic phrases of some iToken users.
Launched in 2018, iToken functions as a professional DeFi wallet, which enables the storage of various digital assets across multiple networks. It was initially known as the Huobi wallet, as earlier stated, but was rebranded iToken in 2022, following a $200 million investment from the Huobi Group.
Growing Controversy Around Huobi?
In addition to speculations of insider involvement in this recent heist, Huobi, now rebranded as HTX, has been in the news recently and not for positive reasons.
On September 25, the exchange fell victim to a hack that drained 5,000 ETH worth $7.9 million. However, the exchange’s advisor and Tron founder, Justin Sun, soon came out to assure users of total asset recovery and security of the exchange’s operation.
However, this week, crypto expert Dylan LeClair wrote a thread on X accusing the Tron Visioneer of creating a “web of deception.” This marks the second time in recent weeks Justin Sun has been accused of malicious dealings involving users’ assets on Huobi.
According to LeClair, ever since Sun acquired a controlling stake in Huobi in late 2022, the amount of USDT held on the exchange has been gradually replaced by stUSDT, a receipt token for staking USDT.
The stUSDT token is controlled by Justin Sun and is supposedly designed to invest in real-world assets such as US government bonds. However, LeClair stated that on-chain analysis and transactions show no such investment.
The crypto analyst also drew attention to “worrying” transactions by Justin Sun involving JustLend, a Tron-based DeFi lending platform, and other stablecoins, including USDT and USDC, before concluding that the Tron Founder is maliciously moving USD liquidity out of the crypto space.
At the time of writing, HTX’s native token, HT, hovers around $2.36 with a 0.74% gain in the last day, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Meanwhile, HT’s daily trading volume is up by 10.64% and is valued at $3.47 million
Justin Sun Unstakes 20,000 Ethereum (ETH) From Lido Finance, What’s Going On?
A crypto wallet associated with Justin Sun, the co-founder of Tron, a smart contract platform, has moved 20,000 Ethereum (ETH) worth roughly $32.4 million from Lido Finance, a liquidity staking platform. Funds were transferred to Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, trading volume and client count.
The transaction, executed in a single batch, was captured by The Data Nerd, an analysis platform, and shared on X on October 5. As it is, Ethereum (ETH) is under pressure, looking at the performance in the daily chart.
Ethereum Drops 4%, Are Bears Flowing Back?
Trackers show that the coin is down roughly 4% in three days, confirming sellers of October 2. Notably, the daily chart has a double bar formation with the bear candlestick of October 2, completely reversing buyers of October 1.
This arrangement suggests that bears could be in control, especially considering the draw-down of the past few trading days and the level of participation on October 2 when the coin slipped.
In technical analysis, losses at the back of increasing volumes often point to high participation. If prices are rising, then the coin in question could rally. Conversely, a sell-off could worsen if the bar had high trading volumes.
It is also unclear whether Justin Sun plans to sell ETH after transferring coins to exchanges. Crypto transfers to centralized exchanges, which support many stablecoins like USDT and others, are often associated with sell-offs.
Market participants may interpret such movements as bearish, fueling the sell-off, subsequently heaping more pressure on prices. ETH is now at a one-week low.
Justin Sun Shuffling ETH In 2023
The Data Nerd observes that prices fell the last time the wallet moved ETH to Huobi, which has since rebranded to HTX. In August, the wallet moved 5,000 ETH to HTX. The deposit came a week before ETH prices crashed 12%.
Bitcoin and Ethereum prices fell sharply in mid-August, causing a “cascade liquidation” that spooked investors. ETH bulls have since failed to reverse those losses. Considering the relatively low trading volumes in the last two months, prices are still boxed within the August 17 trade range, a bearish signal.
In late February 2023, Justin Sun staked 150,000 ETH, worth roughly $240 million, to Lido Finance. The transfer remains the largest single-stay transaction, forcing the liquidity staking provider to activate the Staking Rate Limit feature, capping the amount of coins one can stake at 150,000 ETH.
Lido Finance said the feature is more of a “safety valve” that “addresses possible side-effects such as rewards dilution, without needing to pause stake deposits explicitly.”
Huobi (HTX) Troubles Mount: Justin Sun Accused Of $2.4B Shortfall In User Funds
HTX (formerly known as Huobi), one of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges, has been embroiled in a new controversy as Justin Sun, Tron’s founder and BitTorrent’s CEO, faces allegations of a staggering $2.4 billion shortfall in user funds.
Adam Cochran, Managing Partner at Cinneamhain Ventures, has shed light on the intricate details of the alleged malpractice, revealing a web of “financial manipulations.”
Huobi Crisis Unveiled?
Cochran’s analysis raises concerns over Huobi’s financial stability, questioning the integrity of the exchange’s claims regarding its holdings of Ethereum (ETH) and USDT, a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar.
As seen in the chart above, while Huobi asserts assets worth $200 million in ETH, Cochran’s investigation, corroborated by defillama data, reveals a discrepancy, with the actual value amounting to under $113 million, even when considering wrapped ETH (WETH) and staked ETH (stETH).
The situation further unravels when examining Huobi’s purported $624 million USDT holdings. However, Cochran’s findings indicate that only $119 million of USDT resides within the exchange, while the remaining balance is in staked USDT (stUSDT).
What raises suspicion is that Justin Sun has enabled staked USDT (stUSDT) a staking feature, which allows users to stake either USDT or TUSD (TrueUSD) to earn stUSDT, as reported by NewsBTC.
Allegations Mount Against Justin Sun
Instead of following the expected protocol of burning staked assets to claim the cash and take it offline, these funds are redirected to Justin Sun’s addresses or utilized to support JustLend, a lending platform associated with the Huobi ecosystem.
Contrary to Huobi’s claim that it burns the stUSDT with Tether, Cochran’s investigation reveals that the counterparties for USDT on Huobi are the exchange’s deposit wallets or Binance.
This suggests that Justin Sun may utilize USDT from user balances on Huobi to generate stUSDT, subsequently leveraging the underlying USDT to support JustLend or repurchase TUSD on Binance.
Cochran concludes that this complex financial arrangement, including TUSD deposits into stUSDT, effectively mints “fake assets” against an unknown equity.
As a result, Cochran estimates that Justin Sun’s alleged debt to users across the Huobi and Tron ecosystems amounts to approximately $2.4 billion, all while users remain unaware of the situation.
Huobi has not yet formally responded to these allegations, leaving the situation’s outcome uncertain. However, the possibility of Huobi’s insolvency raises significant concerns regarding the security of user funds and the overall trustworthiness of the exchange.
It remains to be seen how this situation will develop and what actions will be taken to address these concerns effectively.
Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com
CZ appoints Binance security team to track Huobi HTX stolen funds
To minimize the damage, HTX proactively offered 5% of the drained funds as a “white-hat bonus,” which would amount to nearly $400,000.
Crypto Exchange HTX Lost $8M of Ether Due to a Hack, Justin Sun Says
HTX, formerly Huobi, has been hacked with the total loss totaling 500 ether (ETH) worth around $8 million, according to HTX advisor and Tron founder Justin Sun.
Huobi Global Faces Risks As Investments In stUSDT Surge To $1.8 Billion
Huobi Global, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange, is at risk as investments in the staked USDT (stUSDT) project soar to $1.8 billion. The project, spearheaded by crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, promises 5% returns tied to low-risk securities like government bonds.
However, according to a Bloomberg report, Huobi’s heavy involvement in the project raises concerns about the exchange’s ability to manage sudden outflows of funds and the transparency of its reserves.
Huobi’s Association With stUSDT Sparks Concerns And Triggers Institutional Withdrawals
Per the report, Huobi’s close association with the stUSDT project has led to a significant transformation in the exchange’s crypto reserves.
Altering by this shift and the lack of transparency surrounding stUSDT, institutional traders have withdrawn a substantial portion of their crypto holdings from Huobi.
This withdrawal trend highlights the potential risks of Huobi’s concentration on the stUSDT platform. Notably, blockchain research firms have expressed concerns about the relative lack of transparency surrounding the stUSDT project.
The absence of comprehensive information about its investments raises questions about the source and sustainability of the advertised 4.2% yield. Huobi’s reliance on the project exposes the exchange to problems that may arise within stUSDT, further magnifying its potential vulnerabilities.
As investments in stUSDT have grown, Huobi’s Tether (USDT) reserves have plummeted, raising further concerns. While Huobi maintains that stUSDT is a separate project not overseen by the exchange, the heavy concentration of stUSDT in its reserves implies that Huobi’s fortunes are closely linked to the success or failure of the project.
The dominance of tokens associated with Justin Sun, such as TRON (TRX) and Huobi Token (HT), in Huobi’s reserves adds another risk layer, as market participants could perceive it as a higher exchange risk.
Huobi Global’s Average Daily Trading Volume Plummets
Institutional clients, including crypto funds and market makers, have expressed concerns about the dominance of stUSDT and other tokens associated with Justin Sun in Huobi’s reserves.
According to Bloomberg, these clients have withdrawn a significant portion of their digital assets from the exchange shortly after the launch of the staked Tether project. This departure from Huobi has contributed to a decline in the exchange’s average daily trading volume.
The stUSDT project’s rapid growth and lack of transparency raise questions about its underlying investments and the sustainability of its returns. Investors and industry experts emphasize the importance of increased transparency and oversight to understand the sources of yield and mitigate potential risks.
Per the report, the project’s management team intends to engage a reputable third-party verification entity to enhance community oversight. However, further details about the project’s structure and employees remain scarce.
What is certain is that Huobi Global’s involvement in the stUSDT project has significantly impacted the composition of its reserves, raising concerns among institutional traders and industry experts.
The heavy concentration of stUSDT, TRX, and HT tokens in Huobi’s reserves and the lack of transparency surrounding the project pose potential risks to the exchange’s financial stability.
To alleviate these concerns, greater transparency and oversight are essential, ensuring the sustainability and credibility of the stUSDT project and Huobi’s operations in the evolving crypto landscape.
Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView.com
Huobi’s new name HTX raises community eyebrows
Huobi’s new name HTX stands for exchange, the blockchain project Tron and the company’s 10th anniversary.
Tron’s Justin Sun Mulls Over Making A Move On FTX’s Crypto Stash, Here’s Why
In a completely unexpected move, Justin Sun, Founder of Tron and Advisor to Huobi Global has expressed his interest in acquiring FTX’s considerable crypto assets worth billions of dollars.
Justin Sun Considers Making A Bid For FTX Crypto Assets
Justin Sun, Creator of Tron, one of the world’s largest blockchain ecosystems, has hinted at the possibility of acquiring the assets of insolvent crypto exchange FTX. This statement comes a year after the crypto billionaire was contemplating a majority takeover of Huobi Global.
According to data from Messari, a provider of market intelligence products, FTX liquidations hold a total of $1.3 billion in liquid crypto assets excluding stablecoins. The report revealed some of the largest holdings for FTX liquidators which include cryptocurrencies like Solana (SOL), Ethereum (ETH), Aptos (APT), Dogecoin (DOGE), Tron (TRX), and Polygon (MATIC).
Given the considerable holdings, there have been fears that the market could witness a crash if the exchange were to start dumping its crypto assets. In response to this, Sun revealed in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) that he was considering the possibility of purchasing FTX holdings.
The Tron Founder explained that the reason behind it was to reduce their selling influence on the crypto market.
“Contemplating an offer for FTX’s holding tokens and assets to reduce their selling impact on the crypto community. Let’s unite to bolster our crypto ecosystem,” Sun stated.
However, data from Messari revealed that FTX and Alameda’s BTC holdings, which are approximately $353 million, account for only 1% of BTC’s weekly trading volume, meaning the crypto market can easily handle selling impacts.
Whereas, FTX’s crypto holdings such as DOGE, TRX, and MATIC which range from $20 million to $30 million account for 6-12% of weekly trading volumes, and liquidations could significantly impact the crypto market.
Most of FTX’s SOL are also locked up in Alameda and FTX ventures, and they have a unique liquidation pattern, which allows only $9.2 million SOL to be unlocked every month. This monthly liquidation system allows selling impacts of FTX’s Solana holdings to be easily managed.
FTX Insolvency Court Case Still Ongoing
On November 11, 2022, FTX and a number of its affiliates filed for bankruptcy in Delaware, United States. At the time, the exchange owed a staggering $8 billion after it collapsed due to a liquidity crisis.
The crypto exchange is currently under investigation by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) while its Founder and CEO, Sam Bankman Fried was charged on 13 accounts for alleged illegal proceedings he performed in FTX, five of which were later withdrawn in June.
FTX liquidators are currently scheduled for a hearing on Wednesday, September 13. The result of the hearing may see the liquidators given clearance to begin liquidations immediately.
A recent court filing has also revealed that the bankrupt crypto exchange still holds assets worth $7 billion. Some of these assets include digital assets, venture investments, and reclaimed properties.
Justin Sun: The Next Do Kwon or Sam Bankman-Fried?
Post-Hack Shenanigans: Curve (CRV) To Launch On TRON Following $2 Million Investment
Curve Finance, a decentralized liquidity pool for stableswap and stablecoin trading, has disclosed a strategic partnership that will see the decentralized exchange (DEX) launch on the TRON network.
Curve Set To Launch On Tron And BTTC Networks
Decentralized Exchange, Curve Finance has solidified its position as the second largest DEX, following the announcement of its integration into the TRON network.
Curve Finance’s recent alliance with the TRON network has prompted a substantial investment from TRON DAO Ventures, a venture capital firm established by the TRON network. On Thursday, August 17, TRON Founder, Justin Sun purchased $2 million worth of CRV, the native token of the DeFi protocol.
Similarly, Curve Finance has stated that it will be launching on the BitTorrent Chain (BTTC) network, a peer-to-peer network blockchain scaling solution for file and data sharing. The Integration of the protocol into TRON DAO and BTTC networks aims to fuel the development of innovative DeFi projects and the growth of DeFi ecosystems.
Curve Finance is widely known for its role in stable coin trading by providing low slippage exchanges through automated market maker (AMM) algorithms. By aligning with the protocol, TRON and BTTC will benefit from lower financial costs and indirect backing from prominent blockchains Curve DAO supports including Avalanche, Ethereum, and Arbitrum.
Justin Sun welcomed the newly formed alliance with enthusiasm. He commented that Curve Finance plays a pivotal role in the DeFi ecosystem and blockchain industry and looked forward to new innovative solutions promoted by the partnership.
“Curve is an essential DeFi infrastructure for the blockchain industry. Our thoughts are with the team and the users affected. As a community, let’s support and strengthen the security measures to protect our decentralized ecosystem,” Sun stated.
Compensation For Hack Victims Following Tron Alliance
The decentralized finance (DeFi) landscape was previously shaken up following news of a hack on the DEX. On July 30, Curve Finance fell victim to a reentrancy attack that exploited vulnerabilities in its smart contract codes, resulting in a loss of $62 million.
Following the news of the hack attack, the CRV token declined and the majority of the DeFi ecosystem was in panic. However, Curve Finance has reportedly recovered 70% of the funds and to recover the rest of the stolen funds, the protocol has placed a bounty on the attacker, promising $1.85 million to anyone able to reveal the hacker’s identity.
Curve Finance has also promised to compensate victims of the security breach. The DEX has stated that it will distribute reimbursements fairly as they determine the extent of damages and work toward recovering the stolen funds.
Binance drops majority of USD Coin reserves — Latest USDC news
This week’s episode of The Market Report explores the reasons why Binance let go of a majority of its USDC reserves and what it replaced them with.
