Crypto sector rallies behind Bybit, responds to $1.4b breach

Major cryptocurrency firms have launched a coordinated defense following Bybit’s recent security incident.

The exchange’s CEO, Ben Zhou, announced that multiple industry leaders have joined forces to track, contain, and minimize the impact of the exploit.

The response has united both centralized and decentralized finance sectors, with key infrastructure providers implementing immediate protective measures.

Orbiter, deBridge, SynFutures, MYX, Thruster, and Owlto moved quickly to blacklist addresses linked to the exploit. Chainalysis has provided crucial support by tracking and publishing the attacker’s wallet addresses.

Several blockchain security firms strengthened the defensive effort. SIS cross-chain bridge blocked associated addresses to prevent asset laundering, while Zero Shadows activated its round-the-clock Global Response team to assist with bad actor tracing and law enforcement communications.

Institutional traders show support to Bybit

Market stability received crucial support from institutional traders, with TMSI, Bayside Trading, Mathrix, Wintermute, Cumberland, and GSR Markets maintaining their trading positions.

Additional backing came from major industry players including Antalpha Global, Bitget, Pionex, MEXC, Galaxy Digital, FalconX, and leading DeFi protocols Lido Finance and Solana Foundation.

“While this has been a challenging period for Bybit, our partners have demonstrated unwavering support,” Zhou stated. “Their trust and quick action speak volumes about the maturity and resilience of this industry.” He emphasized that the incident has revealed the cryptocurrency sector’s ability to unite against common threats.

The exchange has also received support from its user base, with VIP clients and retail traders showing patience as Bybit improves its security infrastructure. Zhou also stated: “This defining moment proves crypto’s strongest players stand together when it matters most.”

Bybit has also announced a major recovery bounty program offering up to 10% of recovered funds following the cryptocurrency theft.

“Within 24 hours of the event, we were overwhelmed with support from some of the best people and organizations in the industry, and we do not take it for granted. We have shared in a dark moment of crypto history, and we’ve proven we are better than the malicious actors,” Zhou said.

He emphasized Bybit’s commitment to strengthening security and liquidity while fostering industry-wide collaboration.

So far, on-chain investigator ZachXBT identified North Korea’s Lazarus Group as the masterminds behind the hack.

The investigation shared that hackers exploited Bybit’s Ethereum (ETH) multisig cold wallet during a routine transfer to the exchange’s warm wallet.

The attackers manipulated the signing interface, making it display the correct wallet address while altering the underlying smart contract logic.

Lazarus Group is also linked to last year’s DMM Bitcoin Exchange Hack. In May, Japan-based DMM Bitcoin suffered a security breach resulting in the theft of approximately $305 million.

Last July, India’s WazirX exchange was compromised, leading to a loss of about $235 million. This incident was also linked to the Lazarus.