Japanese cryptocurrency exchange DMM Bitcoin announced the theft of 4502.9 BTC, equivalent to about $304 million, from their wallets. The incident was recorded on May 31, with the unauthorized removal of bitcoins. An investigation is currently underway, and the company has taken steps to prevent further leaks and enhance security measures.
As a result of the theft, DMM Bitcoin has temporarily restricted several services on its platform, including new account registration, cryptocurrency withdrawals, spot auction purchases, and new positions for margin trading. The exchange has not disclosed details on how the theft occurred, but similar incidents in the past have involved accessing corporate systems or exploiting vulnerabilities in smart contracts and websites.
While deposits in bitcoins will be fully compensated by companies within the DMM group, withdrawals in Japanese yen may experience delays. The stolen BTCs have been divided and transferred to multiple new wallets, according to monitoring by Elliptic. This division of funds is likely an attempt to obfuscate the trail and evade detection when exchanging the stolen bitcoins for other cryptocurrencies.
The DMM Bitcoin theft ranks as the eighth largest in history and the largest since the hacking of over $400 million in November 2022. This unfortunate event serves as a reminder of the ongoing challenges faced by cryptocurrency exchanges in safeguarding digital assets against theft and cyberattacks.