In the wake of the massive security breach resulting in the theft of approximately $1.4 billion worth of Ethereum (ETH), cryptocurrency exchange Bybit has announced a substantial bounty program. The Dubai-based platform is offering up to $140 million—equivalent to 10% of the stolen assets—to individuals who can provide actionable information leading to the recovery of the pilfered funds.
On February 21, 2025, Bybit experienced one of the largest security breaches in cryptocurrency history, with hackers siphoning off around 401,000 ETH from the exchange’s cold wallet. The attack occurred during a routine transfer between wallets, where the perpetrators exploited vulnerabilities to redirect the funds to unknown addresses. In response, Bybit’s CEO, Ben Zhou, assured users of the platform’s solvency and commitment to covering any losses, emphasizing that customer assets remain secure and fully backed.
Bounty Program Details
To expedite the recovery process, Bybit has launched a Recovery Bounty Program, pledging up to 10% of the retrieved assets as a reward for information leading to their return. This initiative aims to engage the global cybersecurity community, ethical hackers, and anyone with pertinent knowledge to assist in tracing and reclaiming the stolen Ethereum. The substantial bounty underscores Bybit’s determination to resolve the situation swiftly and deter future malicious activities.
“As part of the investigation and recovery efforts, Bybit is pledging 10% of recovered funds to reward ethical cyber and network security experts who play an active role in retrieving the stolen cryptocurrencies in the incident.” The exchange wrote on its website.
Arkham Awards $34K Bounty for Tracing Bybit Hackers
Crypto analytics firm Arkham yesterday, awarded a $34,000 bounty to renowned blockchain sleuth ZachXBT for his pivotal role in tracing the recent $1.4 billion Bybit hack back to North Korea’s notorious Lazarus Group. ZachXBT’s investigation, which earned him 50,000 ARKM tokens, played a crucial role in exposing the state-sponsored hacking collective responsible for the attack.
According to ZachXBT, the Lazarus Group has already begun laundering a portion of the stolen funds, moving around 5,000 ETH—valued at approximately $13.7 million—through various channels in an attempt to obfuscate the trail. Despite these efforts, the crypto community and security firms are rallying to recover as much of the stolen assets as possible.
Two notable recoveries have already been reported:
- mETH Protocol successfully intercepted and halted a withdrawal of 15,000 cmETH (worth about $43.5 million) from one of the hacker’s wallets. The funds were redirected to a secure recovery address, preventing them from being laundered further.
- Tether’s CEO Paolo Ardoino confirmed that the company froze $181,000 USDT linked to the hack. This move reflects the growing cooperation between centralized platforms and blockchain investigators in mitigating damage from large-scale hacks.
Quick Facts:
- World’s second largest exchange, Bybit hacked in what has become the worlds largest crypto theft.
- Approximately 401,000 ETH, valued at $1.4 billion
- Up to $140 million for information leading to fund recovery
- Bybit confirms all customer assets are secure and fully backed
