Stolen Bitcoin worth $100 Million Moved from Bitfinex

About $100 million in Bitcoin, stolen from crypto exchange Bitfinex, were recently moved by the hackers. The total funds stolen in 2016 are now worth $2.3 billion. This is the first time since August that the stolen funds have moved.

Unknown hackers move the coins

Funds stolen from the crypto exchange Bitfinex move occasionally. On Monday, the unknown hackers moved around 5,000 Bitcoins from 14 wallets. The exact figure is 5045.48 coins worth around $98.3 million. These Bitcoins haven’t moved from the wallets since the 2016 hack.

The exchange was hacked in 2016 after its multi-signature wallets faced issues. Several users lost their Bitcoin even after using 2-factor authentication. The hack caused the price of Bitcoin to drop by 20% from $600 to $400. Bitfinex had to offer a 36% haircut to all their customers following the hack. They were also given a BFX token that could be redeemed for shares in its parent company iFinex.

The Bitcoin stolen from the exchange is worth $2.3 billion according to current prices. In August, the hackers moved stolen coins worth $5.6 million.

Awakening of Bitcoin

Some Bitcoin wallets have been sleeping with Bitcoin for years. When Bitcoins from these wallets move, it is called ‘awakening.’ Some of this Bitcoin is also “Satoshi-era” which means that it was mined when Satoshi Nakamoto had not gone in hiding.

While such a big movement of Bitcoin is not uncommon, Monday’s shifting is connected to hacking. Bitfinex has even offered a $400 million reward to anyone who can help it contact the hackers. The exchange noted at the time,

“This incident is a dark chapter in our exchange’s history, and we are pleased to offer this reward as further evidence of our determination to obtain the lost property.”

The exchange even offered hackers to keep 25% of the stolen funds, offering 5% to anyone connecting with the hackers. The identity of the hackers is not known to date.