Huobi’s ‘Heco’ chain bridge drained of $87M in crypto assets
The HTX exchange has been hit by a security breach, similar to the recent Poloniex hack
The bridge connecting the HTX exchange (formerly Huobi) and Ethereum was exploited for approximately $87 million in crypto assets early Wednesday.
Large quantities of ether, tether (USDT) and a wrapped version of bitcoin (HBTC) were seen leaving the bridge for a previously unused Ethereum wallet.
The suspicious transactions were first analyzed by various blockchain security firms including CertiK, Peckshield and Cyvers.
According to CertiK, the bridge’s private key was likely compromised.
“The suspicious transactions were initiated by the Huobi HECO Bridge operator wallet indicating that this wallet was compromised,” a CertiK spokesperson told Blockworks.
Read more: Crypto exchange HTX loses $8M in weekend hack
Various other ERC-20 tokens were drained, swapped for ether, and distributed to at least 8 other wallets.
Two hot wallets of HTX Global (formerly Huobi) lost funds, according to Cyvers. Board member Justin Sun confirmed the incident on X.
“HTX and Heco Cross-Chain Bridge Undergo Hacker Attack. HTX Will Fully Compensate for HTX’s hot wallet Losses,” Sun said .
Justin Sun assumed control over the Huobi Eco Chain in October 2022, Bloomberg previously reported, although Sun denied he owns a majority stake. He referred to it as a merger with the Tron and BitTorrent Chain ecosystems, which he also controls.
The primary purpose of the HECO bridge is to enable the movement of digital assets between the Huobi Eco Chain and other blockchain networks, such as Ethereum .
The HECO hack is not an isolated incident but rather part of a pattern of security lapses in blockchain projects associated with Sun. Poloniex, an exchange acquired by Sun, suffered a $100 million exploit two weeks ago , which security analysts believe also may have resulted from compromised private keys.
Poloniex officials have been in the process of negotiating with the hacker in that case.
It’s not yet clear if the two thefts are directly related.
Don’t miss the next big story – join our free daily newsletter .
- bridges
- Ethereum
- hack
- Huobi
- wallets
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
You may also like
David Sacks Won't Be Trump's AI and Crypto Czar; Here's What It's All About
Tether invests $775 million in video platform Rumble
XRP on the Rise: Trump Investment Rumors Boost Token’s Appreciation
Sonic Chain Hits Major Block Milestone, Here Are Crucial Stats