On February 2, 2022, the Wormhole Network’s ethereum – solana bridge was exploited for 120,000 WETH (wrapped ethereum) worth $320 million and the following day, the team explained that “all funds have been restored and Wormhole is back up.” The team has also said a “detailed incident report” will be published soon.
An attacker managed to siphon 120,000 WETH from the Wormhole Network’s ethereum – solana bridge on Wednesday. The wrapped ethereum was worth $320 million when it was stolen and the Wormhole team had paused the network.
When the funds were stolen, the Wormhole Deployer left an onchain message for the attacker that asked if they would return the funds for a $10 million bug bounty.
The Wormhole team announced on Twitter the next day that the exploit had occurred and that the crypto funds were being reimbursed.
“All funds have been restored and Wormhole is back up,” the team tweeted at 8: 39 a.m. on Thursday morning (EST). We are deeply grateful for your support. Thank you for your patience. The team is working on a detailed incident report and will share it ASAP.”
The Wormhole team says that the contract was exploited for 120,000 coins at 18: 26 UTC, and at 00: 33 UTC, “[the] vulnerability was patched.” Furthermore, at 13: 08 UTC, “[the] ETH contract has been filled and all wETH are backed 1:1″ and at “13: 29 UTC the Portal (token bridge) is back up.”
The Wormhole Network’s ethereum – solana bridge lets both ETH and SOL users cross chains in a bi-directional manner.
Cross-chain bridge technology has been a big theme in 2021 and into 2022, with a myriad of blockchains interacting with the Ethereum network or with alternative smart contract blockchains.
While the Wormhole team did not publicly disclose how the funds were returned in their Twitter message, it seems the digital assets firm and Wormhole’s parent company Jump Crypto replenished Wormhole’s losses, according to a statement the firm published on Twitter.
“[Jump Crypto] believes in a multichain future and that [Wormhole] is essential infrastructure. That’s why we replaced 120K ETH to make community members whole and support Wormhole now as it continues to develop,” the Jump Crypto Twitter account said.
What do you think about the Wormhole Network exploit and Jump Crypto replenishing the ethereum? Please comment below to let us know your thoughts on this topic.
Jamie Redman
Jamie Redman, a journalist and financial tech expert living in Florida, is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. Redman is passionate about Bitcoin, open-source codes, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 5,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.
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Ethereum Price Analysis: ETH Gains 9% Weekly But The Road to $4K Has These Obstacles
Ethereum is showing strong bullish momentum, driven by an influx of buyers. However, as the price nears a significant resistance level at $4K, market participants should anticipate a period of consolidation with the potential for heightened volatility. Technical Analysis By Shayan The Weekly Chart Ethereum has experienced an impulsive uptrend… Read More
Selling ETH for BTC: Leading Chinese Gaming Firm Converts
Boyaa Interactive, a leading Chinese gaming firm on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, has reallocated a significant portion of its crypto assets from Ethereum to Bitcoin.
As per a November 29 filing, the company reported converting 14,200 ETH into approximately 515 BTC in an open-market deal worth more than $49 million. The Ethereum had been acquired at an average cost of $2,777 per ETH, totaling $39.45 million.
Following the transaction, Boyaa now holds 3,183 BTC, with an average purchase price of $57,724 per coin.
The company emphasized that the move is in line with its strategy to expand its Bitcoin reserves, considering the market outlook for both Ethereum and Bitcoin. According to the board, converting existing Ether holdings into is a timely decision.
In March, Boyaa announced the approval of a $100 million initiative to allocate $45 million of corporate funds to Bitcoin, $45 million to Ethereum, and $10 million to stablecoins such as Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC.
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed firm disclosed a $1 million investment in the UTXO Management Bitcoin Ecosystem Fund in July. UTXO, interestingly, is the asset management partner of BTC Inc., a key player in the Bitcoin ecosystem that owns Bitcoin Magazine and hosts the Bitcoin Conference.
The latest development as Bitcoin gains traction in corporate investment portfolios, with Rumble, the renowned online streaming platform, revealing its decision to diversify its cash reserves by investing in Bitcoin.
The company’s Board of Directors has authorized an allocation of up to $20 million in BTC, allowing for flexible purchasing. Similarly, Jiva Technologies, a wellness and plant-based e-commerce company, has also committed to Bitcoin, securing approval for a strategy involving investments of up to $1 million.
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Huge Bitcoin Volatility, Ethereum Picks Up Speed, Ripple Bull Run Goes On: This Week’s Crypto Recap
It was a crazy week in the cryptocurrency industry, filled with a lot of volatility, a resurgance that the entire community was debating about, as well as the story of the underdog coming back at it. Let’s dive in.
First, we have Bitcoin. Its price tried to breach $100K last weekend on numerous occasions, but it turned out that the sell wall there was just too big for the bulls to overcome. That ultimately took its toll, and the price crashed, reaching almost $90K during the week. That’s when things started to get funny. The sentiment was completely from less than a week ago when BTC breached $90K for the first time.
Nevertheless, the price didn’t spend much time at these lows as the bulls were quick to regroup and started pushing forward. At the time of this writing, BTC is trading at around $97K and many are already calling for $100K to be breached this time around.
Another interesting turn is Ethereum’s performance throughout the past seven days. Now, you have to understand that many in the community have been making fun of ETH for being the slow runner throughout this bull run and failing to keep up. This week, however, it’s up by more than 8% and it appears that it’s looking at it’s next target at $3.7K.
But the best performer of them all throughout the past seven days was Ripple’s XRP. The cryptocurrency has been on an absolute tear throughout the past month, and it has even managed to flip BNB for the spot of the 5th largest coin by means of total market capitalization, albeit marginally as of yet.
It’s interesting to see how things will turn in the next couple of weeks, but it appears that the market remains as heated as ever.
MicroStrategy Breaks its Own Record: Another Massive Purchase for 55,500 BTC (Worth $5.4B). The business intelligence company has increased its Bitcoin holdings to 386,700 BTC, following a record-breaking purchase of 55,500 BTC worth $5.4 billion at an average price of $97,862. The company’s total crypto stash, acquired for nearly $22 billion, is now valued at around $37.6 billion, yielding over $15 billion in paper profit.
WisdomTree Files for Ripple (XRP) in Delaware. The entity has filed initial paperwork in Delaware to launch an XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF), marking the first step toward regulatory approval, with an S-1 registration required to proceed. While the filing reflects growing interest in altcoin ETFs, significant regulatory challenges could delay approvals.
Solana’s Pump.fun Halts Livestream Function After Disturbing Content Sparks Outrage. The Solana-based meme coin generator, has suspended its livestream functionality indefinitely to address inappropriate content and enhance moderation systems. The decision follows incidents of disturbing behavior on its platform, prompting the team to prioritize user safety and transparency while improving content control measures
TORN Surges 400% as Court Rules Against US Treasury Sanctions on Tornado Cash. The federal appeals court ruled that Tornado Cash’s smart contracts cannot be sanctioned as “property,” overturning the Treasury Department’s 2022 ruling against the crypto mixer. This decision was followed by a massive price resurgence for the underlying cryptocurrency.
MARA Boosts BTC Holdings to $3.3 Billion Through $1B Convertible Note Offering. MARA, formerly known as Marathon Digital, has expanded its Bitcoin holdings to 34,797 BTC (valued at $3.3 billion) after purchasing 6,474 BTC in November using proceeds from a $1 billion convertible note offering. The mining company plans to issue an additional $700 million in convertible notes for further Bitcoin acquisitions and corporate purposes, mirroring MicroStrategy’s debt-fueled BTC buying strategy.
Global Stablecoin Supply Hits New All-Time High. The total market capitalization of the stablecoin sector has reached a record $191.6 billion, with Tether (USDT) dominating 69% of the market and USD Coin (USDC) accounting for 21%. The figure represents a 50% increase since January 2024, driven by growing demand and bullish sentiment in the broader crypto market.
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