Phemex

History

2025: Theft of $69 million as a result of hacking

On January 23, 2025 Singapore , the cryptocurrency-based platform Phemex was to cyber attack subjected to at least $69 million in digital assets stolen. Due to the hack, the site was forced to stop work.

Researchers at blockchain security company Cyvers initially noticed suspicious cryptocurrency transactions on the Phemex platform worth approximately $29 million. First, the attackers stole funds in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and stablecoins, and then switched to less popular digital assets. At the same time, attackers, fearing the freezing of stolen funds, quickly converted money to USDT and USDC to Ethereum.

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Фото: Freepik

According to blockchain researchers, in total, at least $16 million in Solana cryptocurrency, about $12 million in XRP and $5 million in Bitcoin were stolen during the attack. According to a number of experts, as noted by The Block, North Korean hackers may be behind the hacking of the Phemex platform. Given the number of transactions and the wide range of targeted blockchains, the attack, experts believe, was carried out by "a group of attackers who have already done this many times."

Phemex and the development team apologize for the failures. Our mission to provide a safe and reliable trading platform remains unchanged. We are working on a compensation plan that will be announced shortly, Phemex said in a statement.

It is noted that Phemex holds about $1.8 billion in crypto assets as of the end of January 2025. The bulk of this amount falls on its exchange token PT - about $1.1 billion. The platform has permission to work in the USA, Canada, Turkey and Lithuania, and the number of its users around the world exceeds 5 million.^[1]

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