Japanese crypto exchange Bitpoint hacked, lost $32 million

Hacks • July 12, 2019, 2:05AM EDT
UPDATED: July 12, 2019, 4:51AM EDT
The Block

Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Bitpoint has announced today that it has been hacked, losing about 3.5 billion yen ($32 million) in cryptocurrencies, including XRP.

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The funds were stolen from "hot wallets," and out of 3.5 billion yen, about 2.5 billion yen belonged to customers, and the remaining to the exchange itself, according to the announcement.

Bitpoint said it identified “an unauthorized outflow of virtual currency” last night and immediately suspended all its services. The exchange offers trading in five cryptocurrencies - bitcoin (BTC), bitcoin cash (BCH), ether (LTC), litecoin (LTC) and XRP.

“We are working hard to find out the cause, identify the outflow, and minimize damage,” it added.

Just last month, Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitrue suffered a hack, losing about $4.3 million in XRP and Cardano (ADA) tokens.

Today’s Bitpoint hack marks this year’s sixth breach, and the total amount stolen from cryptocurrency exchanges to date now stands at nearly $1.39 billion, according to The Block’s research.

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Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.

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