WazirX exchange hacked for $235 million

After a $230 million "suspicious transfer", Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX has paused withdrawals and acknowledged that one of their multisignature wallets was compromised. The attacker began selling off the tokens, causing the price of tokens like Shiba Inu to drop around 10%.

WazirX is the largest cryptocurrency exchange in India. The company was acquired by Binance in 2019, but the two companies re-separated in 2023 after a bizarre public dispute.

WazirX's June 2024 proof-of-reserves reported around $500 million in total holdings, making the $235 million theft a substantial portion of the assets held at the exchange.

Blockchain sleuth zachxbt observed that the theft had some of the hallmarks of the Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking group that has perpetrated other 9-figure heists including the $625 million Axie Infinity theft in March 2022, and the theft of more than $100 million from Atomic Wallet users.