Biggest Crypto Theft Ever? Hackers Steal £1.1 Billion In Record-Breaking Heist

Bybit, one of the world’s most prominent exchanges, was hacked yesterday. This attack has resulted in the loss of $1.5 billion (£1.1 Billion) worth of tokens sending a shockwave through the crypto world, making it the biggest crypto heist of the century.

This article will explore this hacking, how it occurred, and the Lazarus group, who are the primary suspects. Furthermore, we will also look into the market implications and industry response following the incident.

Bybit Hacked 

On February 21, 2025, Bybit a widely known and reputed exchange, faced a security breach that culminated in the loss of approximately $1.5 million (£1.1 Billion) in digital currency. This hack is now considered one of the largest crypto hacks of the decade, surpassing even the Ronin Network hack in March 2022, resulting in the loss of over $650 million in assets.

In response to the breach, Bybit’s team has conveyed that the incident has not majorly affected them further adding that “Bybit is solvent even if the hack loss is not recovered, all of the client assets are 1 to 1 backed, we can cover the loss”.

The incident has not only affected the Bybit exchange but has also managed to send major shockwaves through the crypto community. It has also raised concerns regarding the security measures employed by the exchanges to protect their users’ assets.

How Did The Attackers Breach Bybit

The hacking behind the Bybit exchange was meticulously planned and executed. The hackers gained access to one of Bybit’s Ethereum cold wallets during one of the transfer processes conducted between its cold wallet and hot wallet, managing to steal approximately 401,347 ETH, along with significant amounts of staked Ethre, MegaETH, and some other tokens.

The hackers transferred these assets to an unauthorized external wallet and managed to do so by masking their signing interface and manipulating the transaction. The initial investigation regarding the hack has revealed that the hackers utilized sophisticated phishing techniques to bypass security protocols.

Once they entered the system, the attackers carefully exploited vulnerabilities in the multi-signature authentication process of the exchange and granted approvals for mass transfer of assets without raising any alerts in the system. This mass-theft and well-planned nature of its execution signals that the attackers had intensive knowledge of Bybit’s operational processes and security measures.

Lazarus Group Suspected

The investigative evidence so far suggested the involvement of the Lazarus group, a state-sponsored hacking organization allegedly linked to North Korea. The Lazarus Group is well-known for conducting several such high-profile crypto heists. It was the blockchain investigator ZachXBT who identified several patterns related to the Lazarus group’s MO.

The Lazarus group is also associated with several other exchange heists, including the ones on the Coincheck and KuCoin exchanges. These supposed implications surrounding the Lazarus group have greatly brought into question the state-empowered hacker groups and how geopolitical tensions could result in further such hacks in the future.

Market Implication & Industry Response

The Bybit hack had a significant impact on the broader crypto market. Following the hacking incident, Bybit Exchange has confirmed that there were many active withdrawals from their platform. So, far from the latest reports, about 70% of withdrawal requests have been processed with the rest in the process due to network congestion issues.

Apart from this, the volatility of the market shot straight up, especially with ETH dropping about 4% and hitting a price of $2,688.10. Various market analysts speculate that Bybit might need to buy back some ETH to compensate for the loss of assets on its user’s part. For further updates regarding the matter, stay tuned.