Japanese Cryptocurrency Exchange Hacked, $59 Million in Losses Reported

Published at: Sept. 19, 2018

Hackers have reportedly stolen $59 million worth of cryptocurrencies from Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Zaif, Cointelegraph Japan reports September 19.

According to a local report, as a result of a security breach on September 14, hackers managed to steal 4.5 billion yen from users' hot wallets, as well as 2.2 billion yen from the assets of the company, with total losses amounting to 6.7 billion yen or around $59.7 million.

Tech Bureau Inc, which operated Zaif, stated in press release that the exchange detected a server error on September 17, after which Zaif suspended deposits and withdrawals. On September 18, the exchange realized that the error was a hack, and reported the incident to the Japanese financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA). Hackers stole 5,966 bitcoins (BTC) in addition to some Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and MonaCoin (MONA).

According to Tech Bureau Inc, the firm Fisco Digital Asset Group will help Zaif cover lost customer assets by providing 5 billion yen ($44.5 million). Tech Bureau made an agreement with Fisco to dismiss more than half of its directors and corporate auditors in addition to Fisco becoming a majority shareholder in the company.

Zaif exchange is the 101st largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of trade volume, according to CoinMarketCap.

Earlier this year, Zaif admitted to a “system glitch” that allowed users to temporarily acquire trillions of dollars worth of Bitcoin (BTC) for free in February. 16 customers were accidentally able to “trade” yen for cryptocurrency at a rate of 0 yen per coin.

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Cryptocurrencies
Japan
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