Bybit’s $1.5 Billion Ethereum Hack: Crisis, Response, and Lessons Learned

In February 2025, Bybit, the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, suffered the largest crypto heist in history, losing approximately $1.5 billion worth of Ethereum. Despite the shocking breach, the exchange’s swift and comprehensive response has been widely praised, offering potential silver linings for the industry. This article explores the incident, Bybit’s mitigation efforts, and the broader implications for crypto security.

Bybit Hack: Does Crypto’s Biggest Heist Have A Silver Lining?

The cryptocurrency industry was left shell-shocked earlier this year when Bybit, the industry’s second-largest exchange platform based on trading volume, lost around $1.5 billion worth of Ethereum. The exchange fell victim to the biggest-ever crypto heist on February 21, but it immediately set about trying to mitigate the damage and recover as much of the funds as possible. It was widely praised for its comprehensive response to the attack, and has also been among the loudest voices urging the need for industry-wide security reform. Crypto analysts and security experts quickly unraveled how the hackers – suspected to be the North Korea-backed Lazarus Group – pulled off the attack, exploiting a vulnerability known as “blind signing”.

FBI Busts $24 Million Dark Web Crypto Laundering Operation

The FBI managed to bust a major Dark Web money laundering operation involving $24 million. The agency arrested ElonMuskWHM (real name Anurag Pramod Murarka) after he came to the US for medical treatment. This allowed the FBI to make subsequent arrests as Muraka laundered funds from drug traffickers, crypto hackers, and more. The operation highlighted a growing concern in the crypto community about criminal operations laundering huge volumes of money.