Radiant Capital Hacker Nearly Doubles Stolen Funds with ETH Trading Frenzy

Radiant Capital's security breach just turned into a masterclass in crypto opportunism—the attacker nearly doubled their haul through some sharp ETH moves.

From Heist to Hedge Fund

After siphoning funds from the DeFi platform, the hacker didn’t just sit on the loot. They dove straight into trading, leveraging Ethereum’s volatility to amplify their gains. No hesitation, no remorse—just pure, calculated execution.

Numbers Don’t Lie

The original stolen amount ballooned by almost 100%, thanks to a series of well-timed ETH trades. It’s the kind of ROI that would make Wall Street blush—if Wall Street understood blockchain instead of still faxing memos.

DeFi’s Recurring Nightmare

This isn’t just another hack; it’s a reminder that in crypto, even criminals understand compounding better than most traditional finance suits. While banks debate fractional reserves, hackers are out here executing flawless risk-adjusted strategies.

From $53 million heist to $94 million stash

The October 2024 breach of Radiant Capital, a multi-chain decentralized finance protocol, was one of the most damaging attacks of the year. By compromising the multisignature wallet of its core team through a macOS-specific malware called INLETDRIFT, the attacker siphoned tokens from lending pools on Arbitrum (ARB) and BNB (BNB) Chain. 

At the time, the stolen assets were quickly converted into 21,957 ETH, then valued at about $53 million when Ethereum was trading NEAR $2,500. Rather than liquidating the holdings, the hacker held ETH as its price climbed. In recent weeks, the attacker executed several trades to increase exposure. 

Radiant Capital hack attribution and ongoing risks

The attack has been linked by some blockchain security experts to North Korea’s AppleJeus group, known for targeting exchanges and DeFi protocols. Radiant Capital worked with the FBI, Chainalysis, and Web3 security firms like SEAL911 and ZeroShadow after the hack, but recovery prospects remain slim as the funds continue to MOVE through Ethereum-based trading activity.

The October incident marked the second breach of Radiant in 2024, following a smaller $4.5 million flash loan exploit earlier that year. It underscored persistent security risks in DeFi, which has already seen significant losses in 2025.

With over $94 million now under control, the attacker’s next move will be closely watched by analysts and security teams.