Bitfinex Returns $312K & 6.917 BCH Stolen in 2016 Hack
Overview
• The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has returned $312,219.71 in cash and 6.917 Bitcoin Cash (BCH) to cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex.
• In February 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice apprehended Ilya Lichtenstein and his wife, Heather Morgan, on charges of conspiring to launder cryptocurrencies connected to the hack.
• Efforts to recover the remaining stolen funds are still underway, as authorities continue their pursuit of justice in the Bitfinex case.
Background
In 2016, a security breach inflicted a substantial loss on Bitfinex, resulting in the theft of 119,576 Bitcoins from customers worth around $70 million at that time but now valued approximately at $3.7 billion. Following the security breach, Bitfinex issued Recovery Rights Tokens (RRTs) with a par value of $1 each for victims of the hack which currently have 30 million RRTs in circulation.
U.S Government Returns Assets To Bitfinex
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in collaboration with U.S Customs and Border Protection have successfully seized and returned $312,219.71 in cash and 6.917 Bitcoin Cash (BCH) to cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex which is part of its ongoing efforts to recover assets stolen from the exchange in August 2016 along with prosecuting individuals involved in the theft and seizing funds associated with it.
Bitfinex Redeems RRTs & Allocates Remaining Funds
Bitfinex will distribute the recovered assets on a pro-rated basis for redemption of Recovery Rights Tokens (RRTs). Any remaining funds after redemption will be allocated to token holders of Unus Sed Leo (Leo), Bitfinex’s native token as part of its commitment towards recovering lost assets due to 2016’s hack incident on its platform .
Conclusion
The recent seizure and return of funds by DHS is an important step for recovery efforts by Bitfinex from its 2016 security breach while authorities continue their investigation into apprehending those responsible for it along with any other remaining stolen assets yet to be recovered by law enforcement agencies .