UK Crypto Exchange EXMO Says $4M of Hacked Funds Was Through Poloniex

EXMO has confirmed an estimated $4 million of cryptocurrency was stolen through the exchange Poloniex during a hack on Dec. 21.

AccessTimeIconDec 25, 2020 at 4:59 p.m. UTC
Updated Aug 19, 2021 at 6:20 a.m. UTC

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Cryptocurrency exchange EXMO said an estimated $4 million of the cryptocurrency stolen during a hack on Dec. 21 was through the exchange Poloniex.  

  • The U.K.-based platform has estimated that a total of 6% of its cryptocurrency has been lost to the attack with an estimated $4 million being withdrawn through Poloniex. The dollar figure of what was lost overall in the hack wasn't immediately known.
  • The exchange said assets cannot be recovered by EXMO due to criminals withdrawing the funds through Poloniex. 
  • “$1 million in ZEC [zcash] stolen from EXMO have been withdrawn through the Poloniex crypto exchange,” an EXMO spokesperson told CoinDesk Friday.
  • On the day of the attack, EXMO said it had contacted cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex with a request to block an associated account and informed London police about the breach.
  • EXMO reported losses in six of the 57 cryptocurrencies it supports including ethereum classic. Each digital asset is hosted on its own server, the firm said.
  • The platform said it hopes to soon be able to fully reinstate withdrawals and deposit functions on its exchange, which has resumed most of its work.
  • “We are making some final preparations and checks at the moment before enabling depositing and withdrawing on EXMO. It will soon be ready,” said the EXMO spokesperson. 
  • EXMO stressed that those users affected by the incident will be covered by the exchange.
  • Poloniex did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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