THORChain’s Unwanted Windfall from Bybit Hack

THORChain, a decentralized protocol for swapping cryptocurrencies across blockchains, experienced a significant increase in activity following the Bybit hack.

The protocol processed $4.66 billion in swaps for the week ending March 2, the highest on record, as per DefiLlama. On a single day, swaps surpassed $1 billion. This surge is attributed to a $1.4 billion hack on the Bybit exchange on February 22, where North Korean hackers exploited THORChain to swap and launder funds.

Blockchain analytics firm Nansen commented that funds were moved through a network of wallets, with each transaction reducing the value transferred. Starting from the initial hacker wallet, further hops included transactions with third-party entities, with THORChain seeing a significant inflow of volume.

CoinDesk reached out to THORChain for comments.

According to analyst EmberCN, hackers managed to launder all 499,000 ETH (approximately $1.39 billion) taken from Bybit in just ten days, generating record revenue for THORChain. The price of ETH reportedly fell 23% during the laundering process. THORChain’s role in this money-laundering scheme resulted in $5.9 billion in transaction volume and $5.5 million in handling fees.