In a startling turn of events, Shiba Inu (SHIB) has found itself at the epicenter of a major crypto heist, as hackers brazenly seized billions of SHIB tokens from the well-known cryptocurrency exchange, Poloniex. The incident witnessed the malefactors making off with a colossal 577 billion SHIB, valued at $4.74 million at the time of the breach.
Remarkably, the value of the purloined Shiba Inu tokens has seen an unexpected surge in the hours following the attack. With Shiba Inu recording an impressive gain of 6.2%, the 577 billion SHIB is now commanding a market value of around $5.15 million.
Shiba Inu Dominates Top Five With 64% Share in $114M Heist
Spot On Chain, a prominent cryptocurrency analytics firm, revealed that Shiba Inu ranked among the top five crypto assets, accounting for a staggering 64% of the total $114 million loot. The remaining top four assets on the list include 32.7 million USDT ($32.7 million), 443 Bitcoin ($16.5 million), and 6,103 ETH ($12.7 million).
The audacious hackers didn’t limit their heist to SHIB alone. Other cryptocurrencies, including XRP, TRX, OX, TUSD, ELON, USDD, FLOKI, LINK, GLM, PEPE, and MATIC, fell victim to the cyber onslaught.
Since the breach unfolded, the cybercriminals swiftly executed trades, converting a significant portion of the stolen tokens, including SHIB and stablecoins, into a whopping 14,825 ETH. This crypto maneuver is estimated to be worth approximately $30.34 million at the time of this report.
Poloniex, established in 2014 and later acquired by entrepreneur Justin Sun in 2019, has been a leading exchange allowing users to trade various crypto assets, from the ubiquitous Bitcoin to the recently popular Shiba Inu. Despite suffering a colossal $114 million heist, Poloniex users have demonstrated unwavering loyalty, maintaining a 24-hour trading volume of $409.44 million, though it marks a 36.52% decrease over the past day.
Taking a proactive stance, the Poloniex team, led by Justin Sun, is actively pursuing avenues for recovering the stolen funds. In a bold move, Sun offered a 5% bounty to the attackers on the X platform, provided they agreed to return the funds within seven days. He specified TRX, ETH, and BTC addresses for fund restitution, accompanying the offer with a stern warning to involve law enforcement agencies if the terms are unmet.
In the ongoing aftermath, Poloniex is collaborating with fellow exchanges in a unified effort to trace and reclaim the stolen funds, showcasing resilience against cyber threats in the volatile cryptocurrency landscape.