When crypto gets hacked, it’s like a death sentence for the price. According to a new security report, 77.8% of hacked cryptocurrencies never bounce back.
Their prices stay down, flat, dead—call it what you want, but it’s not a pretty picture. Six months after a hack, these tokens are still deep in the red.
Over half—51.1% to be exact—of hacked tokens see their value drop by more than 50% within those six months. That’s half their value gone, just like that.
The frequency and severity of crypto attacks have shot through the roof. Forget about 2023 when crypto thefts were a “mere” $657 million. In just the first half of 2024, that number more than doubled to $1.4 billion.
Hackers aren’t playing around. They’re getting smarter, bolder, and a lot more sophisticated. Decentralized finance platforms and exchanges are their favorite playgrounds.
They exploit weaknesses in smart contracts, trick people into phishing scams, and somehow always find a way into wallets that are supposed to be secure. It’s not just small projects either. Even big players are getting hit hard.
Take DMM Bitcoin, for instance. This Japanese exchange lost a staggering $308 million in what was called an “unauthorized leak.” Then there’s LIFI, a cross-chain DeFi platform, which saw $10 million evaporate thanks to a security breach.
Velocore, another decentralized exchange, also got hammered for $10 million. No one is safe, not even the new kids on the block with their flashy new blockchain tech.
Orbit Chain got nailed for $81.5 million on January 2nd, knocking out their cross-chain operations. Just a day later, Radiant Capital lost $14 million when its DeFi lending protocol got exploited.
It didn’t stop there. Uwu Lend got hit twice within a week, losing a total of $19.3 million. Kraken, one of the big names in the industry, fell victim to a targeted phishing attack that cost them $3 million.
LIFI’s $10 million hack and DoughFina’s $1.8 million loss due to a smart contract vulnerability round out a year that’s been brutal for the industry.