Major crypto trader Wintermute hit by $160 million hack, CEO says

Hackers have stolen digital assets worth around $160 million from crypto trading firm Wintermute, its CEO tweeted on Tuesday, the latest heist to hit a sector long plagued by cybercrime.

The theft targeted London-based Wintermute’s decentralised finance operations, Evgeny Gaevoy said in a tweet.

The firm, which provides liquidity across major crypto exchanges and trading platforms, remains solvent after the hack, he added.

We’ve been hacked for about $160M in our defi operations. Cefi and OTC operations are not affected

— wishful cynic (@EvgenyGaevoy) September 20, 2022

Decentralised finance platforms and software, which aim to provide crypto-based financial services without traditional gatekeepers such as banks, have been targeted by numerous heists in recent years. The sector is little-regulated and victims of crime rarely have recourse.

Gaevoy and Wintermute did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Wintermute calls itself “one of the largest players” in global crypto markets. It says it manages “hundreds of millions “in assets and trades more than $5 billion a day.

Gaevoy said on Twitter “there will be a disruption in our services today and potentially for next few days,” adding that some 90 assets were hacked.

Out of 90 assets that has been hacked only two have been for notional over $1 million (and none more than $2.5M), so there shouldn’t be a major selloff of any sort. We will communicate with both affected teams asap

— wishful cynic (@EvgenyGaevoy) September 20, 2022

“If you are a lender to Wintermute, again, we are solvent, but if you feel safer to recall the loan, we can absolutely do that,” Gaevoy said.

Out of 90 assets that has been hacked only two have been for notional over $1 million (and none more than $2.5M), so there shouldn’t be a major selloff of any sort. We will communicate with both affected teams asap

— wishful cynic (@EvgenyGaevoy) September 20, 2022