US Homeland Security returns $314K from 2016 Bitfinex hack
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection has seized funds in collaboration with the United States Department of Homeland Security. Bitfinex, a cryptocurrency exchange, has announced that it received $312,219.71 in cash and 6.917 Bitcoin Cash (BCH) from the U.S. government. These assets were taken as part of ongoing efforts by Bitfinex to recover stolen funds from a security breach in August 2016. The recovery process is still underway, with the U.S. government making progress in prosecuting individuals involved in the breach and seizing related funds.
![](data:image/svg+xml;utf-8,<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="528" height="352" />)
The recovered assets will be returned to victims of the 2016 Bitfinex hack on a pro-rated basis. After redeeming Recovery Rights Tokens (RRTs) issued by Bitfinex, the remaining assets will be distributed to holders of the Unus Sed Leo (LEO) token, Bitfinex's native token. The security breach in 2016 resulted in the loss of 119,576 customers' Bitcoin (BTC), valued at $70 million at the time and approximately $3.7 billion currently. In February 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice arrested two individuals connected to the hack and seized over 94,000 stolen BTC. Recovery efforts for the funds are still ongoing.
6 comments