A significant incident at Bithumb, a prominent South Korean cryptocurrency exchange, unfolded recently when the platform inadvertently distributed more than $40 billion worth of bitcoins to its customers during a promotional event. Financial authorities reported on Monday that 86 customers have sold some or all of the bitcoins they received by mistake.
Initially, Bithumb had intended to distribute small cash rewards totaling 620,000 won (approximately $423.6) to 249 customers. However, the exchange mistakenly sent out 620,000 bitcoins, transforming recipients into instant multi-millionaires. This error prompted a wave of sell-offs at the exchange.
In response to the situation, Bithumb halted all transactions and began efforts to retrieve the misdirected bitcoins around 7:40 p.m. on Friday. While the exchange has successfully reclaimed most of the bitcoins sold by users, a notable 125 bitcoins, valued at about 13 billion won, remain unaccounted for.
Officials indicate that around 3 billion won of the mistakenly sent bitcoins has already been withdrawn and transferred to customers’ bank accounts. Meanwhile, the remaining 10 billion won has been allocated toward purchasing other virtual assets.
Bithumb is actively reaching out to customers who sold the erroneously dispatched bitcoins, urging them to return the funds. An official from the exchange stated that they are exploring various methods to recover the lost assets while directly communicating with the affected customers.
