BingX acknowledges 'minor' losses following concerns over hot wallet transactions.
The Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange BingX has confirmed experiencing a "minor asset loss" following a series of "suspicious" outflows from one of its hot wallets, which were noticed online.
In a Sept. 20 post on X, BingX’s chief product officer, Vivien Lin, stated that the exchange’s technical team identified "abnormal network access" at around 4 a.m. Singapore time, suspecting a possible "hacker attack" targeting BingX’s hot wallet.
"We immediately activated our emergency plan, including the urgent transfer of assets and a suspension of withdrawals," Lin explained.
She emphasized that BingX only keeps a small amount of crypto in its hot wallets and confirmed "minor asset loss." The total is still being calculated.
Earlier, blockchain security firm PeckShield reported a "suspicious significant fund outflow" from BingX, initially estimating losses of over $13.5 million, later revising the figure to $26.7 million. Similarly, analytics platform Lookonchain estimated losses exceeding $26 million.
Lin assured users that BingX has temporarily halted withdrawals while conducting an "emergency inspection and strengthening wallet services," with plans to restore withdrawals within 24 hours.
In a separate post, Lin reassured that BingX would "fully compensate" any losses, emphasizing that user assets were safe. She reiterated that the loss was "minimal and manageable," and it would not impact the exchange's business operations.
A BingX spokesperson told Cointelegraph that maintaining and monitoring wallets is a routine part of asset protection, and while the exact losses are still being calculated, they will release further details soon.
Earlier on Sept. 20, BingX announced temporary maintenance of its wallet system, indicating that deposits and withdrawals could face delays.
Harrison Leggio, co-founder of crypto startup g8keep, who uses the handle "Pop Punk" on X, criticized BingX’s handling of the incident in a Sept. 20 post, questioning whether it was genuinely "wallet maintenance" or the result of wallets being drained. He urged users to switch to more reliable centralized exchanges.
According to EtherScan data from an address shared by PeckShield, one of BingX’s hot wallets, labeled "BingX 15," received millions of dollars worth of tokens from various blockchains. The wallet was holding over $9.5 million in crypto across nine blockchains at the time, down from a previously observed $13.1 million.
Recent transactions from the address show small amounts of crypto being moved through the decentralized exchange Kyberswap, a common tactic employed by hackers to obscure the origin of stolen funds.
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