Bybit has managed to replenish nearly 50% of its Ether reserves just two days after suffering a $1.4 billion hack —the largest cryptocurrency theft in history. On Feb. 21, the exchange lost over 439,000 ETH along with liquid-staked tokens like Mantle Staked ETH (mETH) in an exploit that shocked the crypto industry. However, data from CryptoQuant shows that Bybit’s ETH reserves have bounced back to 201,600 ETH, up from the post-hack low of just 61,000 ETH. A significant portion of this recovery came from spot purchases, with Bybit acquiring over 106,498 ETH worth approximately $295 million in over-the-counter (OTC) trades, according to blockchain intelligence firm Lookonchain. Crypto Exchanges and Whales Step In Bybit’s rapid recovery wasn’t just due to its own efforts—major players across the industry stepped up. Several crypto exchanges and whales provided emergency liquidity to the embattled platform, demonstrating a rare show of solidarity in a fiercely competitive market. According to Lookonchain, Bybit received: 50,000 ETH from Binance 40,000 ETH from Bitget 10,000 ETH from Du Jun, co-founder of HTX Group $390 million worth of Ether in loans and deposits, including $127 million from Binance-based whales Despite the staggering scale of the attack, Bybit’s ability to process 350,000 withdrawal requests within 10 hours— completing 99.9% of them—helped reassure its users and prevent a liquidity crisis. Investigators Trace Attack to Lazarus Group As Bybit works to rebuild its reserves, blockchain security experts have been working to unravel how the attack happened. Analysts, including Arkham Intelligence and onchain sleuth ZachXBT, have linked the breach to North Korea’s Lazarus Group—a notorious hacking syndicate responsible for the $600 million Ronin network hack and several other high-profile crypto thefts. According to Meir Dolev, CTO of Cyvers, the attack bears similarities to past exploits, including those targeting WazirX ($230M) and Radiant Capital ($58M). The hackers reportedly used a deceptive transaction to trick Bybit’s signers into unknowingly approving a malicious smart contract change, effectively granting them control over the exchange’s multisig cold wallet. Despite the blow, Bybit’s proof-of-reserves auditor, Hacken, confirmed that user funds remain fully backed, reinforcing confidence in the platform’s solvency. While the full impact of the attack is still unfolding, Bybit’s rapid recovery marks a crucial test of resilience for both the exchange and the broader crypto ecosystem. The post Bybit Recovers Nearly Half of Lost Ether Reserves appeared first on TheCoinrise.com .
