The hacker behind the $1.39 billion Bybit exploit is said to have successfully laundered all the 499,000 ETH in just ten days.

Despite blockchain analytics firms, law enforcement agencies, and crypto exchanges closely monitoring the movement of the stolen funds, the attacker effectively leveraged decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols to clean them fully.

Laundering Details

On-chain analytics platform EmberCN started tracking the funds soon after they were stolen. On February 25, the firm revealed that the hacker had laundered more than 89,000 ETH, valued at about $224 million, in about 60 hours.

The attacker washed another 45,900 ETH worth some $113 million a day later, bringing the total amount laundered to 135,000 ETH. They repeated the process on February 27, swapping 71,000 ETH with a market value in the region of $170 million.

At that point, about four and a half days after the attack, the perpetrator had managed to convert 206,000 ETH into other crypto assets, averaging about 45,000 ETH daily. However, they still had another 292,000 coins left, worth a whopping $685 million, and worked relentlessly night and day to clean them.

According to EmberCN, by February 28, the bad actor had added another 59,800 ETH to their laundered loot, bringing it to 266,000 ETH, with 233,000 remaining. Interestingly, on March 1, a Saturday, the exploiter took a break from cleaning the stolen funds, managing to clear only a relatively modest 14,300 ETH valued at $32.2 million.

They resumed activities the next day, converting 62,200 ETH, and by the morning of March 4, EmberCN reported that the attacker had laundered all the remaining funds.

Bybit’s Take

Bybit CEO Ben Zhou has offered a slightly different take from the analytics firm’s. In an X post on Tuesday, he provided an executive summary of the attack, stating that about 83% of the stolen funds, worth approximately $1 billion, have been converted into Bitcoin (BTC) and spread across nearly 7,000 wallets.

Of the total amount lost in the exploit, 20% cannot be traced, while 3% has been frozen. Zhou also claimed that a large chunk of the untraceable funds, about 79,655 ETH, was laundered through the eXch exchange.

The attacker, linked by the FBI to North Korea’s Lazarus Group, also processed another 40,233 ETH via OKX’s web3 wallet. Still, on-chain detectives have traced about 16,680 ETH, with the rest seemingly gone with the wind unless Bybit gets additional information from OKX.

According to Zhou, the primary platform the hackers used in the laundering process was THORChain. He estimates that more than 361,000 ETH, valued at over $900 million, has been swapped via the cross-chain liquidity protocol.

TL;DR

• The Open Network launch allowed PI token listings, but many users still need to pass KYC procedures. The deadline moved to March 14, sparking mixed reactions.

• Cardano (ADA) hit $1.14 after Trump backed a crypto reserve but dropped to $0.81 due to market crashes after certain trade tariffs came into effect.

• Bitcoin (BTC) fell to $83,500 from nearly $95,000. Analysts debate if this is a brief correction or the bull run’s end, with key support at $75,700.

What’s New Around Pi Network?

The cryptocurrency project reached a major milestone on February 20 when it launched its Open Network. This allowed exchanges to list the PI token and make it publicly accessible.

Nonetheless, Pi Network is far from solving all of its problems. For instance, many people have not completed the necessary Know-Your-Customer (KYC) verifications and mainnet migrations. Users had until February 28 to abide by the rules, but recently, the deadline was moved to March 14. 

“This extension especially helps Pioneers who have recently returned and want to reengage with the network now that Open Network is live, upholding Pi’s core objectives of inclusivity and fairness. Submit your KYC application and complete your Mainnet Checklist by 8:00 am UTC on March 14, 2025, to avoid any forfeiture,” the disclosure reads.

As usual, the community reacted to the news with mixed feelings. Some appreciated the extension so they could have additional time to complete the process, while others complained about the prolongation, describing the project as a scam.

ADA’s Price Swings

The cryptocurrency market experienced massive volatility in the past few days, with Cardano’s native token being among the most impacted. Its price skyrocketed to as high as $1.14 on March 3 after the US president Donald Trump confirmed the plans about the establishment of a strategic crypto reserve that will include ADA and other digital assets. 

Over the past several hours, though, the token erased much of its gains and currently trades at around $0.81 (per CoinGecko’s data). This is a consequence of the crypto market crash, which wiped out hundreds of billions of dollars in the last 24 hours. 

Some of the potential factors contributing to the negative performance of the sector are Trump’s trade tariffs which came into effect on March 4 and the escalating geopolitical tension between Ukraine and the USA. As reported by BBC, the world’s largest economy paused its military aid to the European country “to ensure that it is contributing to a solution.”

BTC Struggles, too

The primary cryptocurrency has also nosedived, witnessing a 9% decline on a 24-hour scale. It currently hovers at roughly $83,500, which is a huge pullback from the local top of almost $95,000 witnessed at the start of the business week.

While some industry participants believe the latest plunge might mark the end of the bull run, others remain optimistic that the asset is poised for a comeback. 

X user Captain Faibik suggested that BTC continues to trade within a “rising wedge” on the weekly timeframe. The analyst claimed that the price could reach $120,000 in the following months as long as it remains above the $75,700 support level. On the other hand, a fall below that range could lead to a retest of the $54,000-$55,000 zone. 

Crypto markets have lost more than 12% or almost $400 billion since the Sunday peak, and one of the largest losers has been Ethereum.

ETH prices crashed to their lowest levels in 16 months, plunging 15% to $2,035 during early trading in Asia on Tuesday morning. The last time ETH traded below $2,000 was in November 2023, as the asset was slowly thawing from crypto winter.

Ethereum has now returned to bear market levels and has dumped 50% since it tapped $4,000 in early December 2024.

ETH Death Predicted

Analyst ‘Nebraskangooner’ looked at the monthly timeframe chart and identified a double-top formation before predicting that prices would break down to the $1,200 level. This would send ETH back to bear market lows from late 2022 when it bottomed out at around $1,100.

$ETH

Monthly double top confirmed. Measured pattern breakdown target is somewhere close to $1200 https://t.co/2T4JCzBloh pic.twitter.com/mM29h3LOtI

— Nebraskangooner (@Nebraskangooner) March 4, 2025

Analyst Dana Marlane commented that Ethereum has broken its uptrend and “appears to have confirmed a double top that could take price back to $1,000.”

The ETH angst was shared among other analysts. “Ethereum may genuinely be one of the worst charts I have ever seen,” said Arete Capital managing partner McKenna.

Ethereum may genuinely be one of the worst charts I have ever seen. pic.twitter.com/4nOWi0ZuyH

— McKenna (@Crypto_McKenna) March 3, 2025

The ‘Anonymous Crypto Predictions’ feed said that ETH needed to close above the 200-week moving average as it did last week. This long-term trend indicator is currently around the $2,500 level, and ETH is well below that.

Additionally, the ETH/BTC ratio, or price of ether in terms of bitcoin, fell to a five-year low of 0.024 this week as the asset tanked.

#Ethereum – The key level to watch is the 200 weekly (black line). We need to close back above that like we did last week. Expect lots of manipulation and volatility. pic.twitter.com/aIskRebYqV

— Anonymous | Crypto Predictions (@Crypto_Twittier) March 4, 2025

Flight to Risk-Off

Many were questioning why crypto was crashing in such a bullish environment in the United States following years of being persecuted under the Biden administration.

The Kobeissi Letter explained that the real driver here is the global move towards the risk-off trade and assets.

“As trade war tensions rise and economic policy uncertainty broadens, ALL risky assets are falling. This was seen in stocks, crypto and oil prices, which all fell sharply today.”

Moreover, Bitcoin is no longer seen as a store of value, having decoupled from gold, which hit an all-time high in late February. When Bitcoin falls, the digital lemmings follow, and Ethereum has been the first off the cliff.

What is happening with crypto?

Crypto markets are now worth -$100 billion LESS than they were prior to the US Crypto Reserve announcement.

Over the last 24 hours, crypto has erased -$500 BILLION of market cap in a massive reversal.

Here’s what you need to know.

(a thread) pic.twitter.com/xlsqsnQKKd

— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) March 4, 2025