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Alarm bells are ringing as it’s reported that the BitForex exchange has put the brakes on withdrawals and is maintaining radio silence with its customers. Bitcoin-holding firm MicroStrategy’s X account was hacked, leading to scammers posting a phishing link disguised as a fake airdrop. Meanwhile, creditors of defunct crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) have until March to file their dividend claims.
Crypto exchange BitForex halts withdrawals, stops responding to users
Hong Kong-based crypto exchange BitForex halted withdrawals for at least three days without giving a reason. Before the halt, around $56 million in crypto had been withdrawn from the exchange’s wallets.
In a Feb. 23 X post, on-chain sleuth ZachXBT said three BitForex hot wallets saw outflows of around $56.5 million in cryptocurrencies before the exchange stopped processing transactions.
The exchange’s X account hasn’t been updated since May 2023. On its official Telegram channel, BitForex users are reporting problems with their accounts, varying from the inability to enter their accounts to the dashboard not showing any assets. Several users shared a pop-up screen showing they are blocked from accessing the company’s website.
MicroStrategy’s X account hacked, shilling Ethereum token phishing scam
Business intelligence firm MicroStrategy’s X account was hacked, posting malicious links to a fake airdrop of a so-called official Ethereum-based MSTR token, though these have since been deleted.
A user clicking on the link is directed to a copycat MicroStrategy webpage, which directs them to connect a wallet and claim the fake MSTR airdrop. Once users accept a series of permissions in their Web3 wallet, it is understood the attackers can automatically drain the tokens out of the user’s wallet.
According to independent blockchain sleuth ZachXBT and anti-scam platform Scam Sniffer, losses incurred from the scam have already tallied over $440,000.
Scam Sniffer said just one user had lost over $420,000 to the phishing scam at approximately 12:43 am UTC, only several minutes after the first malicious link was posted to MicroStrategy’s account on X.
The unknown user lost a total of $424,786 worth of altcoins, with one transfer going to the MicroStrategy attacker and two being automatically re-routed to a second wallet associated with the notorious hacking group PinkDrainer.
3AC creditors must soon file dividend claims
3AC creditors have until March 14 to submit claims to be considered for an upcoming dividend distribution, according to Teneo, the firm tasked with liquidating the failed crypto hedge fund’s assets.
According to a Feb. 23 notice, creditors who haven’t submitted claims have around three weeks to do so if they wish to receive an interim dividend payment on or around March 31. The specific amounts of the dividend distribution were not disclosed.
In December 2023, Teneo estimated that creditors would receive nearly 46% of their claims, bringing the total recovered assets to $1.16 billion. The firm estimated a total of $2.7 billion due for distribution.
3AC filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy on July 1, 2022. Its founders, Su Zhu and Kyle Davies, have evaded liquidators since then.
Trump no longer anti-Bitcoin, says can “live with it”
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has changed his tune on Bitcoin
BTC $53,433. From making anti-Bitcoin statements and calling it a scam during his tenure as president, Trump now says BTC is something he can live with and acknowledges its growing demand.
Trump’s recent change of stance toward Bitcoin deviated from his earlier views when he was president. At the time, Trump denounced Bitcoin, called it a scam and reportedly ordered the treasury secretary to “go after Bitcoin.”
In an interview with Fox News, Trump stated that the U.S. dollar is still the top currency for him but, at the same time, acknowledged the growing popularity and adoption of Bitcoin
