Hacker Returns $19.2M in Cryptocurrency to US Government

A hacker who had previously drained approximately $20 million from a US government cryptocurrency wallet has returned $19.2 million. The funds were transferred back to government wallets in two major transactions: 13.19 million Aave-staked USDC ($aUSDC) and 2,408 Ether ($ETH).

The incident initially caused a significant stir in the cryptocurrency community, and the hacker returned most of the stolen assets less than 24 hours after the breach. This rapid restitution has left many speculating about the hacker’s motives and the potential implications for future cybersecurity measures.

🚨 BREAKING: Hacker returns $19.2M to the US government, transferring 13.19M $aUSDC and 2,408 $ETH back to government wallets. pic.twitter.com/1yeILyqdIE

— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) October 25, 2024

Details of the Incident

The funds were originally stolen from a wallet containing assets seized in the 2016 Bitfinex hack. The hacker, whose identity remains unknown, returned the funds in a series of transactions tracked by blockchain analysts.

The returned assets included:

13.19 million $aUSDC: Aave-staked USDC, a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar.
2,408 $ETH: Ether, the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain.

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