Founded in 2017, Mixin had nearly $400 million across 48 chains locked in its protocol before the incident, as per data provided by DeFiLlama. The protocol allows users to send digital assets to other individuals via phone numbers. Xiaolai Li, a Chinese billionaire and early Bitcoin enthusiast, is one of the earliest angel investors in the firm.

We have confirmed your true identity. Please return funds to 0x18709E89BD403F470088aBDAcEbE86CC60dda12e. We will provide you with a 5% white hat bonus. This offer is valid for 7 days and ends on October 2, 2023. If you do not return the funds by the deadline, we will request judicial intervention.

Related: Huobi’s new name, HTX, raises community eyebrows

Cyvers reported the attack on Sept. 25. The wallet that sent the message is identified as a Huobi hot wallet by blockchain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence. According to Cyvers, the wallet that sent the message is listed on a Huobi support page as belonging to the exchange.

Huobi Global investor Justin Sun confirmed the attack on the morning of Sept. 25, stating: “HTX @HTX_Global has suffered a loss of 5,000 #Eth ($8 million USD) due to a hacker attack.” Sun claimed that user funds are safe and the exchange is now functioning normally. “HTX has fully covered the losses incurred from the attack and has successfully resolved all related issues,” he declared.

Crypto exchanges have been plagued by a series of hacks in 2023, many of which are believed to be caused by the North Korean affiliated Lazarus Group. The group has amassed $40 million in Bitcoin from the attacks over the course of the year.