Hackers stole cryptocurrencies worth more than $600 million from Poly Network in one of the largest crypto heists of recent years.
Poly Network, which uses digital assets for lending and other financial transactions, disclosed the hack in a series of Twitter posts Tuesday. Blockchain security company SlowMist estimated that the stolen cryptocurrencies were worth over $610 million at the time.
Poly Network said a preliminary investigation found a hacker exploited a “vulnerability between contract calls”.
It urged various exchanges to block deposits of the coins, after millions of dollars in tokens were transferred to separate cryptocurrency wallets.
About $267m of Ether currency has been taken, $252m of Binance coins and roughly $85 million in USDC tokens.
The hackers made away with digital currencies including ether and tokens backed by bitcoin, as well as tether, a coin designed to mimic the value of the U.S. dollar, and the Shiba Inu coin, a novelty spinoff of the joke cryptocurrency dogecoin inspired by the Shiba Inu breed of dog.
“The amount of money you hacked is the biggest one in defi history. Law enforcement in any country will regard this as a major economic crime and you will be pursued,” Poly Network wrote in a letter posted on Twitter.
The Poly Network hack is on par in size with infamous breaches at Coincheck in 2018 and Mt. Gox in 2014, where digital assets valued at around $550 million and $400 million, respectively, went missing. The incident highlights the risks of trading in the unregulated market, where theft, fraud and scams are common.