SBI VC Trade has officially taken over DMM Bitcoin’s assets following a devastating hack, with customer accounts set to migrate by March 2025.
SBI’s Acquisition of DMM Bitcoin Assets
Japanese financial firm SBI VC Trade announced on December 25 that it has finalized an agreement to acquire the assets and customer accounts of DMM Bitcoin. The transfer is scheduled for March 8, 2025.
SBI confirmed that DMM customers do not need to open new accounts manually. Instead, the company will automatically create accounts for transitioning users, ensuring a seamless process.
The move follows DMM Bitcoin’s decision to shut down after failing to recover from a major breach in May 2024, during which hackers stole $320 million worth of cryptocurrency.
The DMM Hack: Timeline and Details
The attack on DMM Bitcoin occurred on May 30, 2024, when hackers breached the exchange’s servers and stole private keys to wallets holding 4,500 Bitcoin. The stolen funds were quickly moved to unknown wallets.
To protect its customers, DMM pledged to reimburse users for their losses, but the exchange ultimately decided to liquidate and transfer operations to SBI VC Trade.
North Korea’s TraderTraitor Group Implicated
On December 23, an investigation by the FBI, the Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center (DC3), and Japan’s National Police Agency attributed the hack to the North Korea-linked cybercrime group, TraderTraitor.
The FBI revealed that the attack began when a threat actor posed as a recruiter on LinkedIn and targeted an employee at Ginco, a Japanese crypto wallet firm responsible for DMM Bitcoin’s wallet management.
The hacker sent a malicious script disguised as a pre-employment test. After the employee uploaded the script to their GitHub page, the attackers exploited it to access DMM Bitcoin’s systems. Months later, the group used this access to impersonate the employee and manipulate a transaction request, resulting in the theft.
Rising Threats to Centralized Crypto Exchanges
The DMM Bitcoin breach is one of several high-profile crypto hacks in 2024. Blockchain security firm Hacken reported that losses from attacks on centralized exchanges have surged to $694 million this year, more than double the figures from 2023.
The DMM hack and the $235 million breach of Indian crypto exchange WazirX are among the most significant incidents, highlighting the growing vulnerability of centralized crypto services.
