Avalanche’s Native Token AVAX Surges After Acquittal of Platypus Hackers
Avalanche’s native token AVAX experienced a 3.8% price surge within 24 hours following the acquittal of two brothers involved in the $8.5 million hack of the Platypus protocol. This court ruling suggests that AVAX’s upward momentum is not solely tied to the legal development.
Key Points:
- The price of AVAX increased by 3.8% after the Platypus hackers were acquitted.
- In February 2023, the Platypus protocol suffered an $8.5 million loss due to a flash loan attack.
- Two brothers were arrested in connection with the hack but were recently acquitted by a French court.
- One of the brothers claimed to be an “ethical hacker” aiming to recover funds for restitution.
- The surge in AVAX’s price may not only be attributed to the court ruling, as other altcoin market caps were already rising.
Platypus Finance Exploitation and Arrests
Platypus Finance, a decentralized finance (DeFi) market maker built on the Avalanche blockchain, fell victim to an exploit in February 2023. The attack, which utilized a “flash loan” technique to target coding vulnerabilities, resulted in an 8.3 million euros loss and caused the price of Platypus’ stablecoin to plummet from $1 to $0.48.
Following information provided by Binance, French authorities apprehended two brothers named Mohammed M. and Benamar M. Mohammed was allegedly responsible for transferring funds without authorization by exploiting flaws in Platypus’ smart contracts, while his brother knowingly received some of the ill-gotten proceeds.
An Unusual Defense and Acquittal
During the trial, Mohammed claimed that he had conducted an “ethical hack” with the intention of eventually returning most of the stolen crypto to Platypus. He anticipated receiving a traditional bug bounty reward from the project, which would amount to approximately 10% of the stolen assets. Although his actions were legally questionable, Mohammed portrayed them as well-intentioned.
The French court recently acquitted both brothers of charges related to the hack. Following this news, AVAX’s price briefly spiked to $23.16 before stabilizing around $22.
Altcoin Market Caps on the Rise
Analytics provider Santiment suggests that Avalanche and other altcoins like Polkadot were already experiencing significant growth in their market cap values prior to the court ruling. This indicates that traders remain bullish on AVAX, regardless of the legal outcome for the Platypus attackers.
Hot Take: AVAX Continues Its Momentum Amidst Legal Developments
The recent surge in AVAX’s price following the acquittal of the Platypus hackers showcases the altcoin’s ongoing momentum. While the court ruling may have contributed to this increase, it is important to note that AVAX and other altcoins were already experiencing positive market cap growth. This suggests that traders have a bullish outlook on AVAX, indicating potential future success for Avalanche and its native token.
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