The XRP Hack: Binance Freezes Stolen Funds
The new CEO of Binance, Richard Teng, announced that a portion of the XRP stolen in the hack against Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen has been frozen. In total, $4.2 million worth of XRP linked to the hack has been intercepted and frozen by Binance. The hack resulted in the theft of approximately 213 million XRP, amounting to about $112 million.
The Hack on Ripple’s Executive President
Chris Larsen, the co-founder and current Executive Chairman of Ripple Labs, revealed that unauthorized access had occurred in some of his personal XRP accounts. However, these accounts are not related to the Ripple company. The problem was quickly identified and exchanges were notified to freeze the affected addresses. Law enforcement is already involved in the investigation.
Binance Takes Action
After discovering the exploit against Larsen, Binance managed to freeze $4.2 million worth of stolen XRP. They expressed their support for Ripple’s efforts to recover the funds and encouraged projects and users to report such incidents promptly. Other stolen XRP from Larsen was sent to Kraken and OKX.
The Vulnerability
The specific details of the hack have not been disclosed, but it is presumed that Larsen held the funds on a non-custodial wallet. This implies that he may bear some responsibility if his private keys were not securely stored. There is speculation surrounding the delay between discovering the suspicious transactions and publicly admitting the theft.
About Ripple and XRP
Ripple Labs is a private company founded in 2012 by Chris Larsen and Jed McCaleb. XRP is the native cryptocurrency of the Ripple protocol. Despite experiencing a drop in price following the news of the hack, XRP remains relatively stable in the crypto markets. Its current price is in line with previous months and comparable to February 2021.
Hot Take: The Aftermath of the XRP Hack
The hack on Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen’s personal XRP accounts has raised questions about security measures and individual responsibility. While Binance successfully froze a significant portion of the stolen funds, the incident highlights the importance of safeguarding private keys in non-custodial wallets. It also emphasizes the need for prompt reporting and collaboration within the crypto community to combat hacking attempts. As Ripple continues its efforts to recover the funds, XRP’s price remains relatively stable, indicating resilience amidst market fluctuations.
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