Half a billion dollars in cryptocurrency that was stolen from Tokyo-based virtual currency exchange Coincheck in a hacking attack last week was transferred to eight separate digital addresses, sources with knowledge of the matter said Tuesday.
Of the ¥58 billion ($532 million) in NEM cryptocurrency that was taken, the bulk — ¥57.6 billion worth — was sent initially to a single address over a period of roughly 20 minutes from around midnight Thursday before being dispersed in an apparent attempt to hinder tracking, according to the sources, who declined to be named.
The financial watchdog began on Tuesday a broad review of virtual currency exchanges in Japan, as lax security measures at Coincheck are believed to have played a part in what has become the largest ever loss of cryptocurrency to hackers.