In a jaw-dropping incident that stunned the global crypto community, South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb accidentally transferred more than $60 billion in bitcoin to its users after a promotional payout went awry.
The mistake occurred on Friday during what was meant to be a simple customer reward. According to local reports, Bithumb intended to credit users with 2,000 won (about $1.95) as part of a promotion. Instead, a system error caused roughly 2,000 bitcoins to be sent to each user, affecting 695 accounts and totalling 620,000 bitcoins.
To put the scale into perspective, Bitcoin is the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market value. Even a single coin is worth tens of thousands of dollars, making this one of the most dramatic accidental transfers in the crypto industry.
Bithumb said it detected the error quickly and moved to contain the situation. Trading and withdrawals for the affected accounts were blocked within 35 minutes of the mistake being identified. However, in that short window, some users managed to sell portions of the bitcoin mistakenly credited to them.
Those sales triggered sharp price volatility on the platform. Bitcoin prices on Bithumb briefly plunged 17 per cent, falling to around 81.1 million won late Friday. The exchange later acknowledged that panic selling and unfavourable trades occurred before the situation was stabilised, which it said took about five minutes.
In an official statement, Bithumb apologised to customers, saying the incident was caused by confusion during the distribution process. The exchange was quick to stress that the error was not caused by hacking or a security breach, but by an internal operational mistake.
The company confirmed it successfully recovered 99.7 per cent of the mistakenly transferred bitcoin. For the small portion that could not be retrieved, Bithumb said it would cover the losses using its own assets.
In a follow-up announcement released on Saturday, the exchange said it would compensate users affected by the sudden price drop. This includes covering the full price difference from unfavourable trades, along with an additional 10 per cent bonus. Total losses from the incident were estimated at approximately 1 billion won (around $976,000).
The incident came during an already shaky week for the crypto market. Bitcoin prices have fallen globally, wiping out gains that followed Donald Trump’s election victory in November 2024, a result that initially boosted investor sentiment toward cryptocurrencies.
While Bithumb’s error was unrelated to the broader market decline, the timing amplified its impact, highlighting how quickly confidence and prices can swing in the crypto world.
Although Bithumb managed to contain the fallout and limit financial damage, the episode serves as a powerful reminder of the risks inherent in digital asset platforms. In an industry built on precision, automation and trust, even a small operational mistake can spiral into a multi-billion-dollar scare.
For now, the crisis appears to be under control, but the incident will likely be remembered as one of the most extraordinary mishaps in cryptocurrency history.
