Why This Matters
Liquid Network, a Bitcoin sidechain used for payments and settlement, says roughly $320 million — about 4,000 of the 4,200 bitcoin in its Liquid Federation wallet — was withdrawn in a hack it attributes to "purported white-hat hackers." The incident hits user wallets directly and renews scrutiny of federated, multi-party custody models built on top of Bitcoin. For consumers, it's another reminder that layer-2 and bridge-style systems can concentrate risk even when the underlying blockchain is secure.
Key Takeaways
- About 4,000 of 4,200 BTC (~$320M) were drained from Liquid Network's federation wallet.
- Liquid Network described the attackers as "purported white-hat hackers" and warned that Liquid wallets will be impacted.
- The breach spotlights custody risk in federated Bitcoin sidechains rather than in Bitcoin's base layer itself.
Reuters reports:
Liquid Network, a Bitcoin-based payments and settlement network, said on Sunday that about $320 million was withdrawn from its federation wallet in a hack.
"Purported white-hat hackers" withdrew around 4,000 of the 4,200 bitcoin held in its Liquid Federation wallet, Liquid Network said in a post on X.
"Liquid wallets will be impacted," their post concluded, adding "and we're sorry for any inconvenience."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.