- Stake.com, a major cryptocurrency-focused online casino, faced a significant exploit resulting in a $16 million loss.
- Despite the hack, Stake’s wallet still holds around $2.1 million in various cryptocurrencies.
- Cryptocurrency hacks in Q1 2023 decreased substantially in both total value and average hack size.
The cryptocurrency casino Stake has reportedly fallen victim to an exploit, as indicated by findings from on-chain analyst Cyvers. According to the report, approximately $16 million has been withdrawn from the Ethereum network due to a “private key leak.” Following an initial probe conducted by Cyvers, it was discovered that the wallet address associated with the hacker received a transfer totaling approximately $16 million in various cryptocurrencies, including $ETH, $USDC, $USDT, and $DAI. Additionally, the hacker proceeded to convert all of the received stablecoins into $ETH and subsequently distributed these funds to numerous externally owned accounts.
Further supporting this assertion, blockchain investigator ZachXBT confirmed that losses amounted to roughly $15.7 million on Ethereum, along with an additional $25.6 million lost across the Polygon and Binance Smart Chain networks. Moreover, Ethereum L1 blockchain’s Energi CEO, Tommy WorldPower has pointed out that there is still approximately $2 million worth of assets remaining in Stake’s wallet.
Established in 2017, Stake.com is a major online casino that specializes in sports betting and various casino games. It stands out for exclusively using cryptocurrencies for transactions, supporting 18 different cryptocurrencies. The platform offers bonuses and promotions to attract and retain users and has engaged in sponsorship agreements with notable figures in sports and entertainment, such as Israel Adesanya, Sergio Agüero, Pietro Fittipaldi, and Drake. According to a Financial Times report, it achieved $2.6 billion in revenue in 2022. These stolen funds have been converted into Ether (ETH) and transferred to multiple externally owned wallets, as reported by Cyvers.
As for the targeted Stake wallet, it still contains approximately $340,000 worth of ETH and about $2.1 million in various alternative cryptocurrencies, according to Etherscan data. Withdrawals from the wallet seem to have been halted, a claim that has also been echoed by several users on Twitter.
In the past year, over $3.7 billion in cryptocurrency was lost due to various hacks and exploits, though this figure saw a significant 70% reduction in the first quarter of this year, as per a study by security firm TRM Labs.
Additionally, during the first quarter of 2023, the amount stolen through cryptocurrency hacks was lower than in any quarter of 2022. This decrease in value was notably more substantial than the decline in cryptocurrency prices during that period, with Ethereum, for example, experiencing a decrease of around 45%. The average size of these hacks also saw a significant drop in Q1 2023, decreasing to approximately $10.5 million from nearly $30 million in the same quarter of 2022, despite a similar number of hacking incidents occurring (approximately 40).
