LunagisthubSouth Korean Crypto Exchange Bithumb Accidentally Distributes $44 Billion in Bitcoin
A South Korean cryptocurrency exchange, Bithumb, has made a monumental mistake, accidentally distributing over $44 billion worth of Bitcoin to its users. The error occurred during a promotional event where the exchange intended to award small cash rewards of 2,000 Korean won ($1.37) or more to each user. However, due to a mistake, winners received at least 2,000 Bitcoins each instead.
The incident took place on Friday, February 6, 2026, and was quickly identified within 20 minutes. Bithumb restricted trading and withdrawals for the 695 affected customers within 35 minutes of the erroneous distribution. The exchange managed to recover 99.7% of the distributed coins, worth about $44 billion at current prices.
The mistake led to a sharp sell-off on the exchange, causing Bitcoin prices to briefly slump 17% to 81.1 million won. However, the price later recovered and last traded at 104.5 million won. The incident highlights the potential security and operational risks associated with cryptocurrency exchanges.
Bithumb apologized for the mistake and assured users that the incident was unrelated to external hacking or security breaches. The exchange’s CEO, Lee Jae-won, stated that some customers who were pushed into “panic-selling” during the brief window of the error would be reimbursed their full loss with a 10% bonus.
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