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A French banking group is the suspected victim of a crypto theft topping $133 million, one of the largest hits on a traditional bank’s digital-asset accounts, after thieves drained exchange accounts over a 21-hour stretch.
Blockchain investigator ZachXBT named Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, which manages more than $250 billion in assets, as the suspected victim in a message to his Telegram channel Wednesday. He first flagged the theft Monday at more than $106 million, then traced another $27 million in withdrawals from centralized crypto exchanges, and warned the total could rise once over-the-counter trades are counted, CoinDesk reported.
The bank confirmed to CoinDesk that an attack had enabled fraudulent transactions but said it was under control. “This incident has no financial consequences for [our clients]. Their interests are fully protected,” a spokesperson said, without disclosing how much was stolen. The bank temporarily suspended some transactions and notified authorities.
How the money moved. Blockchain analytics firm Bitquery traced $108.8 million in the USDC stablecoin withdrawn from accounts at Kraken, Crypto.com and OKX on November 1 and 2, routed through hundreds of wallets and largely converted into ether, which, unlike a stablecoin, no central issuer can freeze. Crypto.com said it blocked funds tied to the incident and that customer funds remain secure. Kraken did not immediately comment.
The theft lands at an awkward moment for the bank, which applied in May for a license under the EU’s MiCA rules to offer crypto services to retail customers. For ordinary savers, the bank’s line is that client money is safe; the open question is how attackers got into exchange accounts linked to a regulated bank in the first place.
JBizNews Desk | Paris
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