WazirX, once India's biggest crypto exchange, is asking its users to make a big decision: agree to a new plan to get back some of their stolen money soon, or possibly wait until 2030 for any chance of a refund. This comes after hackers stole a whopping $230 million in digital assets from the platform in July 2024.
What happened?
Back in July 2024, WazirX was hit by a major cyberattack. Hackers, believed to be from North Korea's Lazarus Group, managed to steal a huge amount of cryptocurrency. This left about 15 million investors in a state of panic, with their money gone. The exchange had to stop trading, and users were left wondering if they would ever see their funds again.
The предлага recovery plan
Now, WazirX is offering a way for users to get back some of their stolen crypto. The company has come up with a restructuring plan that needs the approval of its creditors, which are the people who had their money stolen. If more than 75% of these creditors agree to the plan by voting, things could start moving quickly.If the plan gets the green light, WazirX aims to restart its trading operations. The exchange promises to start paying back users within 10 business days after the plan is activated, possibly as early as April 2025.
The refund plan involves launching a new decentralized exchange and issuing recovery tokens that can be traded. WazirX also plans to use its profits and new income to buy back these tokens over time.
The risky alternative
However, if the creditors don't approve the restructuring scheme, things could get messy. The process would then move towards liquidation under Singapore's laws. This could mean a fire sale of WazirX's assets, and users might receive even less money than they would under the proposed plan. Worse still, it could take a very long time. WazirX estimates that it could take until 2030 for users to get any compensation if the restructuring plan fails. That's a long wait, and there's no guarantee they'll get back the full amount they lost.
Why the Hack Happened
The hackers got into WazirX's system by creating a fake account and exploiting weaknesses in the exchange's multi-signature wallet. This wallet required multiple approvals to make transactions, but the hackers managed to manipulate the system and gain control. They then drained funds from both the hot wallet (used for quick transactions) and the cold wallet (for safer, offline storage).WazirX has been working with law enforcement and experts to track down the stolen funds.
They've even managed to freeze some of the assets, worth around $3 million USDT. The governments of the United States, South Korea, and Japan have jointly blamed North Korean hackers for the attack.
A tough decision
So, WazirX users have a difficult choice to make. Do they vote for the restructuring plan and hope to get some of their money back relatively soon? Or do they reject it and risk a long, uncertain wait with potentially lower returns? The outcome of this vote will determine the future for many who lost their investments in the WazirX hack.
With inputs from agencies
Image Source: Multiple agencies
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