South Korea cryptocurrency exchange Coinrail hack puts the market on red

If you noticed that the entire market was on red this morning, there’s no need to worry,

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Jay Crypto

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Last updated Feb 22, 2023 at 04:27 PM

Posted Jun 11, 2018 at 04:40 PM

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If you noticed that the entire market was on red this morning, there’s no need to worry, since it has a precedent. It all started after Coinrail, a relatively small South Korean cryptocurrency exchange, sent a tweet claiming that it was hacked.

According to CNBC, the exchange noted that lesser-known cryptocurrencies, such as Pundi X, were affected. However, Pundi X-Bitcoin is the most-traded pair on the exchange, as information from CoinMarketCap confirms, while Coinrail’s public statements don’t mention this.

Trading is currently suspended

The exchange suspended trading in digital currencies temporarily and was fully cooperating with all the investors, in their attempt to track down the funds that disappeared after the potential hack. The value of the value that was stolen was not disclosed, but we do know that the thieves got their hands on less well-known cryptocurrencies, instead of just BTC.

Shortly after the announcement was made, Bitcoin, as well as other cryptocurrencies, started falling. BTC is currently trading at $6,787.93, with a total market cap of $115.96 billion, while previously reached $6.647.73, this being its lowest since April 9, coinciding with a broader crypto sell-off.

Other major cryptocurrencies joined the decline, as Ethereum reached a low of $514, while Litecoin stopped at $104.

“Investors have been increasingly worried about cybersecurity issues,” says Adrian Lai, founding partner at Hong Kong-based investment firm Orichal Partners. “At this stage, obviously, the standard is not high enough.”

The fear of stronger regulation, back on tracks

Another factor which had an impact on the prices was a report surfaced on Friday, coming from The Wall Street Journal, claiming that United States regulators are currently investigating a potential price manipulation at four major cryptocurrency exchanges. Specifically, we’re talking about Bitstamp, Coinbase, itBit, and Kraken. None of them, neither CME and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission did not respond to comments about this until Sunday evening.

Back in January, hackers stole $530 million worth of virtual currency from users registered on Coincheck, being one of the biggest thefts f this type. Eventually, this unfortunate event prompted Japanese authorities to step up scrutiny of exchanges.

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