OKX suspends Web3 aggregator amid probe into $100M Bybit hack laundering links

OKX has quickly suspended its Web3 decentralized trade (DEX) aggregator following discussions with European regulators.

The trade introduced this resolution on March 17, stating that the transfer is a part of efforts to boost safety measures and forestall misuse of its platform.

Bybit hack connection

The suspension comes as European authorities examine allegations that hackers linked to North Korea’s Lazarus Group used OKX Web3 to launder funds stolen within the latest Bybit hack.

A latest Bloomberg report prompt regulators from all 27 European Union nations mentioned this problem throughout a European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) assembly on March 6.

Bybit CEO Ben Zhou confirmed that the hackers leveraged OKX Web3 to launder roughly $100 million of the stolen $1.5 billion.

In response, EU regulators at the moment are assessing whether or not the platform falls beneath the jurisdiction of the Markets in Crypto-Belongings (MiCA) regulatory framework and exploring potential penalties for OKX.

OKX’s response

OKX maintains that its involvement within the laundering course of was because of incorrect labeling by blockchain explorers and different decentralized exchanges.

The trade acknowledged that it’s actively working with these explorers to make sure correct transaction reporting and forestall misidentification of its aggregator as the purpose of commerce.

It defined:

“We all know that transparency is essential, so we’re additionally working carefully with blockchain explorers to right incomplete labeling. Our aim is to make sure that explorers correctly spotlight the precise DEX processing trades reasonably than mistakenly figuring out our aggregator as the purpose of commerce.”

The platform additionally reiterated that its aggregator doesn’t custody person belongings however merely supplies entry to liquidity throughout a number of decentralized protocols.

To additional strengthen safety, the platform has launched a system designed to detect hacker addresses in actual time and block them from accessing its centralized trade.

OKX CEO Star Xu mentioned on X:

“We already rolled out a whole lot of controls for OKX Web3 to struggle with the misuse together with prohibited markets’ ip blocking and real-time black deal with detection and blocking system.”