Report: Crypto Thefts Already Approaching 2021’s Total of $3.2B

A recent hack on the algorithmic stablecoin project Beanstalk was much larger than first reported, according to a Friday (April 22) Wall Street Journal story.

Initial reports over the weekend said the hackers stole $76 million, but the Journal report, citing a blog post from the project, said the hackers drained Beanstalk of $182 million worth of digital assets, wiping out all of the ether held by the fund.

Read more: Beanstalk Stablecoin Protocol Hacked for at Least $76M

In the end, it was the fifth-largest crypto hack on record, coming at a time when the amount of funds being stolen during hacks is rising. The Journal says there have been 37 hacks in the last 38 weeks that have netted hackers about $2.9 billion, which is on par with the $3.2 billion stolen in all of 2021.

Hackers are ferreting out larger exploits as decentralized finance (DeFi) becomes more popular. They tend to go after new protocols that haven’t been fully vetted, Max Galka, chief executive of crypto forensics firm Elementus, told the Journal.

DeFi’s open-source nature also makes these projects enticing to hackers. Thieves can spend time scouring codes in search of weakness, said Chainalysis, which notes that DeFi protocols need to employ a more thorough approach to security.

Read more: Hackers Attack Elephant Money DeFi Platform, Steal Over $11M

Earlier this month, Elephant Money, the DeFi protocol behind the ELEPHANT token, reported that hackers had stolen $11.2 million worth of Binance Coin in what the company called an “automated attack” on its treasury.

“It took a significant amount of capital to bust through the system’s defenses. Over $261M in volume,” the company said on Medium. “Every time bad actors win it hurts the entire space. There are prominent teams that were aware of weaknesses and stood by and did nothing at your expense. Even after I and other community members asked them to disclose.”