HTX Exchange: Struggles Persist Despite Resumption
Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, faces ongoing challenges with his crypto exchange, HTX. Despite the exchange’s attempts to recover from a significant hack, HTX has encountered a substantial net outflow of $258 million within the past two weeks.
Massive Outflows and Resumption Challenges
Formerly known as Huobi, HTX saw an average trading volume of $1.6 billion in the last 24 hours, positioning itself among the top 20 cryptocurrency exchanges. However, data from DefiLlama indicates that the exchange experienced a net outflow of $258 million between November 25 and December 10, following its reactivation post a major security breach.
The exchange suffered a loss of $30 million in crypto tokens due to the breach, prompting a temporary suspension of withdrawals and deposits. This loss compounded with Sun’s association with Poloniex and the HECO Bridge, both of which experienced security breaches in November, collectively losing nearly $200 million in cryptocurrencies.
Troubles Amidst Ongoing Investigations
Justin Sun communicated via X about an ongoing investigation post the November security incident, emphasizing HTX’s commitment to fully compensate for the hot wallet losses. However, this isn’t the first security breach for HTX; hackers had previously siphoned off $8 million from the platform in September, indicating a persistent vulnerability.
Exchange Reserves and TRX Allegations
DefiLlama’s insights into HTX’s reserves reveal that Bitcoin (BTC) accounts for approximately 33%, followed closely by the TRX token at 32%, the native HT coin at 14%, and a Sun-associated token named stUSDT constituting 12%. TRX, connected to Tron and launched by Sun in 2017, has faced fraud allegations by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the US for market manipulation. Sun, however, refuted these accusations via Twitter, claiming that the lawsuit “lacks merit.”
Security Challenges and Recovery Efforts
Security firm BlockSec reported a successful recovery of the $8 million stolen in September by HTX. However, despite these efforts, the recent $30 million loss in the security breach appears to remain in the hands of the hackers, indicating persistent security challenges for the exchange.
