Bitget CEO doubts full recovery of $388 million breach funds

Bitget CEO Gracy Chen said the exchange is unlikely to recover all of the assets stolen in a recent security breach that affected about $388 million in crypto. Chen compared the incident with Bybit’s 2025 hack, noting that even after a year the exchange had only frozen a small share of the stolen funds. She said Bitget has launched a bounty program to encourage help from companies and individuals that can freeze or return assets tied to the attack. According to the report, NEAR Intents said it blocked more than $50 million connected to the breach, while Tether and Circle blacklisted a wallet linked to the exploit and froze a smaller amount in USDT and USDC. Bitget has also begun restoring withdrawals in stages, starting with Bitcoin and then Ether. Chen said investigators have not ruled out all possible causes, including a potential inside job, while also pointing to signs that suggest a North Korealinked group may be involved. The exchange first reported a smaller loss before later updating the figure to reflect a more complete accounting of transfers.