Bitget reports $351.6 million wallet breach, halts withdrawals

Bitget has reported that a breach affecting its wallet operations involved about $351.6 million, prompting the cryptocurrency exchange to halt withdrawals while it looks into what happened. The figure, disclosed by the company, makes the incident one of the larger security failures reported by a major trading platform this year.

Withdrawals were suspended as part of the exchange's response, leaving users unable to move funds off the platform for the time being. The company has not said how long the pause will last, and it did not immediately provide a detailed account of how the breach unfolded or which assets were involved.

Crypto exchanges hold large pools of customer deposits in hot and cold wallets, making them persistent targets for hackers. Historical incidents have ranged from small exploits of smart contracts to large-scale compromises of private keys and internal systems. When a platform stops withdrawals, traders often react quickly, and the resulting uncertainty can weigh on prices and on confidence in the venue itself.

Attention now turns to how Bitget handles reimbursements, if any, and whether the exchange can resume normal operations without further disruption. Regulators in several jurisdictions have increased scrutiny of how trading venues safeguard client assets, and an event of this size is likely to renew questions about custody practices across the industry.