Bybit has made significant strides in recovering from a $1.4 billion hack, restoring nearly 50% of its Ether reserves, which is a remarkable feat following the largest theft in cryptocurrency history.

The exchange announced its recovery on February 24, 2025, confirming that it fully backs all customer assets and has returned to normal deposit and withdrawal services.

As of the same date, Bybit reported that total deposits slightly exceeded withdrawals, indicating a recovery in market confidence.

To replenish its liquidity, Bybit sought nearly $300 million in loans and acquired additional funds through large deposits and over-the-counter trading.

Of the replenished funds, over $400 million was sourced through over-the-counter trading, while around $300 million came from other exchanges.

The hack, which occurred on February 23, 2025, targeted Bybit's secure offline 'cold' wallet, exploiting vulnerabilities in the user interface and smart contract logic.

Attribution of the attack has been linked to the notorious Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking entity known for previous high-profile cyber thefts.

Despite the incident, Bybit processed over 350,000 withdrawal requests within 10 hours post-hack, successfully completing 99.9% of them, showcasing strong user trust.

The crypto community has praised Bybit and its CEO, Ben Zhou, for their effective crisis management, highlighting the company's swift recovery and leadership during the incident.

Founded in March 2018, Bybit is recognized for its focus on derivatives trading and offers a user-friendly NFT marketplace, further solidifying its position in the crypto space.

While the overall rate of crypto hacking had reportedly slowed in the latter half of 2024, the Bybit incident has already contributed significantly to the total of $2.2 billion stolen in 2024.

The incident has sparked discussions within the crypto community, with calls for case studies on Bybit's recovery strategies compared to other exchanges like FTX.