TLDR 👇🏻
- During setup for a “Random Box” promo, a human input error caused the system to credit $BTC instead of KRW.
- 695 users suddenly saw huge BTC balances.
- Around 19:00 KST, Feb 6, roughly 620,000 BTC (~$44B) appeared across accounts.
- Users rushed to dump the “free” BTC → Bithumb’s BTC/KRW price briefly crashed 15–22% below global markets, falling to ~$55K within minutes.
- By 19:35–19:40, Bithumb identified the ledger error, froze the 695 accounts, and halted trading and withdrawals.
- 99.7% of the balances were internal “phantom” entries and were quickly reversed.
- About 1,788 BTC (~$130M) was actually sold before the freeze.
- Bithumb covered the loss from its own corporate holdings by Feb 7 evening, fully restoring asset consistency.
Now the compensation part - Bithumb stepping up (announced Feb 8):
1️⃣ Bithumb will pay 20,000 KRW (~$15) to ALL active users - anyone who logged in or used the app/site during the incident window.
2️⃣ Full reimbursement of the price gap for users who sold BTC during the local crash and realized losses.
3️⃣ 7 days of zero trading fees across all pairs, starting Feb 9.
