Recent on-chain data reveals that hackers who exploited the Heco Bridge last year have successfully laundered more than 40,000 ether, equivalent to $145.7 million, through Tornado Cash over the past eight days. The Heco Bridge, utilized for transferring funds between Ethereum and the Heco Chain, fell victim to a significant hack in November 2023, resulting in approximately $111 million in losses on the day of the exploit.
The blockchain security and data analytics firm PeckShield provided insights into the recent laundering activities, highlighting the movement of substantial sums of ether to Tornado Cash within a short timeframe. Tornado Cash, a cryptocurrency mixer, offers privacy-enhancing features by obscuring the origins and destinations of Ethereum transactions.
Igor Igamberdiev, Head of Research at Wintermute, pointed out suspicious transfers totaling $23.4 million following the Heco Bridge exploit, indicating potential additional vulnerabilities within the HTX ecosystem. HTX, the blockchain established by the HTX exchange (formerly Huobi), experienced a security breach in November 2023, prompting swift actions from the platform to secure users’ funds and investigate the incident.
HTX advisor Justin Sun assured the community of the platform’s commitment to fully compensate for losses incurred in the hot wallet and reiterated the security of all funds within the HTX ecosystem. However, concerns about the integrity of the platform persisted, particularly following a previous 5,000 ETH hack on HTX in September 2023.
In a separate development, Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev faces accusations of laundering $1.2 billion of illicit funds through the platform, according to an indictment in the Netherlands. Pertsev awaits trial in the country on March 26, facing charges related to money laundering and financial crimes.