Binance addresses WazirX and Zettai accusations on the July hack
|- The WazirX team and Nischal Shetty continue to mislead customers about a $230 million hack in July, according to Binance.
- On Tuesday, crypto exchange Binance addressed “inaccurate and misleading statements” from Zettai and WazirX regarding Binance.
- Binance stated that the security and preservation of user assets are critical duties for any cryptocurrency platform.
Binance responded to accusations from WazirX and Zettai by releasing a blog post on Tuesday clarifying how its ongoing dispute with WazirX impacts the recovery of over $230 million in user funds that was lost during the July cyberattack, emphasizing that safeguarding user assets is a fundamental responsibility of any cryptocurrency platform.
Timeline of events
The Zanmai-run WazirX platform reported that it had suffered a cyber-attack on July 18, 2024, resulting in the loss of more than $230 million in user funds. Attackers compromised its multisig wallet on the Ethereum network and quickly stole several tokens.
On August 27, 2024, Zettai Pte Ltd, a legal entity incorporated in Singapore, applied to the Singapore High Court for a moratorium to prevent creditors (i.e., WazirX’s customers) from taking collective action against it.
The application was filed on August 27 with the High Court of Singapore for a moratorium under section 64 of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 to facilitate its intention to restructure its liabilities under a scheme of arrangement.
On September 6, the WazirX exploiter also deposited 7,200 ETH worth $17.3 million to Tornado Cash out of the $230 million in user assets stolen from the Indian crypto exchange.
Binance defends against WazirX accusations after cyberattack
On Tuesday, the crypto exchange Binance responded to accusations from WazirX and Zettai through a blog post about how its dispute with WazirX affected user funds lost during the July cyberattack.
“In his sworn affidavits, Mr. Shetty made several inaccurate statements about the ongoing dispute between Zettai and Binance. Mr. Shetty’s allegations make it clear that he is trying to deflect the blame and claim that Binance may somehow be responsible for the losses suffered by WazirX users and creditors as a result of the cyber-attack. This is false, and any suggestion of the sort is outrageously misleading.” said Binance in a blog post.
Binance continued its statement: “Binance does not provide and has never provided cryptocurrency-related services to WazirX users as described in the WazirX User Agreement. As we have said before, Binance had previously provided Zanmai wallet services as a tech solution for their operations of the WazirX exchange, as we do for many other third parties. Binance has never operated WazirX.”
Binance concluded by saying, “In light of the ongoing misinformation propagated by Zettai and Mr. Shetty, it is crucial for WazirX users and the broader market to understand that Binance has never owned, controlled, or operated WazirX at any point, including during the July 2024 alleged hack. Binance bears no responsibility for the operation of the WazirX platform or the consequences of the attack.”
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