WazirX Hack: Coinbase, Polygon Join India’s BWA Internal Groups For Probe

In response to the recent $230 million WazirX hack, India’s Bharat Web3 Association (BWA) is taking decisive steps to enhance cybersecurity and consumer protection within the crypto industry. The BWA, chaired by Dilip Chenoy, announced the formation of two new internal groups dedicated to these areas. Moreover, these groups will aid in probing the recent security breach.

BWA Aids WazirX Hack Recovery

The groups will include representatives from all BWA members, such as WazirX, Coinbase, Polygon, CoinSwitch, Liminal, Biconomy, Tax Nodes, Giottus, and Hike. Furthermore, the compromised exchange’s local rival, CoinDCX, will also join the fray. These groups aim to review and update existing consumer code guidelines while addressing the current cybersecurity challenges.

For context, on July 18, WazirX, India’s largest crypto exchange, reported a loss of 45% of its holding assets following a hack of one of its multisig wallets. The attack, allegedly carried out by North Korea’s Lazarus Group, resulted in the theft of various cryptocurrencies. According to the blockchain analytics from, Lookonchain, the stolen assets during the WazirX hack included:

• $102 million in Shiba Inu (SHIB)
• $52.5 million in Ethereum (ETH)
• $11.24 million in Polygon (MATIC)
• $7.6 million in Pepe Coin (PEPE)
• $135 million in Tether (USDT)
• $3.5 million in Gala (GALA)

“The industry body has been monitoring the situation and has been in touch with both the members involved – WazirX and Liminal,” BWA Chair Chenoy said, according to Moneycontrol. He added, “We have asked both of them to do a complete forensic analysis and root cause analysis on the issue and evaluate the legal and remedial actions that can be taken post this incident.”

Moreover, Chenoy also mentioned that the BWA has suggested a third-party evaluation of the forensic report to ensure impartiality and thoroughness. In addition, he affirmed that the internal groups will also aid in tackling the recent hack. He stated:

“We have agreed to create two groups to look at how to address such issues from both cybersecurity and consumer perspectives going forward. They will be looking into this (WazirX) issue as well to come up with solutions.”

Furthermore, the cybersecurity group will include chief information security officers (CISOs) from the member firms. They will develop standard operating procedures (SOPs) and solutions to prevent a repeat of the latest security breach. Chenoy noted that until now, the BWA had focused on Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) registration and anti-money laundering issues. However, this unprecedented attack has shifted their priorities to include more robust cybersecurity measures.

Nischal Shetty Reveals Update On Regulatory Front

“We have advised our members to be extra vigilant around cybersecurity. We have agreed on having independent discussions with cyber experts as well as within our ecosystem to strengthen the industry from threats. The members have also been cooperating with various government agencies and will continue to do so,” Chenoy added.

WazirX founder and CEO Nischal Shetty emphasized the exchange’s efforts to cooperate with authorities. “The exchange has sent its records to CERT-In (Indian Computer Emergency Response Team) and is in constant touch with the FIU and regulators. There’s an understanding within the government agencies that WazirX were the victims of a planned hack,” he said in an interview.

As the investigation continues, the comprised exchange has temporarily paused withdrawals and trading of crypto assets on its platform. The exchange has proposed a recovery plan to mitigate the losses and resume operations. According to the proposed plan, regardless of whether a customer’s assets were stolen, they would be able to access and trade around 55% of their portfolio tokens at any given point.

Whilst, the remaining 45% would be converted to USDT (a stablecoin) and locked. However, the recovery plan has faced criticism from customers and peers. Nonetheless, the exchange is seeking customer votes on the plan until August 3. Moreover, CoinDCX CEO recently labeled the plan as “utter nonsense” for not being community-driven.

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