Tether has frozen over $4.5 million in USDT following a security breach targeting Mercado Bitcoin, Brazil’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. The freeze came after reports surfaced of more tha
Tether has frozen over $4.5 million in USDT following a security breach targeting Mercado Bitcoin, Brazil’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. The freeze came after reports surfaced of more than $40 million in suspicious token transfers on the platform. In response to the incident, Mercado Bitcoin paused all deposits and withdrawals as it launched an investigation.
Mercado Bitcoin reported that it detected the compromise of one of its systems during the early hours of November 2. The company stated it acted swiftly to contain the incident and emphasized that no customer funds had been lost and no user data was leaked. The exchange assured clients that their assets remained secure, though as a precaution, trading operations were temporarily suspended.
Tether Chief Executive Paolo Ardoino acknowledged the freeze in a post on X, but did not disclose wallet addresses involved nor indicate whether the frozen USDT had been recovered by the exchange. No evidence was presented showing that blocked tokens were returned to Mercado Bitcoin.
Mercado Bitcoin indicated that it contained the security incident quickly, with no damage to clients and no leak of user data. The company paused deposits and withdrawals as a protective measure, aiming to safeguard customer funds and maintain operational integrity.
Blockchain security firm Hypernative flagged irregular token movements across multiple networks during the breach, according to Brazilian publication BitNotícias. Although Hypernative estimated a total of $40 million in suspicious transfers, the actual amount affected remains unverified.
Suspicious transactions were identified on at least 10 blockchains, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Tron, Polygon, and Avalanche. Initial abnormalities were detected at approximately 02:15 UTC, followed by several large transactions between 06:19 and 06:53 UTC. Hypernative traced roughly 2,852 ETH, 106 BTC, and 10,700 SOL among the assets moved, but expressed uncertainty about the exact ownership of the wallets involved.
Mercado Bitcoin published a list of blockchain addresses linked to the incident, spanning EVM-compatible networks, Bitcoin, Solana, Stellar, and Tron. This step aimed to assist investigators and third parties in tracking the movement of compromised assets. The company did not provide specific loss figures for each address and noted that some details, including the relationship of specific USDT holdings to the freeze, were unavailable.
While Tether is able to freeze USDT associated with suspicious activities, the company cannot return blocked tokens directly to victims. Earlier this year, Tether reported collaborating with authorities on similar actions, including the freezing of $344 million USDT tied to illicit activities on two addresses.
Tether stated that it has worked with more than 340 law enforcement agencies across 65 countries, supporting over 1,200 investigations involving suspicious transactions. These collaborations highlight the increasing role of stablecoin issuers in responding to security incidents in the crypto sector.
Tether has demonstrated the ability to freeze tokens linked to compromised wallets, but clarified that the authority to move or return these tokens rests outside its purview and is typically managed by law enforcement agencies or the courts.
Market participants seeking to monitor critical movements of USDT following hacks on exchanges such as Mercado Bitcoin can benefit from real-time alerts and transaction tracking. CryptoAppsy provides timely notifications tailored to specific tokens like USDT, enabling users to react swiftly by following live data as new developments unfold in response to security incidents.
Mercado Bitcoin confirmed its team is working closely with Brazilian authorities while monitoring the affected tokens. So far, no information has emerged regarding any recovery or return of the frozen USDT. The total scope of assets involved in the security breach remains under review.
The post Tether freezes $4.5 million USDT after Mercado Bitcoin hack in Brazil appeared first on COINTURK NEWS.
