News
Public · Published
Mercado Bitcoin begins post-hack reopening without a timeline for withdrawals
Mercado Bitcoin began phased, read-only access to customer accounts one week after attackers stole an estimated $49 million. Customers can view holdings as recorded on Nov. 2, but the exchange has not said when withdrawals will resume; it says it will replace the stolen assets with its own funds.
Published:
Updated:
What happened
Mercado Bitcoin began phased, read-only access to customer accounts one week after attackers stole an estimated $49 million. Customers can view holdings as recorded on Nov. 2, but the exchange has not said when withdrawals will resume; it says it will replace the stolen assets with its own funds.
Confirmed
Global impact / market context
Showing account balances may reassure customers, but it does not give them access to their money. Without a withdrawal date, customers cannot yet move funds elsewhere, while the exchange says it must cover the stolen assets from its own funds, potentially tying up cash available for operations.
Analyst inference
The incident affects a major Brazilian crypto exchange, which reported more than 4.8 million customers and over 215 billion Brazilian reais in cumulative transactions. Those figures indicate the scale of its customer and transaction base, but the article gives no withdrawal schedule or details on how asset replacement will be funded.
Analyst inference
What to watch
- Whether Mercado Bitcoin announces a withdrawal date, since that would determine when customers can transfer funds and whether the current read-only period continues. Analyst inference
- Whether the exchange provides further details on replacing the stolen assets with its own funds, including how this affects cash available for business operations. Analyst inference
- The exchange said all accounts were expected to be viewable by 21:00 UTC, showing holdings as they stood on Nov. 2. Confirmed
Affected assets
- BTC — Bitcoin