Blast

Base

ZachXBT

Magnate Finance

Polygon

<p class="is-style-lead">A group known for its past blockchain fraud activities has reportedly launched a fresh scheme on Blast.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>According to ZachXBT, an on-chain detective, the group has moved approximately $1 million in laundered funds to Base to fuel its new scam.&nbsp;</p> 
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   <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Community Alert: The group of scammers who stole 8 figs with Magnate, Kokomo, Lendora, Solfire, etc is back with a new project on Blast <a href="https://twitter.com/Leaperfinance?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="">@Leaperfinance</a> <br><br>Last week they funded an address on Blast with ~$1M of laundered funds from the previous rugs and have begun adding liquidity… <a href="https://t.co/yqRKvZuuye" target="_blank" rel="">pic.twitter.com/yqRKvZuuye</a></p>— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) <a href="https://twitter.com/zachxbt/status/1779333168383791411?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="">April 14, 2024</a>
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<p>The unnamed group initially transferred the funds from an Ethereum (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/ethereum/" target="_blank" rel="">ETH</a>) address linked to previous scams, from which they eventually found their way to another address on the Polygon network.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>The alleged scammers then converted the assets into wrapped Ether (wETH) and moved them through multiple blockchain networks using bridging services such as Orbiter and Bungee.</p> 
<p>Their strategy led them to the Blast network, where they allegedly funded an address possibly belonging to Leaper Finance, a decentralized over-collateralized lending protocol.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>ZachXBT characterizes these transfers as a sudden surge in liquidity aimed at enticing unsuspecting individuals.</p> 
<p>Concurrently, the blockchain investigator known for uncovering various scams in the crypto world pointed out that these same individuals are likely behind another Base project named ZebraLending, with a current total value locked (TVL) of about $311,000.&nbsp;</p> 
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   <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Update: Same scammers are also likely behind <a href="https://twitter.com/ZebraLending?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="">@ZebraLending</a> on Base which is currently live with $311K TVL<br><br>Withdraw your assets immediately if you have funds deposited in this protocol.<br><br>Tracing: <br><br>1) 0x085 transfers 30 wETH to 0x9f8 on Base… <a href="https://t.co/Hv0v70azA7" target="_blank" rel="">pic.twitter.com/Hv0v70azA7</a></p>— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) <a href="https://twitter.com/zachxbt/status/1779365998430208410?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="">April 14, 2024</a>
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<p>ZachXBT claims the group has a track record of launching projects that attract substantial TVL only to disappear with the funds later. According to the investigator, the scammers often forge know-your-customer (KYC) documents and collaborate with dubious security auditing firms to appear legitimate.</p> 
<p> You might also like: <a href="https://crypto.news/amazon-engineer-sentenced-hack/" rel=""> Ex-Amazon engineer sentenced to 3 years in prison for $12m crypto hack </a> </p> 
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-history-of-scamming-strong"><strong>History of scamming</strong></h2> 
<p>The group has targeted other platforms, including Avalanche (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/avalanche/" target="_blank" data-type="link" data-id="https://crypto.news/price/avalanche/" rel="">AVAX</a>), Ethereum, Arbitrum (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/arbitrum/" target="_blank" data-type="link" data-id="https://crypto.news/price/arbitrum/" rel="">ARB</a>), and Solana (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/solana/" target="_blank" data-type="link" data-id="https://crypto.news/price/solana/" rel="">SOL</a>), showcasing their adaptability and widespread presence in blockchain.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>According to ZachXBT, the scammers usually grow their honeypot projects to seven-figure values before executing a rug pull and making off with investors’ funds. The blockchain sleuth pointed to past projects, including Solfire Finance on Solana, <a href="https://crypto.news/zachxbt-issues-potential-exit-scam-alert-for-lendora-protocol-on-scroll/" target="_blank" rel="">Lendora Protocol</a> on Scroll, and Magnate Finance on Base, as past handiworks of the group.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>In the Magnate Finance incident, the group reportedly stole more than $6.5 million hours after ZachXBT, alongside other security experts, raised alarm over the project. In the <a href="https://www.trmlabs.com/post/exploit-radar-solfire-finance-burns-victims-with-a-rugpull" target="_blank" data-type="link" data-id="https://www.trmlabs.com/post/exploit-radar-solfire-finance-burns-victims-with-a-rugpull" rel="">Solfire</a> scam, they made off with approximately $3 million.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>Blast, a layer-2 (L2) network introduced by Blur founder Tieshun Roquerre, has recently been hit by several scams, exploits, and rug pulls. In February, a project on the platform, RiskOnBlast, suffered a <a href="https://crypto.news/blast-network-layer-2-project-prey-500-eth-rug-pull/" target="_blank" rel="">rug pull</a>, resulting in a loss of around 500 ETH.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>In March, Super Sushi Samurai, a blockchain game native to the network, suffered a token <a href="https://crypto.news/blast-blockchain-game-mint-exploit/" target="_blank" rel="">exploit</a> just before its gaming launch. The team confirmed an exploit of $4.6 million due to a smart contract bug, verified by on-chain security firm CertiK.</p> 
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   <p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CertiKInsight?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="">#CertiKInsight</a> 🚨<br><br>We have seen an incident affecting <a href="https://twitter.com/SSS_HQ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="">@SSS_HQ</a> on Blast<br><br>Contract: 0xdfDCdbC789b56F99B0d0692d14DBC61906D9Deed<br><br>In total, $4.6m has been affected <a href="https://t.co/auAWqdIDU0" target="_blank" rel="">pic.twitter.com/auAWqdIDU0</a></p>— CertiK Alert (@CertiKAlert) <a href="https://twitter.com/CertiKAlert/status/1770831867748421764?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="">March 21, 2024</a>
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<p>According to the Super Sushi team, the exploiter manipulated the game’s smart contract to double token balances and mass-sell into its liquidity pool.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>In the same month, another Blast-based non-fungible token (NFT) game, Munchables, suffered a $62 million exploit. Munchables acknowledged the breach and stated efforts to track the exploiter’s actions and halt the transactions.</p> 
<p> Read more: <a href="https://crypto.news/aave-fork-on-blast-mistakenly-liquidated-26m/" rel=""> Aave fork on Blast mistakenly liquidated $26m </a> </p>

Blockchain fraud group strikes again, launches fresh scheme on Blast network

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