A U.S. government filing indicates Bitfinex could be the sole entity eligible for restitution from the massive 2016 Bitcoin theft.
The filing by the U.S. government has confirmed that <a href="https://crypto.news/tag/bitfinex/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Bitfinex</a> could be the sole victim eligible for restitution concerning the notorious 2016 <a href="https://crypto.news/bitfinex-hacker-tactics-court/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">hack</a> that resulted in the theft of <a href="https://crypto.news/bitfinex-confirm-64-million-hack-btc-usd-slumps/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">approximately</a> 120,000 Bitcoin (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/bitcoin/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">BTC</a>), now valued at $7.4 billion.
According to the <a href="https://docs.dbnews.com/u/Bitfinex-Victim-Rights-Notification.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">court documents</a>, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia stated, “The government is not aware of any person who qualifies as a victim under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act or for restitution under the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act, beyond perhaps Bitfinex.”&nbsp;
This statement puts Bitfinex as the primary entity affected by the cyberattack, which <a href="https://crypto.news/btc-usd-exposed-to-further-downside-following-bitfinex-hack/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">has left individual account holders</a> without recourse for claims against the seized assets.&nbsp;
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 “According to information provided by counsel for iFinex, iFinex believes that it is the sole victim with sustained financial losses from the hack,” the document read.
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The filing indicates that restitution efforts will likely focus solely on Bitfinex, which has already engaged with law enforcement to recover stolen assets.
Following this news, the exchange’s LEO (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/leo-token/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">LEO</a>) token jumped over 50% to over $8.
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="the-2016-bitfinex-hack">The 2016 Bitfinex hack&nbsp;</h2>
The hackers — Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan — reportedly infiltrated Bitfinex’s systems and executed over 2,000 unauthorized transactions.
Following the hack, the exchange <a href="https://crypto.news/bitfinex-decides-on-generalized-losses-issues-bfx-tokens/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">compensated users</a> with BFX tokens, allowing them to redeem or convert these into equity shares of its parent company, iFinex. By April 2017, all BFX tokens had been redeemed, <a href="https://crypto.news/bitfinex-slowly-earning-customers-confidence-back/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">demonstrating</a> Bitfinex’s commitment to user recovery.
In February 2022, U.S. authorities <a href="https://crypto.news/new-york-resident-confesses-to-hacking-bitfinex-in-2016/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">seized</a> 94,643 BTC associated with the hack, valued at approximately $3.6 billion at that time. These funds are now worth around $5.8 billion and are poised for potential return to Bitfinex.
Ilya Lichtenstein confessed to laundering $4.5 billion in stolen Bitcoin from the 2016 Bitfinex hack. Despite skepticism about the ability to execute such a crime, blockchain records linked Bitfinex and Lichtenstein’s wallet.
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Bitfinex could be ‘sole victim’ of 2016 hack, US government says

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