What Happened
Bithumb intended to airdrop 2,000 won (about $1.37) to users as part of a “Random Box” promotion. Due to a coding mistake, the internal ledger credited each participant with 2,000 BTC instead of 2,000 won.
The Scale of the Error
The erroneous credit would have been worth roughly $142 million per user at a Bitcoin price of $71,000, amounting to a potential total of over $2 billion across all affected accounts.
- 2,000 BTC per user (phantom)
- Estimated total phantom value: >$2 billion
- Actual on‑chain transfers: none – only internal ledger entries
Impact on Bitcoin Market
Within the five‑minute window before the mistake was corrected, some users sold the phantom Bitcoin, causing a brief but sharp price fluctuation. Korean authorities estimate that more than $2 billion worth of the phantom BTC was sold.
Bithumb’s Response
The exchange detected the anomaly, halted the giveaway, and reversed the entries. It recovered 618,212 BTC of the credited funds and clawed back an additional 1,788 BTC (about 93 % of the sold amount).
Bithumb emphasized that no external hack occurred, customer assets were not at risk, and pre‑existing balances remained untouched.
Lessons Learned
- Rigorous testing of promotional code is essential.
- Real‑time monitoring can limit financial exposure.
- Clear communication helps maintain user trust during incidents.