The cryptocurrency exchange BitMart has confirmed that it once again encountered a security vulnerability on November 2nd. Preliminary investigations suggest that the attackers may be related to the hacker group that recently attacked the Brazilian exchange Mercado Bitcoin.

• BitMart Founder Sheldon Xia confirmed that another security incident occurred at the exchange on November 2nd, and stated that the amount involved was relatively small.
• Preliminary investigations suggest that the attackers may be associated with the group behind the recent Mercado Bitcoin hacking incident, and blockchain researchers have identified suspicious wallet transfers.
• Xia acknowledges that after reorganizations, employee departures, and disputes with former employees, BitMart's security team is currently facing a severe shortage of personnel.
• At the time of the latest incident, BitMart was still working hard to resolve the customer withdrawal and financial difficulties that remained from its suspension of trading in August.

In a statement published on X on November 3rd, Sheldon Xia, the founder of BitMart, acknowledged the incident after blockchain transaction records showed that funds from wallets associated with that exchange flowed to an address related to the Mercado Bitcoin attack.

"Yes, we also got hacked yesterday," said Xia, and added that the amount involved was small. The company has quickly investigated the matter and strengthened its security measures.

This disclosure comes at a time when BitMart has decided to continue with business restructuring after ceasing trading in August. Unresolved customer withdrawal issues and financial difficulties have already put pressure on the exchange.

BitMart It is suspected that the hackers who attacked Mercado Bitcoin are the same group.

According to Xia, preliminary investigations by BitMart suggest that the security vulnerability on November 2nd may have been carried out by the same group that attacked Mercado Bitcoin.

This Brazilian exchange encountered a major security incident earlier in the day, with blockchain researchers detecting suspicious transactions across multiple networks.

Blockchain analysis firm Bitquery subsequently identified transactions related to wallet BitMart, which occurred before the main attack event of Mercado Bitcoin.

In the on-chain investigation, Bitquery estimates that approximately $391,000 was transferred from wallets mainly associated with BitMart, starting about 53 minutes before a larger-scale attack occurred.

Researchers traced these transactions to the same addresses controlled by the attackers as those involved in the Mercado Bitcoin incident.

X, NeyLong, also specifically pointed out that the wallet related to BitMart had made transfers to an address that had received assets from this Brazilian exchange.

These transactions involve a variety of cryptocurrencies, and the activity in the wallets provides early indications that "the two incidents may have been carried out by the same attacker."

BitMart has not yet disclosed its own estimate of the loss amount, nor has it explained how the attackers obtained access to their wallets.

BitMart Founder claims there is a severe shortage of personnel in the security team

In the statement, Xia attributed the current security difficulties of the exchange to the departures of employees after the reorganization.

The company currently only retains a core team, and the threats directed at employees, as well as disputes involving former employees, make it difficult to maintain technical operations.

Xia also specifically accused BitMart, the former head of marketing operations, and Elly of participating in retaliatory actions against the company.

He stated that the act of opening boxes, personal threats, and the behavior of dissatisfied employees made technical personnel reluctant to continue working at the exchange.

"In order to persuade some key technical personnel to stay and maintain our core systems, we made considerable efforts and also engaged in one-on-one communications," stated Xia.

According to this founder, despite BitMart's efforts to retain key personnel, the company continues to face a large number of attacks.

"Our security team is currently severely understaffed," he admitted, while also stating that the remaining employees are still working hard to protect customer data and assets.

These difficulties for the personnel occurred after several months of operational issues, which ultimately led to BitMart suspending its trading services.

Following the $319.5 million hacker attack, the reorganization of BitMart continues.

After announcing in July its plan to gradually shut down its exchange business, BitMart ceased trading in August.

Subsequently, the company appointed Alvarez and Marsal as financial advisors to review their assets, liabilities, and customer withdrawal arrangements.

Subsequently, BitMart also established a user communication portal to collect feedback from affected customers, for advisors to assess potential recovery plans.

In its reorganization proposal, BitMart stated that its financial issues were partly due to losses caused by a security vulnerability in December 2021.

The exchange stated that the previous attack depleted its digital asset reserves by approximately $319.5 million, which included $164.1 million in Ethereum, $96.5 million in BNB, and $51.5 million in Bitcoin.

Management stated that subsequent weakening of transaction revenue, as well as losses related to groups that took advantage of the company's futures trading incentive mechanism, further exacerbated the company's financial situation.

According to the proposed reorganization plan, customers will have the option to choose between a pre-allocated scheme and a longer-term scheme with potentially higher recovery, subject to the final arrangements.

BitMart is expected to adjust its proposal in November and will seek a court application in December 2026 or January 2027.

Mercado Bitcoin claims to have frozen $11 million in stolen assets

At the same time, Mercado Bitcoin further disclosed details of the attack on November 2nd, which affected wallets on multiple blockchain networks.

As previously reported by crypto.news, after discovering a security incident in one of its systems, the exchange temporarily suspended deposit and withdrawal services.

Mercado Bitcoin Subsequently, it is estimated that approximately $38 million in assets were affected, and it was stated that with the assistance of industry partners, about $11 million has been intercepted and frozen.

Blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis estimates that the amount stolen is approximately $49 million, and claims to have assisted in coordinating the freezing of nearly $10 million in assets.

In a report dated November 2, Chainalysis stated that it is working with the exchange, law enforcement authorities, and other industry participants to track the stolen assets and seek opportunities to prevent their transfer.

Mercado Bitcoin has always stated that customers will not bear the financial losses resulting from this incident.

The exchange also disclosed the target wallet addresses related to the suspicious transactions, covering Ethereum-compatible networks, Bitcoin, Solana, Stellar, and Tron, to assist in tracking the stolen funds.