Brazilian crypto platform Mercado Bitcoin has confirmed the detection and containment of an issue in one of its systems. As a precaution, the exchange has temporarily suspended deposits and withdrawals, assuring clients of the safety of their assets and the absence of a data leak.
The incident occurred shortly after the platform passed a local licensing deadline.
According to independent blockchain company Hypernative, suspicious outflows from wallets linked to the exchange exceeded $40 million (approximately 217 million reais). Analysts recorded the movement of assets on the Ethereum, Bitcoin, Solana, Tron and Stellar (XLM) networks.
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In total, the activity spanned at least 10 blockchains, also including Polygon, Arbitrum, Avalanche and BNB Smart Chain. The first suspicious transfers were recorded at around 02:15 UTC and involved Bitcoin deposit addresses attributed to the exchange.
Among the flagged assets were 106 BTC and 2,852 ETH. The hackers carried out direct token transfers, which indicates a compromise of operational reserves rather than segregated client assets.
Focus on Stellar and the exchange’s countermeasures
Among the withdrawn assets, blockchain analysts recorded a large volume of Stellar tokens: about 6.7 million XLM were consolidated at addresses linked to the suspicious transactions.
As part of the investigation and coordination of efforts with the authorities, Mercado Bitcoin published a specific Stellar destination address to help the community and security firms track the movement of assets in real time.
The move is aimed at monitoring the movement of tokens and preventing their laundering through third-party services.
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At the moment, the exchange is conducting an investigation, tracking the assets and promising to provide regular updates. The exchange has not yet confirmed the amount involved, disclosed which system was compromised or given a date for resuming deposits and withdrawals.
Until the platform fully resumes normal operations and the security of its infrastructure is confirmed, users are advised to refrain from making new deposits.
