A Canadian crypto exchange has claimed it has been hacked and all of its funds are not just missing, but are gone for good.
MapleChange is a small Canadian crypto exchange operating out of Alberta. It announced via its Twitter page, before it went offline, that it was a victim of hackers and lost everything in the process.
Canadian Crypto Exchange Loses Everything
MapleChange made the shock announcement on their Twitter page that informed users that due to the hacking that they have closed down the site and do not have any money to pay anyone back.
Some of the last Tweets from their official page said:
Due to a bug, some people have managed to withdraw all the funds from our exchange. We are in the process of a thorough investigation for this. We are extremely sorry that it has come to end like this. Until the investigation is over, we cannot refund anything
The posts also went onto stay that the exchange “has to close down.” Shortly after the announcement, their Twitter page, which has less than 2,000 followers, also subsequently shut down.
Are Upgraded Servers to Blame?
Earlier in the day, MapleChange had reported to its users that it had upgraded its servers and that their new Version 2.0 was now online and available for everyone to use. Within 18-hours of the announcement, news of the hack began to surface, dealing a massive blow to the exchange and its users.
Although MapleChange wasn’t exactly a large exchange by any stretch, especially when compared to the bigger players, it is still very uncommon for an exchange to close down based purely on the reports of a scam or a successful hacking attempt.
Although speculation is currently rife due to the strange circumstances of both the Canadian crypto exchange and their Twitter page being shut down in quick succession, further details are yet to emerge.
Update: Reports previously indicated that 919 BTC – nearly $6 million worth – was stolen from the exchange. MapleChange have since responded – explaining that the hack in fact only totalled around 8 BTC:
The negative balance was used in order to fully buyout every market the attackers felt like, they were able to sell without limitations and accumulated 15BTC of non-existent funds. Out of which they only managed to withdraw what he had in total – 8BTC.
— MapleChange (@MapleChangeEx) October 29, 2018