South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb suffered a major operational blunder on February 6, 2026, accidentally transferring 620,000 bitcoins—valued at approximately $44 billion—to 695 users as part of a promotional giveaway.
The exchange intended to distribute small cash rewards of 2,000 Korean won ($1.37) or more but mistakenly credited winners with at least 2,000 bitcoins each, triggering immediate chaos and a brief market selloff.
Massive Error in Promotional Rewards
The incident stemmed from a glitch during a “random box” style promotion aimed at rewarding users with modest fiat amounts in Korean won. Instead of small cash prizes, the system erroneously sent vast quantities of Bitcoin, totaling 620,000 BTC.
Bithumb acted swiftly, detecting the mistake and restricting trading and withdrawals for the affected 695 accounts within 35 minutes. The exchange emphasized that the error was internal and not the result of any external hacking or security breach, stating: “There are no problems with system security or customer asset management.”
Rapid Recovery and Market Impact
Bithumb successfully recovered 99.7% of the distributed bitcoins, mitigating most of the potential loss. The blunder caused Bitcoin prices on the platform to slump 17% temporarily to 81.1 million won before recovering to around 104.5 million won. The exchange issued an apology on February 7, 2026, reassuring users of asset safety.
As South Korea’s second-largest crypto platform behind Upbit, Bithumb faces scrutiny over internal controls despite the quick resolution. No details emerged on potential legal repercussions or compensation for affected users, though the incident highlights risks in high-volume promotional systems amid volatile crypto markets.