mETH Protocol announces $43 million recovery from Bybit hack, while Tether freezes $181,000

Sonic will release 47.63 million tokens into the market on 18 June 2025. Similar to other token unlocks, this action might lead to a decrease in the token's price due to the sudden increase in available supply. If many holders choose to sell, it can drive prices lower. However, if Sonic’s project developments create strong demand, this negative impact could be limited. Pay attention to community and market reactions to this significant token release event. source

On 23 March 2025, Metars Genesis (MRS) will unlock 10 million tokens. Token unlocks can lead to price drops if holders decide to sell their tokens. This could increase the supply of MRS in the market, potentially driving the price down. However, if the demand for MRS is strong or if holders believe in the project’s future, the impact could be minimized. Keep an eye on how stakeholders react after the unlock, which can indicate future price movements. source

Moonwell (WELL) will be listed on Kraken, one of the major crypto exchanges, on 26 February 2025. A new exchange listing can significantly boost a crypto asset’s visibility and liquidity. With more people able to buy and sell WELL, this event could lead to increased demand and possibly higher prices. However, the overall impact also depends on market conditions at that time. If the crypto market is bullish, the listing could be a strong catalyst for a price increase. Always watch market trends. source

Dogecoin whales have executed a substantial transaction in the last two days, purchasing 110 million DOGE while the price of the meme coin declined.

This systematic accumulation has attracted the interest of experts and traders, igniting discussions regarding a possible price reversal.

With DOGE presently trading at $0.25, many are speculating whether this may indicate a forthcoming bullish breakout.

Whale Accumulation Signifies Assurance

A substantial number of investors, often referred to as “whales,” play a crucial role in shaping market patterns. On-chain data indicates that these whales have accumulated DOGE valued at around $27.5 million in the last 48 hours.

Historical market cycles indicate that such strong buying behavior from significant holders often precedes rising price trends.

The rise in whale accumulation aligns with a broader trend of increased whale activity in the cryptocurrency sector. Analysts suggest that the continued purchase pressure may create substantial support for DOGE, hence reducing the likelihood of a significant fall.

Essential Support Levels Maintain Stability

Technical analysts have noted that Dogecoin’s most recent fall encountered a resistance close to the $0.22 level. Historically, this level has been a strong demand zone that draws investors even in DOGE’s decline. If the price keeps above this crucial support level, it could stimulate a possible recovery.

The Lazarus Group moved 10,000 Ether , valued at $27 million, to a wallet labeled Bybit Exploiter 54 on Feb. 22 to launder the funds, according to onchain analytics firm Lookonchain.

Onchain data from the firm also shows that the malicious actors, identified by ZackXBT, currently hold 489,395 ETH, valued at over $1.3 billion, and 15,000 Mantle Restaked ETH (cmETH) in 53 additional wallets.

Etherscan also shows that the hacking group has been actively moving funds between the wallets, with over 83 transactions between wallets over the past eight hours.

According to the block explorer, the most recent transaction from Bybit Exploiter 54 was sent to a wallet ending in "CE9" at 01:23:47 PM UTC on Feb. 22 and contained approximately 66 ETH, valued at $182,831.

The $1.4 billion Bybit hack, labeled as the single largest crypto hack in history, shook crypto markets — causing ETH's price to decline by approximately 8% in a single day and a corresponding dip in altcoin prices.

In the wake of the largest exchange hack in crypto history, Singapore-based crypto exchange Bybit has announced a recovery bounty program, offering security researchers and organizations 10% of any funds recovered from the hack.

Should the $1.4 billion in stolen funds be fully recovered, the contributors could share up to $140 million, which would constitute the largest such bounty ever awarded.

"We want to officially reward our community who lent us their expertise, experience and support through the Recovery Bounty Program," Bybit co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou said. "Bybit is determined to rise above the setback and fundamentally transform our security infrastructure, improve liquidity, and be a steadfast partner to our friends in the crypto community."

Bybit encourages individuals and organizations interested in participating in the recovery program to contact bounty_program@bybit.com.

Crypto analytics firm Arkham awarded pseudonymous security researcher ZachXBT with a bounty of 50,000 ARKM (about $34,000) for linking the Lazarus Group to the attack on Friday. The Lazarus Group has already begun to launder 5,000 ETH (about $13.7 million), according to ZachXBT.

Lazarus Group's hacking history

The hack has been attributed to North Korean state-sponsored hacking organization Lazarus Group, which often leverages sophisticated phishing schemes in attempts to score massive payouts from large hacks.

Lazarus Group was previously blamed for the $600 million hack of the Ronin Network used by crypto project Axie Infinity. While it has been historically difficult to recover funds from Lazarus Group attacks, security firm Chainalysis and U.S. law enforcement were able to recover $30 million worth of stolen funds in Sep. 2022.

"This marks the first time ever that cryptocurrency stolen by a North Korean hacking group has been seized, and we’re confident it won’t be the last,” Erin Plante, senior director of investigations at Chainalysis, wrote in a blog post at the time.

However, subsequent hacks from the Lazarus Group have not resulted in significant reported recoveries.

Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.

© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.