Exclusive: Following ‘Security Breach,’ Bancor Expects to Be Online in 24 Hours

Decentralized cryptocurrency exchange Bancor, which experienced a “security breach” July 9, has told Cointelegraph that it expects to come back online within 24 hours.

Bancor halted operations this Monday due to an investigation of a “security breach,” which involved more than $12 million. The exchange confirmed the breach on its Twitter account, saying that “no user wallets were compromised.” The cybercriminals reportedly exchanged some of the tokens through conversion service Changelly. Sources familiar with the matter told Cointelegraph that the stolen tokens included Bancor’s native token BNT, about 25,000 Ethereum (ETH) ($12.2 million), and 300,000 Pundi X (NPXS) ($1,200).

While an official statement on the breach will be released following the investigation, a Bancor representative told Cointelegraph that the exchange should be back online within 24 hours. According to the source, Bancor is coordinating with a number of industry players to develop tools and technology in order to help the industry collaborate more effectively when thefts occur.

When asked whether it is possible to completely prevent these kinds of security breaches, the source compared exchange security to a game of cat and mouse. They explained that thieves become more mature and sophisticated along with the industry and projects. The representative emphasized that digital currency exchanges can outwit criminals through collaborative effort.

Last week, co-founder of Ethereum Vitalik Buterin criticized centralized exchanges, saying that he hopes they will “burn in hell.” Giving their opinion on the matter, the representative said that there is a place for both centralized and decentralized systems in the industry, underlining the importance of community coordination and improvement, rather than creating opposing factions between different types of solutions. However, the representative concluded that, in their opinion, decentralized solutions are the future of blockchain and value exchange.