Crypto hacks stole $763,971,791 across 67 incidents in Q2 2026, with accessibility weaknesses the single biggest point of failure.
The state of crypto hacks in Q2 2026According to a recent report by blockchain security and compliance firm Hacken, Q2 saw crypto hacks rise by 58.3% from Q1’s $482.7 million and netted the highest losses since Q2 2025.
Source: hacken.io
Drift Protocol and KelpDAO suffered the two biggest capital extractions at about $290 million each.
While smart contract bugs accounted for most incidents, their cumulative loss only mounted to just 11% of all losses. Operational and infrastructural failures, including compromised keys and signers, took the bigger pie at 88.3% of all losses.
As for the perpetrators, 75.5% of the funds drained were attributed to Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) actors.
Note that Consensys, the company behind Ethereum’s wallet MetaMask, recently acknowledged hiring a software developer linked to North Korea. Realizing this a month later, the individual was fired and his system access revoked. The firm reported the incident to law enforcement while reassuring users that no funds were lost, no data was leaked, and no malicious code was deployed.
The report also documents that Q2 witnessed the first case of AI malicious prompt injection causing an exfiltration of $174,000. Here, the firm notes that failure comes from “inadequate review, missing variants and weak testing.”
The state of regulatory compliance in Q2 2026In terms of regulatory compliance, US crypto regulations under the GENIUS Act will be effective in early 2027.
In the European Union, the grace period for crypto players to pursue a full license expired on July 1. By this time, only about 215 Crypto-Asset Service Providers (CASPs) had acquired Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) authorization despite 1,200 expressing interest.
Binance, MEXC and HTX (formerly Huobi) are among the most prominent exchanges that were forced to shut down under this rule. Additionally, Circle’s USDC is so far the only MiCA-compliant stablecoin out of the top 10 in terms of market cap.
Nonetheless, Hacken notes that the most trusted counterparties in the future will be the ones that prove safety first, regardless of their existence period, their audits, and total value locked.
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The crypto industry lost nearly $764 million to hackers in the second quarter of 2026, but the bigger finding from security firm @hackenclub is where the money actually went, and why.
Keys, Not CodeHacken's Q2 2026 Security and Compliance Report counted $763.9 million stolen across 67 incidents, making it the worst quarter since Q2 2025. The firm found that compromised keys, signers, and infrastructure accounted for 88.3% of losses, a finding that challenges the industry's heavy focus on smart contract audits. Smart contract flaws appeared in 44 of the 67 incidents but drove only around 11% of the total damage.
Hacken tracked 1,427 projects with market capitalizations above $1 million and found that only 9% had third-party monitoring in place. Just 4% combined monitoring with an active bug bounty and an audit. Fourteen projects exploited during the quarter had previously been audited, with most losses originating outside the scope of traditional smart contract reviews. The report identified the most affected attack surfaces as signer devices, bridge validators, backend infrastructure, and admin keys. The pattern points to a structural gap: the industry audits code rigorously but leaves operational security, key management, and human access controls largely unguarded.
Two Attacks, Three-Quarters of the DamageTwo North Korea-attributed incidents dominated the quarter. On April 1, 2026, Solana's Drift Protocol lost approximately $285 million in roughly twelve minutes. No smart contract bug was involved. TRM Labs traced a six-month social engineering campaign in which Lazarus Group operators posed as a legitimate trading firm, attended crypto conferences in person, and ultimately compromised the signing keys used by the protocol's multisig Security Council.
On April 18, KelpDAO suffered a separate $292 million breach via a LayerZero bridge compromise. North Korea's TraderTraitor subunit hacked two RPC nodes feeding data to LayerZero's verifier network, injected false transaction data, and then knocked the legitimate nodes offline to force a failover to the compromised ones. The bridge had been configured with a single-verifier design, creating one critical point of failure. Together, the two attacks account for roughly three-quarters of everything stolen in Q2.
Hacken's report is a clear signal that operational security, not just cleaner code, needs to become a first-order priority. The firm concluded that security must cover code, operations, and infrastructure throughout a project's life, not end when an audit report is published.
Sources:
Hacken: Q2 2026 Security and Compliance Report
TRM Labs: North Korea Stole 76% of All Crypto Hack Value in 2026 With Just Two Attacks
Crypto.news: Crypto Security Audits Lose Trust as Institutions Demand Live Monitoring
Institutional investors are looking beyond smart contract audits after traditional trust signals such as prior audits and operating history failed to predict which crypto projects would be exploited, according to Hacken.
In its Q2 2026 Security & Compliance Report, Hacken said that only 9% of 1,427 tracked projects had third-party monitoring, while 4% combined monitoring with an active bug bounty and a security audit. The report highlighted that compromised keys, signers and infrastructure accounted for 88.3% of the roughly $764 million stolen during the quarter.
Hacken said projects unable to provide ongoing evidence of operational security may face higher perceived risk, reduced investment and more difficult access to insurance or counterparties.
Contributors to the report included Federico Bagiotti, group head of risk management at Abraxas Capital, who said “inadequate security relative to the capital at risk” was the signal that most often led the firm to reject an otherwise attractive position. Rajeev Bamra, Moody’s Ratings’ head of digital economy strategy, said that operational resilience had become “the practical lens” through which institutions evaluated security, compliance and governance.
Security controls among those reviewed. Source: Hacken
Operational security becomes an allocation testThe report said institutional due diligence is beginning to include signer-set changes, collateral backing, third-party dependencies, incident-response readiness and the scope and recency of audits. Abraxas said it now explicitly screens for timelocks, withdrawal-address whitelisting, multiparty controls and single-key or single-verifier dependencies.
The shift has also appeared in regulatory and industry scrutiny. In a July 10 Cointelegraph report, BitGo Chief Operating Officer Jody Mettler said institutional clients had begun asking more detailed questions about custody providers’ access controls, incident response and business continuity as European regulators examined operational resilience under the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA).
Hacken said 14 projects exploited in the second quarter had previously been audited. However, most losses stemmed from areas outside the scope of conventional smart contract reviews. The affected surfaces included signer devices, bridge validators, backend infrastructure, admin keys and older contracts that remained live despite being deprecated.
The dataset covered 1,427 projects with market caps above $1 million, drawn from assets listed across the top 50 centralized exchanges by CoinGecko Trust Score. Hacken excluded wrapped assets, stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets. Its data relied on publicly observable and disclosed controls, which means that private arrangements may not be captured.
Magazine: Ethereum’s EEZ could pull other blockchains into its orbit
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
Institutional investors are looking beyond smart contract audits after traditional trust signals such as prior audits and operating history failed to predict which crypto projects would be exploited, according to Hacken.
In its Q2 2026 Security & Compliance Report, Hacken said that only 9% of 1,427 tracked projects had third-party monitoring, while 4% combined monitoring with an active bug bounty and a security audit. The report highlighted that compromised keys, signers and infrastructure accounted for 88.3% of the roughly $764 million stolen during the quarter.
Hacken said projects unable to provide ongoing evidence of operational security may face higher perceived risk, reduced investment and more difficult access to insurance or counterparties.
Contributors to the report included Federico Bagiotti, group head of risk management at Abraxas Capital, who said “inadequate security relative to the capital at risk” was the signal that most often led the firm to reject an otherwise attractive position. Rajeev Bamra, Moody’s Ratings’ head of digital economy strategy, said that operational resilience had become “the practical lens” through which institutions evaluated security, compliance and governance.
Security controls among those reviewed. Source: Hacken
Operational security becomes an allocation testThe report said institutional due diligence is beginning to include signer-set changes, collateral backing, third-party dependencies, incident-response readiness and the scope and recency of audits. Abraxas said it now explicitly screens for timelocks, withdrawal-address whitelisting, multiparty controls and single-key or single-verifier dependencies.
The shift has also appeared in regulatory and industry scrutiny. In a July 10 Cointelegraph report, BitGo Chief Operating Officer Jody Mettler said institutional clients had begun asking more detailed questions about custody providers’ access controls, incident response and business continuity as European regulators examined operational resilience under the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA).
Hacken said 14 projects exploited in the second quarter had previously been audited. However, most losses stemmed from areas outside the scope of conventional smart contract reviews. The affected surfaces included signer devices, bridge validators, backend infrastructure, admin keys and older contracts that remained live despite being deprecated.
The dataset covered 1,427 projects with market caps above $1 million, drawn from assets listed across the top 50 centralized exchanges by CoinGecko Trust Score. Hacken excluded wrapped assets, stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets. Its data relied on publicly observable and disclosed controls, which means that private arrangements may not be captured.
Magazine: Ethereum’s EEZ could pull other blockchains into its orbit
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
Crypto spot trading volumes remain persistently sluggish, with the 7-day average down nearly 80% from their 2025 peak.
The cryptocurrency spot trading market remains in a slump. Data shows that the 7-day moving average of spot trading volume on crypto exchanges has dropped to around $21.4 billion, a nearly 80% decline from the peak of $104.3 billion hit in October 2025. Analysts say the biggest risk in the current crypto market is not just a simple downturn, but rather "directionless wait-and-see sentiment". The apathy and hesitation among market participants may be the main challenge in the current cycle. According to data from The Block, crypto trading volume rose rapidly in the second half of 2025, peaking in October before declining steadily thereafter. As of July 2026, market trading volume has fallen to its lowest level in nearly a year.
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A new wallet address opened a 40x long position on 58.31 BTC, with a liquidation price of $64,020.
According to monitoring by OnchainLens, a Hyperliquid trader opened a highly leveraged long position on Bitcoin (BTC), purchasing 58.31 BTC worth approximately $3.77 million with 40x leverage. The position was opened at $64,823, with a liquidation price of $64,020. Data shows the account has accumulated a profit of roughly $72,100 so far and was created just three days ago. The trading address is: 0xaf791381ba21eb8075bda573a5b8ba134f89f688.
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Football and crypto have been circling each other for years through sponsorships, fan tokens, and NFT collectibles. Zoomex has taken a more direct route by connecting the two markets together, letting users trade on match outcomes with the same tools they already use to trade crypto. The result is Zoomex Predict World, a prediction market built for the 2026 World Cup and designed to feel less like a betting slip and more like a live order book.
Source: Zoomex
What Predict World Actually Is Zoomex Predict World is the flagship sports application of Zoomex’s new Prediction Market product, an event-based trading system that lets users take a position on an outcome, whether that’s a football result, a crypto price level, or another real-world event, and trade that position as conditions change. Inside the World Cup zone specifically, users pick match events, review the available outcomes alongside their current market prices or implied probabilities, and enter a position using crypto through their Zoomex account.
The part that separates this from a traditional prediction pool is what happens after the position is opened. A correct call at kickoff doesn’t need to be held blindly until the final whistle. As the match develops, goals go in, cards get shown, injuries happen, substitutions shift momentum, users can sell their existing shares, add to a position, trim it, or flip to the opposite outcome entirely. Prediction shares are priced continuously, so match events translate into price movement the same way news moves a crypto pair. That turns a pre-match guess into something closer to an in-play trading session, run through the same interface Zoomex traders already know.
The World Cup Campaign Zoomex paired the product launch with a dedicated World Cup Football Carnival campaign, running as a prediction market from June 11 through July 19, 2026 (UTC), with qualifying points valid through July 26 and rewards distributed between July 26 and July 31, 2026. Entry is free, and participants can forecast match outcomes, finalists, and the eventual champion directly from the Zoomex app.
Source: Zoomex
On top of the predictions themselves, Zoomex layered in a task-based rewards system. Users unlock Lucky Spin chances by:
Reaching cumulative valid prediction amount thresholds Completing a set number of valid predictions each day Racking up correct predictions over time Inviting friends to join the World Cup predictions Those spins feed into a prize pool that includes World Cup final and semi-final live match tickets, World Cup-themed gift boxes, airdrop rewards, margin deduction coupons, copy trading insurance funds, and futures trial funds, all on top of a reported $1,000,000 total prize pool for the campaign. Full mechanics, timelines, and eligibility details are published on the Zoomex campaign page and official channels, so it’s worth checking there before jumping in.
Beyond Sports: Politics, Macro, and Global Events The World Cup zone is just one filter inside Predict World. Browse the full markets view and the category tabs make the range clear: alongside sports, there’s Trump, Fed Interest Rate, Macro Indicators, and Inflation, each holding a live board of yes/no markets with real-time pricing and trading volume attached.
The mix on any given day can span geopolitics and monetary policy in the same scroll: a market on whether María Corina Machado enters Venezuela by a set date, another tracking the odds of a Russia nuclear test by specific 2026 deadlines, and a running board on Fed rate cuts broken out by meeting date, each priced individually with its own Yes/No spread. Macro releases get the same treatment, with a market on the June US annual inflation print offering separate outcome bands (such as at or below 3.6% versus exactly 3.7%) that traders can position on ahead of the data. Even political process questions show up, like a market on whether Trump renames ICE to NICE by year-end, split into short-term and longer-dated windows. Some of these single markets carry trading volumes in the tens of millions, on par with what a mid-sized crypto pair might see in a day.
That range is the point. A trader who has a read on Fed policy doesn’t need to leave Zoomex to act on it, and someone tracking inflation data or a geopolitical headline can turn that view into a position with the same mechanics used for the World Cup markets described above: enter early, adjust as new information lands, exit whenever the price no longer matches their view.
Why It’s Built for Crypto Traders Specifically Most prediction markets ask users to think like sports bettors. Zoomex Predict World asks them to think like traders, because that’s exactly the audience it’s built for. Match outcomes become event-based assets. Market prices reflect the crowd’s live expectations, not a fixed pre-match line. Someone who already understands how to manage a position on Zoomex, when to add exposure, when to cut it, when the market has clearly turned, can apply the same instincts to a football match as they would to a volatile altcoin.
That’s the real pitch behind Predict World: it doesn’t ask crypto users to learn a new mental model. It hands them a World Cup-shaped version of the one they already use every day on Zoomex.
Getting Started Joining the campaign takes a few steps:
Open or log into your Zoomex account Head to the Predict World zone Browse upcoming match events and review current outcome pricing Enter a position with crypto, then manage it as the match plays out Complete daily and cumulative tasks to earn Lucky Spin chances toward the reward pool With the World Cup entering its most unpredictable stretch, the window to build up valid predictions and Lucky Spin entries is narrowing. Fans who want to combine tournament excitement with an actual trading edge can head to Zoomex Predict World now and put their read on the tournament to the test.
About Zoomex Founded in 2021, Zoomex is a global cryptocurrency trading platform focused on derivatives trading. The platform serves over 3 million users across 35+ countries and regions, offering access to 590+ trading pairs. Built around easy to use, transparency, fairness, and speed, Zoomex provides a clear and efficient trading experience for users worldwide.
Through its high-performance matching engine, clear asset and order displays, and transparent fee and rule mechanisms, Zoomex helps users better understand their account status, order execution, trading costs, and results. Zoomex maintains registrations, licenses, and regulatory statuses across multiple jurisdictions, including the U.S. MSB, Canada MSB, U.S. NFA, and Australia AUSTRAC, and has completed security audits conducted by blockchain security firm Hacken. The platform also continues to strengthen its trust framework through Proof of Reserves, Security & Transparency, Compliance Information, and Fees / Rules Transparency initiatives.
Beyond trading, Zoomex builds a refined brand experience through elite sports partnerships, including the TGR Haas F1 Team, World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, and world-class tennis events such as Wimbledon. The values of speed, precision, discipline, fair play, and rule-based execution are closely aligned with Zoomex’s approach to derivatives trading.
At Zoomex: Easy to Use. Transparent balance. Fair access to your earnings.
MEXC, a pioneer in 0-fee digital asset trading, has released its July 2026 Proof of Reserves (PoR) report, audited by Hacken, showing that the BTC reserve ratio rose to 281% while reserve ratios for all major assets remained above 100%. The report confirms that user assets remain fully covered by MEXC’s on-chain holdings, providing users with independently verifiable assurance of platform solvency.
According to the audit report, the BTC reserve ratio rose to 281%, up from 269% in June, covering 4,439.51 BTC in user holdings. The USDT reserve ratio is 119%, covering 1,811,076,206.47 USDT in user holdings. The USDC reserve ratio is 115%, covering 68,340,949.76 USDC in user holdings. The ETH reserve ratio is 114%, covering 62,416.70 ETH in user holdings.
Asset ownership and custody transparency remain key concerns for users of digital asset platforms, as they seek clear assurance over how their deposited funds are held, disclosed, and safeguarded. These have long been core priorities for MEXC. Through a multi-layered security framework, MEXC provides comprehensive protection for user assets and a stable, reliable trading environment. MEXC’s reserves continue to maintain overcollateralization across major assets. Its PoR system is built on Merkle Tree cryptographic verification, allowing users to independently verify that their individual balance is included in the platform’s reserves without exposing other users’ data, with each monthly audit conducted by Hacken, a leading blockchain security firm, for verified third-party assurance.
Beyond PoR, the MEXC Futures Insurance Fund absorbs losses from liquidations triggered by extreme market conditions, helping ensure user positions are not improperly liquidated. The MEXC Guardian Fund holds reserves in both USDT and BTC, providing full compensation to users in the event of platform anomalies, and is set to expand from $100 million to $500 million over the next two years. MEXC also employs a cold and hot wallet separation architecture, with the majority of assets held in cold wallets isolated from the internet and withdrawals requiring multi-party authorization to further reduce internal risk. In addition, MEXC has introduced AI-driven risk monitoring, regular security audits and a bug bounty program, alongside round-the-clock customer support — providing users with comprehensive protection from early risk detection to real-time response.
To view the latest Proof of Reserves snapshot and audit report, please visit the MEXC Proof of Reserves page.
About MEXC MEXC is the world’s fastest-growing cryptocurrency exchange, trusted by more than 40 million users across 170+ markets. Built on a user-first philosophy, MEXC offers industry-leading 0-fee trading and access to over 3,000 digital assets. As the Gateway to Infinite Opportunities, MEXC provides a single platform where users can easily trade cryptocurrencies alongside tokenized assets, including stocks, ETFs, commodities, and precious metals.
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Zoomex hosted the second episode of its World Cup Edition X Space as part of the Zoomex World Cup Impact Pledge, bringing together Champions League winner Didi Hamann and three traders: Mario from Forex Trading & Investing, Crank, and Joseph. Fernando Aranda hosted the session, which ran across World Cup analysis, the German squad debate, career philosophy, and the kind of crypto-to-football comparisons that only hold together when neither side takes them too seriously.
The session continued the five-part charity initiative launched in the first episode. Across five World Cup episodes, Zoomex is committing 1,000 USDT per episode to a charity of each football guest’s choosing, rising by an additional 5,000 USDT if the guest’s World Cup prediction proves correct. Hamann backed Japan to beat Sweden and nominated a homeless support charity in Munich, a cause he backs regularly.
Nothing to Lose. Nothing to Fear. Fernando opened by asking which is harder, a match you must win, or a match you cannot afford to lose. Hamann said the question had never been put to him that way before, and his answer repositioned the difficulty entirely.
“I always say in football, the hardest thing in football is when you play against a team that has nothing to lose. If that makes sense, because we’ve seen a lot of upsets. When a team has nothing to lose, they’re the most dangerous because they just go for it. And if they lose, they lose. It doesn’t matter. But if they win, they can win everything or gain everything.”
That is a different pressure to manage than needing to win. A team chasing a must-win result still operates inside a calculation. A team that only stands to gain has discarded the calculation entirely. From that point of view, he said, having to win is probably the easier of the two situations to be in.
Morocco against Italy was the recent example the panel kept returning to. South Africa against South Korea was another. “Nobody gave them a chance, and here they are in the last 32.”
Crank had watched the same dynamic unfold in markets many times. Traders who enter without a prebuilt plan are playing from the same emotional state as a team with nothing to lose: exposed, reactive, and without the protection that structure provides. The difference is that in trading, the cost of that freedom comes directly out of your account.
The Game Does Not Change at 3-0 Down. As a holding midfielder, Hamann gave himself one instruction regardless of what the scoreboard said, and he never deviated from it.
“I always felt in my position I couldn’t afford to give the ball away because we have players who need to take risks. They give the ball away more often naturally because they have to take chances. And I always felt in my position I had to play the same way whether we are 3-0 up or 3-0 down because I wasn’t the one changing games, scoring goals or setting up goals. It wasn’t my job and I couldn’t do it. But we had players to do that.”
The players around him were Steven Gerrard, Luis Garcia, Cissé, Baros. His job was to win the ball, protect the structure, and put it in their feet as quickly as possible. Getting carried away when the scoreline was comfortable, or trying to do things that were not in his nature when 3-0 down, both produced the same result: a team that had lost its shape.
Istanbul in 2005 is the case study. Hamann came on at half-time, three goals down against an AC Milan side regarded at the time as the best club team in the world. He was warming up on the touchline when the second half was about to begin, and his read was simple.
“I was sure, warming up at half-time, because obviously I came on at half-time, I was sure if we scored one, I’m sure we scored a second one. And then if it’s 3-2, even the most experienced teams do make mistakes. And then after that first goal, the stadium came, there were 40,000 or 50,000 Liverpool fans. And I think AC Milan all of a sudden thought, maybe it’s not over.”
Three goals in six minutes. Penalties after that. He acknowledged luck was part of it, but the more durable point was that the process did not change. Win the ball. Do not concede the wrong goal. Give the ball to the people with the license to take risks.
Cissé had been a guest the previous week and described the same locker room from the other side. Joseph in this session brought the parallel into trading directly: “I always start with a plan, like a coach picks his starting eleven before the match. But if the market moves against me, don’t wait too long. Just like a coach, make a quick substitution when the team is losing control. I exit my position early instead of hoping for a comeback. Sticking to a plan is good, but being too stubborn can really hurt you. At the end of the day, the best traders are not the ones who are always right. They are the ones who know how to manage risks when they are wrong.”
Attack Is Not Enough. Fernando raised the old argument: attack wins games, defence wins championships. Hamann agreed, then sharpened it.
“It’s almost impossible to outscore teams on a regular basis. I do think just attack won’t win. You need a good defence, you need a balance in your team, and a good-holding midfielder. You might get to the quarters, you might get to the semis, you might even get to the final. But I don’t think you win the whole thing.”
The Barcelona side that most people reach for as the purest attacking team of the modern era, Messi, Suárez, Neymar, still had Puyol and Piqué in central defence and Busquets holding midfield. That Busquets point is the sharper one: the best attacking team of the generation was built around arguably the best defensive midfielder of the same generation. France in this tournament ticks the same boxes from the other direction. Mbappé at the front, two of the best centre-backs in the world behind him, a holding structure that does not give teams the space to breathe.
Real Madrid is the present-day example of what happens when the balance is off. The attacking quality is not in question. The defensive midfield structure lags, and at the tournament stage, one bad half against the right opponent ends everything.
On the type of error he finds hardest to watch, Hamann drew a precise distinction. “I don’t mind the technical fault or mistake. You know, if a ball bounces, if you misplace a pass, it shouldn’t happen, but it happens. But what I don’t like is when teams, especially in the Champions League or now in the World Cup, when they make mental mistakes. You see it all the time when they give the ball away in areas where they shouldn’t play, where they get a bit too smart and think they get away with it. You shouldn’t make a mistake because you don’t think. This is what drives me crazy.”
A technical error can be explained by the surface, by fatigue, by a fraction of a second lost to distraction. A mental error has no comparable excuse. At the highest level, with everything on the line, the only reason to stop thinking is overconfidence.
The trading panel had the same split. Mario put it cleanly: “The market is the man and we follow the market. It doesn’t make sense not to change your view if the market is against you. You only lose money when you do it like that.” The stop loss is the instrument that enforces honesty when the mind is arguing for one more minute, one more candle, one more reason to stay in. Mario gave it the most useful name of the session: “The stop loss is like being a good defender. Maybe like the libero. The last man. If you kick him, then you get a red card. That’s the stop loss. Last line of defence.”
Joseph extended the metaphor into position sizing: “It’s just like a football defence. If your back line is not organised, even a great goalkeeper cannot save you every time. In trading, protecting your capital is like protecting your goal. If you defend well, you will always have another chance to win.”
Brazil to Win. Angelotti to Manage. Hamann had made his tournament pick before the first game was played, and he was not changing it now.
“I said at the start of the tournament, I said Brazil, because I think it’s a long tournament. It’s 48 teams now, so it’s a week, 10 days longer than it was before. And there will be at times, there will be a few problems within the team, and you need somebody to handle it and manage it. And I think in Angelotti, they’ve got the perfect man.”
The best defence. A very good attack. An open question in midfield. And the right coach for a campaign that will test squads not just tactically but in terms of internal management. His second breath went to France. “I stick with Brazil, but I think it will take a very, very good team to beat France.”
Germany occupies a different kind of space in Hamann’s thinking, somewhere between professional assessment and obvious personal investment. The read on the squad was honest. Undaf, used so far as the impact substitute, should stay there.
“He’s probably the best sub, the super sub of this tournament. He’s probably the best player coming on in this tournament. So why change it? Because everybody knows when he comes on, there’s a boost going around the ground. There’s a boost going through the team and everybody goes, oh, he’s coming on. We’ve got a chance.”
That psychological effect disappears the moment he becomes expected from the first whistle. The weapon works because it has been withheld. Sané has not delivered on the first two games. Wirth is settling in. Musiala, five months back from a serious injury, has been anonymous by his own standards. Schlotterbeck’s absence has cost the defensive structure its balance with the left foot. Mecha has been the best German player in the tournament and may emerge from it as one of the most watched midfielders in Europe.
On the group stage as a concept, Hamann was pragmatic. “You just have to get out of the group. Nobody talks. Once you get to the last 32, last 16, nobody cares how you got out of the group, how you played in the group. That’s when it matters.”
Crank’s read on the Bitcoin market was built with the same long-cycle logic. He described taking short positions near the top, closing them on the way down, and watching the four-year cycle move toward what he sees as a floor. “Bitcoin is exactly where it should be. My levels right now are golden pocket between 54 and 57. I’m waiting for one more big capitulation, scare you pretty bad, and then we can, based off of four-year cycle theory, start our accumulation phase and bottoming out, which for me is between 41 to 46,000.” Mario put his own range at 43,000 to 45,000 and believed the bottom would arrive within 100 days of the session. Joseph agreed with the range. The disagreement was mostly about timing.
Dark Horses and an 18-Year-Old Who Plays Like a Veteran Among the nations that had caught his attention, Hamann pointed first to the home contingent. Canada had been exceptional. Mexico against England at the Azteca, with altitude and a full home crowd, would be nobody’s idea of a comfortable draw. “That won’t be an easy game. If they play Mexico City, the Azteca with altitude, it’s not an easy thing to beat them there.”
South Africa had made the sharpest impression. “The way they played yesterday. It was absolutely brilliant. Nobody gave them a chance, and here they are in the last 32.”
Japan was his most dangerous selection from outside the traditional powers. “I think Japan is really a dangerous team. Beat Germany four years ago in Qatar. I think they beat Spain as well. They’ve got that vision. They want to, I think before 2050, they want to be world champions. They want to win the World Cup. Not sure it’s going to happen this year. But this is a nation that improves year after year after year.”
Ivory Coast came up without prompting. “The first 60 minutes against Germany, I think they played exceptionally well. Germany was second best in every aspect.” A team that outplays Germany for an hour in a major tournament is not an accident. They are a dangerous team going forward.
On Morocco, Hamann pointed to an 18-year-old central midfielder without being asked. He had heard about the player before the tournament. He saw him play. Then he looked up the age again.
“Brilliant. 18 years of age, the maturity he plays with, I couldn’t believe. I heard of him before, then I saw him, then I had to look again. How old is he? 18 years. Because usually, central midfielders, they get into the best age, 22, 24, because experience counts for a lot. But the way he plays, how composed. At 18 years of age, unbelievable.”
The Hardest Opponents. The Best Teammates. On the midfielder who made his career most uncomfortable, Hamann did not hesitate. There were players across the years who tried to get inside his head, who wanted him in a conversation on the pitch, who looked for ways to make him react. “I never spoke to the opposition and very rarely spoke to the referee. So that didn’t really bother me.”
The frustration with Patrick Vieira was entirely different: it was purely about quality.
“The most frustrating was probably the best one I played against because he was like a Rolls-Royce. He was quick, he was strong, he could pass, he played in an exceptional team with Arsenal. It was no joy playing against him because he was so good. For me, he was the best and I had never fun playing against him.”
That Arsenal side was the backdrop that made it worse. Vieira in an average team is one problem. Vieira in one of the best club sides he faced across his entire career is a different afternoon entirely.
On the other side of the ledger, the question of superstars and teams produced one of the clearest statements of the session. Messi, Mbappé, Ronaldo, Haaland: are they the reason teams win, or is it the other way around?
“It’s got to be the team. But I think all these guys, they all know that they couldn’t succeed without the team. On your own, you’re nothing. As good as they are, but you need 10 other players. And I think the best example was the last World Cup, where really 10 players worked for Messi and then he made the difference. And that’s how it should be, because you need to cover all the bases as a team.”
On the next German superstar, Hamann was direct. “I said he’s too good to fail because it’s the best player I’ve seen in the last 20 years in a German shirt.” Wirth had a difficult debut season at Liverpool. A new manager changes the conditions. Mecha he views as deeply undervalued. “He’s not a flash player, but he does the things nobody wants to do. He makes it really very efficient. He’s got pace, he’s got physicality, he can score a goal. I think Mecha was very underrated in the last few years. We might even see him at a huge club after the World Cup because now everybody took note of him.”
No Emotions. No Exceptions. Fernando drew the bridge between the two halves of the session: coaches change systems mid-game when the plan stops working, and traders change positions when the market moves against them. The panel each described how they handle that moment.
Crank’s answer was the most absolute. “No emotions in day trading. You are up against robots. Within these algorithms, emotions do not exist. And anybody that trades for a living or is just getting started needs to understand that you’re going to be so numb that you do the same thing every single day. But it’s a system. And once you have it to where it works in your favour and you have it dialled in, you don’t make those adjustments.”
His summary of the choice at the centre of trading was the most direct line of the session: “Do you want to be right, or do you want to be rich?”
Mario agreed without qualification. “No emotions in trading. That’s the worst thing you can do. You have to just shut down your emotions. Just stick to your plan. Every day doing the same thing that works. And emotions don’t work.”
Joseph described what happens after a stop loss gets hit, a moment most traders find more disorienting than the loss itself. “Getting stopped out and watching the price go back up, that’s one of the most annoying things in trading. But I have a personal rule: after a stop loss, I take a short break, maybe 15 to 30 minutes before opening any new trade. This stops me from revenge trading. It’s like a player who misses a penalty. The best one would take a breath before playing on, not react emotionally. Every loss is a lesson, but revenge trading usually turns one mistake into two.”
Crank closed on the cycle and what it means for the audience watching right now. “Now’s the time more than ever to exit out all the noise and really focus because this is where you separate the boys and girls from the men and women. Be violent with your education right now because this is where lives are changed.”
Which Team Is Bitcoin? Fernando asked the panel to map the major assets to national teams in the tournament.
Brazil collected the Bitcoin allocation from most of the panel. The longest track record, the deepest global fanbase, the benchmark that everything else gets measured against regardless of current charts. Joseph assigned it to Argentina, with a specific reason: the 2022 World Cup, where ten players organised themselves entirely in service of one, and the one delivered. That, in his view, is the most accurate representation of how Bitcoin’s entire ecosystem functions around a single thesis.
France drew Ethereum from most voices, technically foundational, expected to perform at the highest level, measured against a standard that was set years ago and has not yet been surpassed. Portugal went to Solana: fast, direct, talent-driven, with a single player whose presence changes every calculation. Mario broke from the group and pointed to Spain or the Netherlands as the surprise allocations, teams that could outperform expectation the way an asset can when its narrative catches up with its fundamentals.
On which of the major tournament favourites exits earliest, France drew the most votes, followed by Germany. Mario, thirty years a German football supporter, crossed his fingers rather than naming names.
The Lesson From the Zoomex Space The thread connecting both halves of the session was what holds together when the situation changes and the original plan no longer applies.
Hamann’s philosophy as a midfielder, do not vary the process at 3-0 up or 3-0 down, is the same discipline the traders described as the line between consistent performance and emotional reaction. It is not about suppressing the awareness that the situation has changed. It is about having decided in advance what you do when it does.
The 2005 Champions League final is not a story about hope or momentum or the magic of a particular night. It is a story about a team that kept doing the right things in the right order while three goals down, until the conditions changed. “If there were no mistakes, there wouldn’t be any goals,” Hamann said. That applies to both sides of the ball. The team that keeps its structure in a crisis does not create the opening. It creates the conditions for the opening to appear.
Crank’s question applies equally. In football and in markets, the answer to the question of whether you want to be right or rich determines how you behave when the scoreline, or the chart, tells you something you do not want to hear.
The Zoomex World Cup Impact Pledge continues across three more episodes, each with a new football guest, a new charity selection, and a prediction on record. Brazil is going to win the World Cup. Didi Hamann said so, and the charity pool for Munich’s homeless depends on Japan clearing the first hurdle.
About Zoomex Founded in 2021, Zoomex is a global cryptocurrency trading platform with over 3 million users across more than 35 countries and regions, offering 600+ trading pairs. Guided by its core values of “Simple × User-Friendly × Fast,” Zoomex is committed to fairness, integrity, and transparency in delivering a high-performance, low-barrier, trustworthy trading experience.
As an official partner of the Haas F1 Team and global brand ambassador partner of goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, Zoomex brings the same focus on speed, precision, and discipline from the racetrack and the pitch to trading. The platform holds regulatory licenses including Canada MSB, U.S. MSB, U.S. NFA, and Australia AUSTRAC, and has passed security audits conducted by Hacken.
On July 24, 2025, Taiwan-based trading platform WOO X became the latest victim in a bruising summer of crypto breaches when attackers made off with roughly $14 million in unauthorized withdrawals from nine user accounts, forcing the exchange to pause withdrawals while it investigated and promised to reimburse affected users.
New chain-analysis shared by Yehor Rudytsia, Head of Forensics and Incident Response at Hacken, paints the post-heist picture as far more organized than a one-off theft. According to Rudytsia, the exploit, which Hacken dates to July, resulted in total losses of about $14 million and was carried out by a DPRK-linked actor tracked in law-enforcement circles as “TraderTraitor.”
Hacken says it is actively monitoring the on-chain movements and is supporting recovery efforts by flagging malicious addresses to the wider security community. The laundering choreography, as mapped by Hacken, left half the stolen funds on EVM networks and the rest on Tron and Bitcoin.
In the last 24 hours, on-chain traces show that the bulk of the EVM-side proceeds, more than $7 million, were routed through THORChain and swapped into Bitcoin, a technique observers have increasingly flagged as a common laundering path after major exchange thefts earlier this year. Rudytsia noted that THORChain’s native cross-chain swap functionality has repeatedly been used to convert large sums of ETH and ERC-20 tokens into BTC, making it attractive to sophisticated operators moving stolen assets across ecosystems.
On-chain Evidence Hacken’s report also documents the handling of the Tron-denominated portion (about $2.5 million in TRX). Those funds, the team found, were converted into USDT, bridged to Ethereum via LayerZero infrastructure, and from there, some of the bridged USDT was again pushed to Bitcoin through THORChain.
On-chain evidence of a nine-figure USDT transfer arriving on Ethereum from a LayerZero executor appears in public transaction records from October 1, 2025, which match the pattern Hacken described.
Complicating the trail, part of the funds that surfaced on Ethereum were sent to a wallet previously tied to the BingX hot-wallet exploit in 2024, itself attributed by investigators to North Korean-linked groups, suggesting either reuse of laundering infrastructure or coordination across multiple thefts.
The address that received those transfers is publicly visible on Ethereum explorer records, and investigators say the link deepens the picture of an organized laundering chain connecting multiple high-profile incidents.
Taken together, the movements indicate that roughly $8–9 million from the WOO X breach was bridged on the same day from Ethereum to Bitcoin, almost entirely via THORChain, leaving an estimated 90% of the stolen value now sitting on Bitcoin addresses as perpetrators accelerate conversion into the oldest and most liquid on-chain asset.
Security teams monitoring the flows warn that once funds consolidate on Bitcoin, conventional tracing and intervention become harder and the risk of eventual cash-out increases. Rudytsia told Blockchain Reporter that Hacken is continuing to monitor the accounts and will push flagged addresses to exchanges and compliance partners in the hope of freezing or otherwise freezing flow paths where possible.
For now, the case is a fresh reminder that as cross-chain tooling gets more powerful, it also gives sophisticated attackers faster, lower-friction routes to turn stolen tokens into harder-to-trace assets, and that forensic work on multiple chains, together with cooperation from on- and off-ramp services, remains the only immediate line of defence in today’s time.
AUTHOR
Mushumir Butt is a seasoned crypto journalist with over three years of experience reporting on the world of blockchain and cryptocurrency. At Blockchain Reporter, he delivers insightful news, in‐depth project reviews, and precise price analysis and predictions. With a strong background in SEO and digital marketing, Mushumir excels at breaking down complex trends into clear, accessible content, ensuring readers stay ahead in the fast‐paced crypto space.
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According to a report published today by blockchain security firm Hacken, decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols witnessed a steep decline in exploits in 2024, while centralized finance (CeFi) platforms more than doubled their losses due to security breaches.
DeFi Platforms Show Better Security Mechanisms In its annual “Web3 Security Report,” Hacken outlined the general trends in the cryptocurrency industry with regard to scams and security infrastructure. The report notes that total losses arising from security failure in 2024 stood at $2.91 billion.
DeFi protocols accounted for $474 million in losses this year, a 40% decline from $787 million in 2023. This sharp drop reflects the growing adoption of advanced security techniques, such as zero-knowledge cryptography and multi-party computation, across the DeFi ecosystem.
One key factor contributing to the reduction in DeFi exploits was the sharp decline in cross-chain bridge hacks. Losses from these attacks have consistently fallen – from $1.89 billion in 2022 to $338 million in 2023, and finally to $114 million in 2024.
In contrast, CeFi platforms, including cryptocurrency exchanges, reported $694 million in losses in 2024, more than double the $339 million recorded in 2023. CeFi accounted for nearly one-third of all crypto-related incidents, highlighting persistent vulnerabilities in centralized systems.
Gaming and metaverse projects were another major target in 2024, responsible for nearly 20% of all crypto-related hacks, with $389 million in losses. The largest gaming/metaverse breach of the year was the PlayDapp exploit in Q1 2024, which resulted in a $290 million loss.
Phishing scams also remained a significant concern, causing more than $600 million in losses this year. These scams highlight increasingly sophisticated social engineering tactics in the Web3 space.
In November, the sector faced a $129 million address poisoning attack. For context, address poisoning phishing involves attackers sending small transactions from an address that closely resembles one the victim has interacted with, tricking them into mistakenly sending funds to the fraudulent address in future transactions.
Memecoins And Rugpulls Continue To Prey On Users While memecoins were all the rage for the majority of 2024 – particularly on the Solana (SOL) blockchain due to its low transaction costs – a significant proportion of them preyed on investors through presale scams and celebrity-endorsed rug pulls.
One notable example is the Hawk Tuah memecoin, launched by viral influencer Hailey Welch, popularly known as “Hawk Tuah Girl”. The coin’s value plummeted 95% shortly after launch, sparking severe backlash from the wider Web3 community.
The rise in memecoin-related scams also underscores the need for greater investor education, particularly when engaging with such speculative assets. At press time, Bitcoin (BTC) trades at $98,921, up 5.8% in the past 24 hours.
BTC trades at $98,921 on the daily chart | Source: BTCUSDT on TradingView.com Featured image from Unsplash, chart from Tradingview.com
Online Marathon 2024 will take place from June 20 to 22. The event is part of the Ukrainian Blockchain Week event. Among the participants are representatives of Hacken, Near Protocol, Binance, Solana Foundation, 1inch, Polkastarter, Consensys and many other guests. The Online Marathon 2024 event, which Incrypted team is organizing as part of Ukrainian Blockchain Week, will take place from June 20 to 22, 2024.
This online conference will bring together leading representatives of the crypto industry.
The event will provide an opportunity to become a part of a dynamic community that promotes cutting-edge ideas to the masses and contributes to the development of Web3-space both in Ukraine and around the world.
Among the speakers of one of the main crypto events of this summer are representatives of the following projects, organizations and companies:
Dmitry Budorin — co-founder and CEO of blockchain security auditor Hacken; Jan Ketelers — Marketing Director of crowdfunding platform Polkastarter; Ilya Polosukhin — co-founder of the Near Protocol project; Kristina Lucrezia Corner — Editor-at-large & Cointelegraph ambassador; Derek Rein — CTO of WalletConnect Protocol and many others. Speakers will share their professional experience, ideas and vision regarding the Web3 space.
In addition, at Incrypted Online Marathon 2024, representatives of Binance exchange, Solana Foundation and 1inch aggregator will speak. They will be accompanied by experts from SafePal, Filecoin Foundation, KELP, Gnosis Chain, Consensys and many other projects.
Online Marathon 2024 schedule:
20-21/06/2024 (13:00-17:00) — panel discussion days; 22/06/2024 (11:00-18:00) — the day of individual presentations. Ukrainian Blockchain Week is a series of large-scale events that will be held from June 17 to 23, 2024. As part of the event, everyone will be able to participate in the conference, meetups and the previously mentioned online marathon.
Each event of Ukrainian Blockchain Week is a unique opportunity to network with industry leaders, gain new knowledge and communicate with Web3 innovators.
Incrypted team is confident that guests and participants of the event will experience a full immersion in the current trends of the crypto-industry and advanced solutions of the world of blockchain technologies.
Stay tuned for more updates from Incrypted. We’ll soon announce more speakers and provide new details about Ukrainian Blockchain Week 2024.
About Incrypted Online Marathon 2024:
The Incrypted Online Marathon is a premier event during Ukrainian Blockchain Week, featuring leading Web3 innovators from around the globe. This unique online conference aims to foster a robust crypto culture in Ukraine by showcasing the finest global practices in building successful crypto companies. Its mission is to elevate the local community and projects, providing them with the knowledge and inspiration needed to reach new heights.
Users can join The Incrypted Online Marathon and become part of a dynamic community propelling the Web3 space forward: https://incrypted.events/incrypted-conference-2024/online-marathon/
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools now exploit smart contracts roughly twice as effectively as they detect vulnerabilities, according to Binance Research.
AI has become a central talking point in the conversation around crypto hacks. Many analysts are increasingly suspecting that attackers are leveraging these tools to pull off DeFi exploits.
Why the AI Offense-Defense Gap Is WideningIn a recent report, Binance Research noted that GPT-5.3-Codex hits a 72.2% success rate in “exploit” mode on the EVMbench. Meanwhile, its success rate in “detect” mode is roughly half that.
“Whether we welcome it or not, AI is currently 2x better at exploitation than at detection,” the report read. “The economics now favor attackers.”
AI’s Detection and Exploitation Capabilities. Source: BinanceFor context, EVMbench is a benchmark that measures how well AI agents can detect, patch, and exploit high-severity smart contract vulnerabilities. It draws on 117 curated vulnerabilities from 40 audits
Smart contracts hold billions in user funds across decentralized finance (DeFi). Their open-source code makes them ideal targets for automated probing. AI systems can scan thousands of contracts in minutes at marginal cost.
The asymmetry is widening because attack costs are collapsing. Binance Research data shows AI-powered exploits average roughly $1.22 per contract, with that figure projected to fall another 22% every two months.
“Hacken’s SSDLC Maturity Survey shows over 80% of developers now use AI in development, but fewer than 40% use AI for advanced testing — leaving the offense-defense gap structurally lopsided,” Binance Research added.
The threat extends beyond static code. Analysts at TRM Labs have begun speculating that North Korean hackers are integrating AI into their reconnaissance and social engineering operations.
The shift would help explain attacks like Drift, which involved weeks of targeted manipulation of sophisticated blockchain systems, a marked departure from North Korea’s traditional reliance on basic private key compromises.
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AI Is Reshaping the Economics of Crypto FraudThe economics of online fraud have also shifted just as dramatically. Chainalysis found that AI-powered scams pull in 4.5 times more money per case than conventional ones and generate nine times the transaction activity.
The firm noted that the spike in transaction volume points to AI helping scammers reach and juggle far more victims at once, a hallmark of fraud being run at an industrial scale.
Scammers are turning to deepfake technology and AI-generated content to craft convincing impersonations for romance and investment cons. Notably, in 2025, impersonation-based attacks alone exploded by 1,400% year-on-year.
Roughly 60% of industry respondents flag rising AI use by criminals as the leading driver of risk exposure in 2025. Crypto, in particular, is bearing the brunt. The sector accounts for 88% of all detected deepfake fraud cases worldwide.
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PANews reported on May 7th that, according to FinanceFeeds, Chainlink, Apex Group, Bluperynt, and Hacken, in collaboration with the Bermuda Monetary Authority, have completed an embedded regulatory pilot program. This program embeds compliance requirements directly into digital asset infrastructure for real-time enforcement, replacing the traditional compliance model based on periodic reporting and manual checks. Non-compliant transactions are blocked before settlement, and compliance metadata is retained during cross-chain transfers.
Chainlink provides on-chain policy enforcement and reserve verification infrastructure, evaluating transactions through an automated compliance engine and verifying off-chain collateral using a reserve proof tool. Bluprynt handles issuer identity verification and compliance credential issuance. Apex Group, as an independent administrator, provides certified reserve data from a third-party custodian. Hacken provides a real-time monitoring, anomaly detection, and compliance alert system, generating alerts milliseconds after a transaction is recorded. The Bermuda Monetary Authority plans to extend this model to production deployments and multi-jurisdictional oversight frameworks.
Toobit is one of the most popular international cryptocurrency exchanges, and it has just announced the publication of its most recent Proof of Reserves report, which was independently verified by Hacken.
Over 100% Collateral Ratio The assessment conducted by Hacken confirms that the exchange is maintaining a collateral ratio of more than 100% across all in-scope digital assets. These include BTC, ETH, USDT, and USDC.
This audit confirms that there’s a safe 1:1+ backing for every trader deposit. The findings also verify that there is a reserve surplus that ensures all trader liabilities are fully over-collateralized.
Additionally, the verification process validated the individual balances of more than 640,000 accounts. This was achieved by cross-referencing loads of internal data against legal documentation, as well as against official statements from third-party institutional custodians to guarantee the highest level of accuracy.
Report Mechanics To deliver full transparency, Hacken used a multi-stage methodology that was focused on three key stages. First, the auditors performed a Proof of Liabilities. To do so, they verified the total balances of more than 600,000 liability holders to make sure that there was an accurate representation of client deposits.
The second stage was Asset Verification. During this, auditors compared the total reserve balances against the client liability report to verify whether they covered them in full. Last but not least, the process included Operational Oversight, aiming to review information flow and custodial reporting, which ensures all data remains authentic and unaltered.
In conjunction with the audit results, Toobit has launched an upgraded Proof of Reserves page, which moves beyond static reporting to a dynamic transparency model. This hub is designed to ensure that traders are able to monitor live reserve ratios for major tokens and access historical audit data through a user-friendly and accessible interface.
Merkle Tree Technology A critical component and part of this portal is the integration of Merkle Tree technology. By consolidating trader balances into a singular and secure Merkle root hash, the crypto exchange is able to offer a transparent and tamper-proof method for everyone to verify that their specific account balance was actually included in the audit.
This cryptographic proof is designed to ensure accountability while also maintaining privacy for all traders.
It’s important to note that the full audit report is readily available for public review. The detailed documentation regarding the audit scope, methodology, and technical findings can be found on the official website of Hacken.
With all of the above said, it’s crucial to understand that cryptocurrency exchanges have entered a maturation phase, which is largely driven by independent verification.
Industry leaders maintain reserve coverage ratios between 124% and 125%, far exceeding the 100% safety benchmark. Moreover, as frameworks such as MiCA intensify supervision, long-term operational stability is defined by “compliance by design,” integrating Proof of Reserves and transparent disclosures into core infrastructure.
MEXC, a pioneer in 0-fee digital asset trading, has released its May 2026 Proof of Reserves report, independently audited by Hacken. The report confirms that all major assets are fully backed, with reserve ratios significantly exceeding the 1:1 industry standard. This demonstrates MEXC’s unwavering commitment to user asset protection.
The May report shows reserve ratios of 293% for BTC, 123% for ETH, 117% for USDT, and 120% for USDC. These ratios indicate that MEXC’s asset reserves fully cover user assets.
The May 2026 Proof of Reserves snapshot has been audited by Hacken, a globally recognized blockchain security firm, validating the Merkle Tree construction, wallet ownership, and reserve adequacy. MEXC consistently publishes a verifiable Proof of Reserves every month, setting a transparency standard for the industry and providing users with clear, verifiable asset information.
Since its founding, MEXC has placed users at the core of its operations. The regular publication of Proof of Reserves reflects its ongoing commitment to transparency and user protection. In addition, MEXC is further strengthening its multi-layered asset protection framework through the Guardian Fund initiative. The fund is set to expand from $100 million to $500 million over the next two years and includes the acquisition of 1,000 Bitcoin, forming a dual-reserve structure composed of highly liquid USDT reserves and long-term Bitcoin holdings. This structure is designed to enhance liquidity readiness and structural resilience, reinforcing asset protection across all market conditions.
To view the latest Proof of Reserves snapshot and audit report, please visit MEXC’s Proof of Reserves page.
About MEXC MEXC is the world’s fastest-growing cryptocurrency exchange, trusted by more than 40 million users across 170+ markets. Built on a user-first philosophy, MEXC offers industry-leading 0-fee trading and access to over 3,000 digital assets. As the Gateway to Infinite Opportunities, MEXC provides a single platform where users can easily trade cryptocurrencies alongside tokenized assets, including stocks, ETFs, commodities, and precious metals.
MEXC Official Website｜X ｜Telegram ｜How to Sign Up on MEXC
This content does not constitute investment advice. Given the highly volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market, investors are encouraged to carefully assess market fluctuations, project fundamentals, and potential financial risks before making any trading decisions.
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Rubio: US and Iran to continue technical consultations at the end of this month
Multiple foreign media outlets reported on the 24th that US Secretary of State Rubio said technical teams from the United States and Iran will hold further talks in Switzerland by the end of June. (Xinhua News Agency)
6 hours ago
Over the past 24 hours, total crypto market liquidations hit $606 million, with more than 130,000 traders liquidated.
According to Coinglass data, the global cryptocurrency market recorded $606 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, including $542 million in long-position liquidations and $68.22 million in short-position liquidations. A total of 135,785 traders worldwide were liquidated in the same period, with the largest single liquidation order occurring on Binance’s BTCUSDT trading pair, valued at $12.0111 million.
6 hours ago
Bitcoin falls below $60,000
According to HTX market data, Bitcoin has fallen below $60,000, with a 4.3% drop in the past 24 hours.
6 hours ago
US Treasury Secretary: AI boom may boost productivity and help curb inflation.
US Treasury Secretary Bessent told CNBC in an interview that he hopes the Federal Reserve will remain "open-minded" about the inflation pattern after the reversal of Iran-related energy price hikes. Bessent noted that the U.S. could enter an economic environment marked by high GDP growth without a corresponding rise in traditional inflation. He cited that in the 1990s, Alan Greenspan foresaw that office modernization and the internet could drive non-inflationary growth, and allowed the economy to keep expanding. Bessent believes the U.S. has a strong chance of seeing a similar scenario again. When asked whether the Fed still needs to worry about potential inflation and whether interest rate cuts are possible this year or next, Bessent declined to comment. However, he argued that it is necessary to stay open-minded about the price or inflation impacts from the Iran conflict, and monitor inflation performance after those effects subside. Bessent also said an open mind is needed, as the AI boom could boost productivity and deliver disinflationary effects, helping inflation return to the Fed’s target level. He added that he believes Kevin Warsh will choose the optimal path that meets both the Fed’s inflation and growth mandates. Bessent also noted that Warsh previously took a hawkish stance on inflation.
6 hours ago
US stocks' intraday storage sector sees broad declines, with Western Digital and Seagate Technology both falling over 4%.
According to Bitget data, during U.S. stock trading hours, the storage sector saw broad declines: Western Digital (WDC) fell 4.47%, Seagate Technology (STX) dropped 4.17%, SanDisk (SNDK) declined 2.31%, and Micron Technology (MU) edged down 0.96%. Most optical communication concept stocks rose, with Corning (GLW) leading the gains at 9.75%, followed by Ciena (CIEN) up 3.24%, Coherent (COHR) rising 2.93%, Lumentum (LITE) gaining 2.61%, and Nokia (NOK) advancing 1.82%. Additionally, Marvell Technology (MRVL) fell 2.59% and Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) declined 1.90%.
6 hours ago
During intraday trading in U.S. stocks, crypto-related concept stocks fell broadly, with MSTR dropping more than 7%.
According to Bitget market data, the three major U.S. stock indexes rose broadly: the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.94%, the S&P 500 increased 0.60%, and the Nasdaq rose 0.63%. Crypto-related stocks fell across the board, with declines as follows: Strategy (MSTR) down 7.33%; Circle (CRCL) down 4.35%; Bitmine (BMNR) down 3.97%; Coinbase (COIN) down 3.73%; Robinhood (HOOD) down 3.70%; Gemini (GEMI) down 3.27%; Bullish (BLSH) down 3.25%; Sharplink (SBET) down 3.19%.
The expectations from cryptocurrency exchanges in 2026 are quite different from what they used to be, say, at the turn of the decade. Apart from security and liquidity, users now also look for breadth, speed, cost efficiency, and access to new markets (often before they appear elsewhere). At the same time, scrutiny around custody, reserves, and regional access has simultaneously increased. MEXC, a familiar name in the crypto space, pitches itself as one platform that stands out in all those aspects (and more). In this quick review, we look at MEXC’s key features, on-chain tools, fees, security tools, and most importantly, whether or not it fits your requirements.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
➤ MEXC is a centralized crypto exchange focused on broad market access and active trading globally.
➤ It offers extensive spot and futures markets, low fees, early listings, and basic staking tools.
➤ MEXC stands out for early token access, zero maker fees, and unusually high leverage options.
➤ It primarily suits active traders who value market breadth, low costs, and can manage elevated risk.
In this guide:
What is MEXC?MEXC’s spot and futures markets: depth, execution, and leverage scopeAccess-first innovation: DEX+, Alpha, and ecosystem extensionsParticipation tools: grid bots, Copy Trade, demo mode, and Earn productsFees, incentives, and MX-based benefitsSecurity, transparency, and regional accessUser experience and support across platformsSo, is MEXC a good fit for you in 2026?Frequently asked questions What is MEXC? Registered in Seychelles and operating in a decentralized manner, the platform serves over 40 million users across 170+ countries and has a proven track record to show for.
MEXC is among the top exchanges by volume, with clear strength in emerging altcoins that appear early versus some larger venues. The company frames its identity around “Most trending tokens, Everyday airdrops, Xtremely low fees, and Comprehensive liquidity,” which signals a focus on market coverage and active use rather than a curated, minimal feature set.
The platform also appears to prioritize practicality and usability over flashy design and features, which, in turn, improves the overall customer experience quite a bit.
MEXC’s spot and futures markets: depth, execution, and leverage scope A big chunk of MEXC’s core strength lies in broader and convenient market access. The exchange highlights more than 2,700 spot pairs and more than 800 futures pairs, which places it among platforms that prioritize breadth over curation.
This depth matters most if you trade beyond large-cap assets or rotate frequently into new markets. Major pairs usually show deeper books than low-cap tokens, while smaller markets can show thinner liquidity and slower fills, especially during sharp volatility.
Overall, spot trading on MEXC stays straightforward. You get common order types: market, limit, and trigger. Beyond that, you also get the usual charting and live market data.
When it comes to execution, it generally feels consistent on liquid pairs. Low-cap markets, meanwhile, carry higher slippage risk during fast moves. Overall, the setup suits active retail users who value access more than refined execution controls.
Futures markets also extend this access-first approach. You get perpetual contracts across many assets, with leverage up to 500x on select pairs. MEXC also cites about $45 billion in 24-hour futures volume, which points to heavy derivatives activity.
(Note that high leverage levels can trigger liquidations fast, even on small price moves, so you need strict sizing and clear risk rules.)
There’s one limitation, however, that could potentially come into play if you place very large orders: MEXC does not list advanced execution tools such as TWAP and iceberg orders, so you get less control over how big trades fill.
Access-first innovation: DEX+, Alpha, and ecosystem extensions Once you understand how MEXC handles core trading, it helps to look at what it adds beyond standard spot and futures markets. That is where tools like DEX+ and MEXC Alpha come in.
DEX+ acts as an access layer rather than a replacement for decentralized exchanges. It provides access to over 10,000 on-chain pairs through a centralized exchange-style interface, with familiar tools such as order books and charts.
MEXC also labels it as a route that avoids external wallet setup, gas handling, and manual bridge steps, which reduces friction for on-chain exposure inside an exchange workflow. The trade-off stays simple. Convenience can improve, but market and asset risks stay intact.
Meanwhile, MEXC Alpha focuses on early access to newly launched on-chain tokens through a spot account flow. The idea is simple — have fewer steps and quicker entry instead of waiting for standard listings.
That approach can significantly shorten the time between a token’s on-chain launch and when it becomes tradable on an exchange. On the flip side, however, it also brings higher uncertainty around liquidity, volatility, and long-term viability.
So, all aspects considered, Alpha generally works best as an early access channel, not as a replacement for careful evaluation.
Participation tools: grid bots, Copy Trade, demo mode, and Earn products After you get access to markets and early listings, the next pressure point becomes execution discipline. MEXC focuses on answering that with tools that aim to reduce manual effort and help you test ideas before you commit real funds.
For instance, grid bots support structured execution in range-bound conditions, with a clear link to the fee model since frequent orders can add up fast when maker fees exist.
Similarly, copy-trading offers a follower model that lets you mirror selected lead accounts through preset parameters, which can simplify mechanics for newer users.
You also get a Demo mode that provides a practice environment to help you learn the interface, order entry, and risk controls without real exposure.
On yield products, MEXC’s Earn area focuses on simple options for assets such as BTC, ETH, and SOL, with fixed and flexible choices and clear payout timing.
For Solana, MEXC highlights SOL stake via MXSOL, where MXSOL acts as a liquid staking token that you can trade on the spot market.
MEXC also underlines a key nuance: this route does not fully match every benefit of native SOL stake, even if it improves flexibility and ease of access.
Fees, incentives, and MX-based benefits Cost is one of MEXC’s clearest levers. On its fee schedule, MEXC lists 0% maker and 0.05% taker for spot, and 0% maker and 0.02% taker for futures. MEXC also lists a 1% flat fee for DEX+ trades.
These rates matter most when you place many orders, since small differences can compound fast once volume rises.
MX adds another interesting aspect for users. MEXC offers fee discounts of up to 50% for users who meet MX-based eligibility criteria, while VIP tiers reward higher activity through volume-based benefits. From time to time, MEXC runs large-scale 0 Fee campaigns. For example, during the Zero-Fee Gala promotional period, all spot trading pairs are eligible for zero fees, with selected futures pairs also included. These events materially reduce trading costs across high-activity segments without altering the platform’s baseline fee structure.
MEXC also runs incentive programs on top of its fee structure. It promotes a referral program with commission rates between 40% and 50% that apply across spot, futures, and DEX+ trading, a stated 1,080-day (roughly three-year) commission window, and no stated cap on referrals.
It also offers welcome bonuses of up to 10,000 USDT for new users, awarded based on trading volume milestones and task completion.
Separate programs such as Kickstarter and Airdrop+ operate as engagement campaigns, with eligibility and rewards that vary by event.
Security, transparency, and regional access MEXC backs its security claims with a few public signals rather than broad assurances. It references an “A” rating from CER.live with a 90% score, a hot-and-cold wallet setup, and a partnership with Hacken for external audits and monitoring.
The exchange also lists two protection pools: a $655 million insurance fund meant to cover platform-level bankruptcy events, and a $100 million Guardian Fund for user-facing security incidents.
(Note: While these measures suggest preparation, they do not necessarily mean 100% risk-free.)
MEXC also publishes regular Proof of Reserves reports. The platform shifted from bi-monthly to monthly independent audits by Hacken, as announced in November 2025. The latest report, for December 2025 and published on December 15, confirms that all major assets are fully backed, with reserve ratios consistently above 100% (e.g., BTC at 141%, USDT at 126%, USDC at 127%, ETH at 107%). Users can independently verify their holdings via the Merkle Tree system on the platform.
Access depends on where you live. MEXC states it restricts access in regions such as the U.S., Canada, Singapore, and Mainland China, plus other jurisdictions due to local rules. Even within supported regions, specific features can vary based on compliance requirements and service limits.
Fiat access also stays uneven. MEXC frames fiat on-ramps as third-party routes and cites providers such as Banxa and MoonPay, so availability depends on your region and the provider’s coverage.
User experience and support across platforms MEXC (arguably) offers one of the simplest UIs among its peers. Basically, it puts market access first, then lets you layer tools on top of it.
On web, the core market view centers on charts, depth, and fast order entry, with TradingView-powered charting and customizable layouts built into the platform. The layout can suit active use, but it can also feel dense at first if you prefer a minimal screen.
On mobile, MEXC offers iOS and Android apps that aim to keep parity with core actions: spot markets, futures markets, staking tools, alerts, and wallet functions. It does so without forcing routine tasks back to desktop.
MEXC claims that its recent updates further improved speed, stability, and overall usability.
As for advanced workflows are concerned, the platform offers API access that supports automated strategies, with documentation and developer resources intended for high-frequency or system-led trade operations.
In terms of customer support, MEXC offers 24/7 live chat, ticket support through email escalation, in-platform FAQs and guides, and multilingual support in 30+ languages.
It is also relatively active on social channels, such as Telegram and X, which can help with updates and basic support routing.
So, is MEXC a good fit for you in 2026? As always, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to that. Basically, MEXC will likely suit you if you want broad spot and futures markets, low maker costs, and early-access tools such as DEX+ and Alpha.
You also get grid bots, copy-traing, demo mode, and Earn products that include SOL stake via MXSOL.
The downsides include limited fiat routes and restricted access in some jurisdictions. And it’s not exactly a downside, but MEXC’s high leverage ceilings can wipe out capital fast if you are not careful while trading with borrowed capital.
All aspects considered, as of 2026, MEXC is an option worth considering as a balanced access-and-fee venue, provided you apply strict risk rules and clear limits.
Frequently asked questions What does MEXC do best versus other exchanges? MEXC emphasizes market breadth across spot and futures pairs. The fee schedule puts weight on 0% maker fees, which can matter when you place many orders. It also highlights early access through tools such as DEX+ and MEXC Alpha.
Does MEXC require KYC? MEXC uses a tiered verification model with optional checks at the start in some cases. Limits and feature access can vary by jurisdiction and account level. Check your in-account limits before you deposit meaningful funds.
How does MEXC approach transparency and reserves? MEXC publishes Proof of Reserves reports on a bi-monthly cadence and reports reserve ratios above 100% for listed assets. It also references third-party involvement through Hacken for audits and monitoring. Treat Proof of Reserves as a disclosure tool, not a guarantee.
Is MEXC a fit for high-leverage futures use? MEXC offers leverage up to 500x on select contracts, which can appeal to aggressive strategies. That leverage also raises liquidation risk fast, even on modest price moves. Conservative sizing and strict exit rules matter more here than platform features.
