Coinapult Claims $40k Lost in Hot Wallet Compromise

Coinapult has suffered a hot wallet attack that resulted in the loss of 150 BTC, or roughly $42,900 at press time.

By Pete Rizzo

Mar 17, 2015 at 9:30 p.m. UTC

Updated Sep 11, 2021 at 11:36 a.m. UTC

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One of the longest-operating bitcoin startups has suffered a hot wallet attack that resulted in the loss of 150 BTC, or roughly $42,900 at press time.

Founded by Ira Miller and investor Erik Voorhees in 2012, Coinapult announced the compromise on Twitter, advising customers to refrain from sending bitcoin to Coinapult addresses until the problem is resolved.

Coinapult COO and CFO Justin Blincoe stressed that the hot wallet was used only for funds owned by the bitcoin wallet and service provider, and that no customer funds were affected.

Blincoe told CoinDesk:

“Our team is looking into all possible scenarios in regards to what happened.”

The hack is the latest in a string of high-profile breaches at exchanges including Bitstamp and CAVirtex, with the later ceasing its operations after password hashes and two-factor authentication details were lost.

Customers that may have sent funds to the hot wallet since it was compromised or who have more specific questions, Blincoe said, can contact Coinapult directly at support@coinapult.com.

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