In a surprising turn of events, South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb has issued an apology after mistakenly transferring an astonishing €33.8 billion worth of Bitcoin to its users. The incident, which occurred on February 7, 2026, caused a brief selloff on the platform and raised concerns among users.
According to Bithumb, the error involved the unintentional transfer of 620,000 Bitcoins, meant as part of a promotional campaign. Instead of the intended amount of approximately 2,000 won (€1.16) per user, around 2,000 Bitcoins were sent to each of the 695 affected customers. This significant error led to temporary trading and withdrawal restrictions, with Bithumb acting swiftly to block these activities just 35 minutes after the incident was identified.
In its statement released the following day, Bithumb expressed its sincere apologies for the confusion and inconvenience caused during the distribution process of the promotional event. The company reported that it managed to recover 99.7% of the mistakenly sent Bitcoins and that they would absorb the financial loss using their own assets.
Despite the quick response, the incident briefly induced sharp volatility in Bitcoin prices on the platform, with reports indicating a drop of 17% to 81.1 million USD won late Friday. Bithumb reassured users that the situation was under control within five minutes and emphasized that the issue was not due to external hacking or security breaches.
This significant mishap coincides with a turbulent week for Bitcoin, which has seen its value fluctuate following the recent political developments surrounding the election of U.S. President Donald Trump in November 2024. As the dust settles on this incident, both Bithumb and its users are left navigating the aftermath of this extraordinary blunder.