Mercado Bitcoin Hack Raged On Hours After Exchange Claimed Attack Was Contained

A hack targeting Mercado Bitcoin continued for hours after the exchange said the attack had been contained, according to a new report, raising fresh questions about the exchange's incident response and disclosure practices. The same attacker went on to steal approximately $391,000, mostly from wallets that blockchain analytics firm Bitquery ties to BitMart, the report found.

BitMart's founder confirmed a Nov. 2 hack and said he suspects a link between the two incidents. The report's findings suggest that the attacker remained active even after Mercado Bitcoin publicly asserted control, and that funds from the later theft were routed through wallets connected to BitMart. The exact timeline and the full scope of the losses at Mercado Bitcoin were not immediately detailed.

The disclosure adds to concerns about how crypto exchanges communicate during security breaches and whether containment claims can be trusted. It also highlights the interconnected risk among trading platforms, as an attacker linked to one exchange appears to have targeted another. Mercado Bitcoin and BitMart did not immediately respond to requests for further comment, and independent confirmation of the report's findings was not immediately available.