A prominent cryptocurrency exchange, Grinex, which catered to Russian users seeking to circumvent sanctions, has halted its operations after falling victim to a massive cyber attack that resulted in the theft of approximately 1 billion rubles, equivalent to $13 million. The exchange, which is based in Kyrgyzstan, announced the breach via its Telegram channel and an official statement on its website, attributing the attack to state-sponsored actors from 'hostile nations' due to the high level of sophistication and coordination involved.
According to Grinex, preliminary findings suggest that the attack was designed to directly undermine Russia's financial autonomy. The exchange had previously been sanctioned by the US, UK, and EU for its role in helping users evade restrictions through a ruble-backed stablecoin called A7A5, which facilitated cross-border transactions after Russia's access to the Swift interbank messaging system was severed following its invasion of Ukraine. Originally operating as Garantex, the platform reemerged as Grinex after being taken down.
The temporary suspension of trading activities has left users without access to their funds while the company conducts an investigation, with its Moscow office also facing restricted access. Grinex has released a list detailing 54 affected wallet addresses and the corresponding amounts stolen, with the majority of the losses being in USDT on the TRON blockchain.