A prominent cryptocurrency exchange, Grinex, which was popular among Russian users seeking to circumvent sanctions, has halted its operations after claiming to have suffered a significant cyber attack. The attack, which reportedly resulted in the theft of approximately 1 billion rubles ($13 million), was disclosed by the exchange on its official Telegram channel and website.
According to Grinex, the nature and coordination of the attack suggest the involvement of state-backed actors from 'hostile nations.' The exchange stated that the 'digital fingerprints' and the attack's characteristics indicate an unprecedented level of sophistication and resources, typically available only to 'structures of unfriendly states.' Furthermore, Grinex alleged that the attack was orchestrated to directly undermine Russia's financial sovereignty. The exchange had previously been sanctioned by the US, UK, and EU for its alleged role in facilitating the circumvention of sanctions through a ruble-backed stablecoin called A7A5.
This token enabled cross-border transactions after Russia's access to the Swift inter-bank messaging system was restricted following its invasion of Ukraine. After being shut down, the platform re-emerged as Grinex. The temporary suspension of trading activities has left users unable to access their funds, pending an investigation.
Additionally, access to the company's Moscow office has been restricted. Grinex has released a list of 54 affected wallet addresses, along with the corresponding amounts that were drained, with the majority being in the form of USDT on the TRON blockchain.