Lee Jae-won, CEO of South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, apologized for an accidental payout of 620,000 bitcoins worth 60 trillion won ($41.2 billion) during a promotional event. At a parliamentary hearing, he acknowledged failures in the internal control system and pledged compensation for affected customers. Financial authorities initiated on-site inspections at four other exchanges.
On February 11, 2026, in Seoul, Lee Jae-won, CEO of Bithumb, apologized at a parliamentary hearing for an erroneous bitcoin payout during a promotional event. The incident involved crediting 620,000 bitcoins, valued at 60 trillion won ($41.2 billion), to customers. "I sincerely apologize to the people who may be deeply distressed by the erroneous payout made during our promotional event as the person who bears the ultimate responsibility," Lee stated.
He acknowledged that "our internal control system overseeing ledger balances was unable to detect that more tokens (than available) were credited." Bithumb corrected most of the erroneous credits, but 1,788 bitcoins were sold by customers within a 40-minute window before accounts were frozen, leading to a brief drop in bitcoin prices on the platform. The exchange estimated customer damages at around 1 billion won, affecting particularly about 30 users of its cryptocurrency lending service who faced forced liquidations.
Lee vowed, "We will set a broader scope for victim relief and provide compensation based on various complaints being received through the Financial Supervisory Service and our customer service center." During the hearing, Kwon Dae-young, vice chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), promised to require cryptocurrency exchanges to strengthen their internal controls to match those of banks and other financial institutions. On the same day, financial authorities began on-site inspections of four other cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea to review their internal systems.
The episode highlights vulnerabilities in cryptocurrency operations and has prompted discussions on enhanced regulations.
