Why did Bithumb distribute $40 billion in Bitcoin by mistake?

An employee mistakenly keyed in Bitcoin instead of Korean won when awarding prizes for a promotion.

What was the impact of Bithumb's Bitcoin distribution error on prices?

The error caused Bitcoin prices on Bithumb to briefly drop by 17% due to panic selling.

Will customers who lost money due to Bithumb's error be compensated?

Yes, Bithumb will reimburse customers for their full losses incurred during the panic selling and offer an additional 10% bonus.

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Bithumb Mistake: $40 Billion Bitcoin Error Refunds Panicked Sellers

7 Feb

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Summary

Bithumb mistakenly distributed 620,000 Bitcoin instead of cash prizes.
The error caused a brief but sharp selloff, dropping Bitcoin prices 17%.
Bithumb will reimburse customers and offer a 10% bonus for panic-selling losses.

Bithumb Mistake: $40 Billion Bitcoin Error Refunds Panicked Sellers

Bithumb, a major South Korean cryptocurrency exchange, experienced a significant operational error on Friday, February 7, 2026. An employee mistakenly distributed 620,000 Bitcoin, valued at over $40 billion, instead of the intended 620,000 Korean won cash prizes to 695 users. This incident occurred around 7 p.m. local time and was identified within 20 minutes.

The erroneous distribution led to a chaotic situation where some users immediately sold their newly acquired Bitcoin, triggering a sharp price decline of 17% on the Bithumb platform. Bitcoin's price briefly dropped from approximately $67,188 to $55,400.

Bithumb acted swiftly to halt trading and withdrawals for affected accounts starting at 7:35 p.m. and managed to retrieve 99.7% of the distributed coins. The exchange has pledged to cover customer losses resulting from this 'panic-selling' event and will provide an additional 10% bonus to those affected.