South Korean exchange Bithumb has resolved a technical error that credited users with excess Bitcoin during a promotional event. The platform confirmed it recovered 99.7% of the overpaid Bitcoin on the same day, covering the remaining 0.3%—worth an estimated 1,788 BTC—with company funds. All user deposits remain fully backed, and the exchange has announced compensation measures for affected traders.
The incident began on Friday when a system issue during a promotional event credited some accounts with an unusually large amount of Bitcoin. This briefly caused sharp price swings on the exchange as recipients began selling the funds.
Bithumb quickly restricted affected accounts and stabilized trading within minutes, preventing broader liquidations. The exchange stated the incident was not related to hacking and that no customer assets were lost.
In a Sunday statement, the exchange confirmed it recovered 99.7% of the overpaid Bitcoin on the same day the incident occurred. The remaining 0.3%, totaling 1,788 Bitcoin that had already been sold, was covered using company funds to ensure customer balances remained fully matched.
“Bithumb’s holdings of all virtual assets, including Bitcoin (BTC), are 100% equivalent to or exceeding user deposits,” the exchange wrote. Most of the excess Bitcoin was retrieved directly from accounts, while the portion already liquidated required reimbursement from corporate reserves.
The exchange also announced some compensation measures. Users connected to the platform at the time of the incident will receive 20,000 Korean won ($15) each.
Traders who sold Bitcoin at unfavorable prices during the disruption will receive full reimbursement of their sale value plus an additional 10% payment. The platform will also waive trading fees for all markets for seven days starting Monday.
Centralized cryptocurrency exchanges have continued to encounter operational problems. In June, Coinbase said it reduced unnecessary account freezes by 82% after upgrading its systems, following years of user complaints.
Similar concerns emerged during an October 10 market sell-off, when Binance users reported technical difficulties that prevented some traders from closing positions at peak volatility. The exchange later distributed about $728 million in compensation to affected users.
