Mercado Bitcoin hack: Attacker still holds PEPE, AAVE, and PENDLE as millions remain exposed

A major security breach occurred on the Mercado Bitcoin exchange. Hackers stole about $46 million in cryptocurrencies. After the exploit, investigators were able to track all the stolen money through 65 different addresses.

The most significant amount was held in an Ethereum [ETH] account valued at about $8.26 million.

Bitcoin [BTC] trailed closely with 106.068 BTC, worth approximately $8.1 million.

The wallets also contain $5.03 million in Tether [USDT] and $3.03 million in USD Coin [USDC]. Meanwhile, more than $9 million in stolen assets have been frozen.

However, the hacker’s remaining balances leave several tokens exposed to further transfers, laundering attempts, and potential selling pressure.

Stolen altcoins face selling pressure

Although investigators have frozen more than $9 million, the attacker still controls substantial altcoin balances. Because the attacker can no longer access much of the stolen funds due to the frozen assets.

However, this does create the potential for another type of market risk. Instead, this shifts the focus to where the attacker ultimately transfers those tokens, whether to an exchange or one or more DeFi platforms.

PePe [PEPE], Aave [AAVE], and Pendle [PENDLE] each represent more than 80% of that total and carry the most risk since they would be transferred into relatively illiquid areas of the market.

The values of those tokens are approximately $1.79 million, $1.61 million, and $1.39 million, respectively.

The attacker also appears to hold very significant positions in Uniswap [UNI] and Ondo [ONDO]. If such tokens are sent to trading venues, large sell orders could overwhelm existing liquidity.

As such, could result in even steeper declines in thinner markets while causing even greater uncertainty for token holders who may expect subsequent transfers.

Stolen tokens face liquidation risks

The key risk now lies in how easily the hacker could sell the remaining tokens without disrupting their markets. Despite PEPE and AAVE having higher token balances being stolen from them, each platform has greater than $230 million in daily trading volume.

Therefore, a concentrated sale could potentially overwhelm existing liquidity. In turn, this would lead to steeper declines in price than if that same sale had taken place in a token with deeper liquidity.

Meanwhile, the absence of confirmed exchange deposits suggests the hacker has not yet begun large-scale liquidation. However, any movement toward trading platforms could increase volatility, particularly for PENDLE, where market depth offers less protection.

Final Summary

• The Mercado Bitcoin hack involved approximately $46 million in stolen cryptocurrency, with investigators freezing over $9 million.

• The attacker retains millions in PEPE, AAVE, PENDLE, and other altcoins, leaving their markets exposed to potential sell-offs.