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Major Exchange reopens BTC withdrawals after hack

Published 566 words 3 min read

TLDR

Bitget has restarted Bitcoin withdrawals after a roughly $388 million hack, beginning a phased reopening while it hardens security and works with investigators.

  1. Bitget paused withdrawals after a Sept 24 security breach and has now reopened BTC withdrawals on Bitcoin and BNB chains according to its official phased withdrawal service update.
  2. The hack drained about $387388 million from hot wallets, but Bitget says customer balances are covered by a protection fund exceeding $464 million and proof of reserves above 120 percent.
  3. Ether, USDT and other assets are scheduled to follow over the week, while investigators trace stolen funds and Bitget prepares a detailed security report, making follow through on this plan the key thing to watch.

Deep Dive

1. What Happened At Bitget

On September 24, 2026, Bitget detected unauthorized transfers from some of its hot and warm wallets and suspended all withdrawals as a precaution while keeping deposits and trading active.

Bitget later reported that attackers exploited a third party security product to steal high level internal credentials, letting them issue forged withdrawal commands that moved about $387388 million to attacker addresses, while cold wallets and private keys remained intact. Independent coverage confirms Bitget has since resumed bitcoin withdrawals, starting with BTC on the Bitcoin and BNB Smart Chain networks.

An official Bitget withdrawal service update sets a phased schedule: BTC withdrawals restarted on 28 Sep at 08:00 UTC, ETH withdrawals on 29 Sep, USDT on 30 Sep, and remaining tokens plus fiat and P2P by 2 Oct.

2. Impact On Users And Market

Bitget states that customer balances were not debited and that its User Protection Fund, which it says holds over $464 million, will cover the loss, with proof of reserves showing a reserve ratio above 120 percent.

Even so, users reacted quickly once BTC withdrawals reopened. One analysis notes that nearly 5,000 BTC has left Bitgets reserves since withdrawals resumed, with thousands of BTC withdrawn in the first hours as clients tested access and shifted funds.

Broader market impact has been contained so far, with reports emphasizing that the risk is concentrated on Bitget account holders rather than a systemic Bitcoin issue, and spot BTC prices have stayed within recent ranges despite the incident.

What this means

The main risk is venue specific counterparty risk on Bitget, not Bitcoin itself, and users are treating the reopening as a chance to reassess how much exchange exposure they carry.

3. What To Watch Next

Bitget and multiple outlets say ETH and USDT withdrawals should resume on the stated dates, followed by other tokens and fiat, so the key test is whether that timetable is met without further pauses.

Investigators and Bitget report that stolen assets are being moved across networks and through routing tools, with security firms such as Mandiant and others helping trace and freeze funds where possible, and a full security report promised within days.

Going forward, Bitget says it has rotated internal credentials, tightened withdrawal verification, added multi party approval, and plans independent verification for each withdrawal, so users and the wider market will be watching whether these controls prevent any repeat incident.

Conclusion

Bitgets reopening of Bitcoin withdrawals signals that its core infrastructure is back online, but the scale of the hack and the sharp BTC outflows underline how fragile exchange trust can be after a security failure.

If Bitget completes the staged reopening on schedule and publishes a credible, detailed post mortem, confidence could stabilize, while any delays, further anomalies, or regulatory scrutiny would keep venue risk in focus for exchange users.

Educational information only. Crypto markets are volatile and this is not financial advice.


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