Crypto Exchange 2gether Says It Can’t Fully Reimburse 9% of Users After 2020 Hack

Crypto exchange 2gether said it is unable to reimburse all users affected by a hack last year, even after a successful fundraising effort. 

Since the hack, 2gether CEO Ramón Ferraz Estrada said the firm had been working raising €1.2 million (US$1.5 million) to improve the company’s security and risk management, and to replenish the stolen funds. In the end, 2gether managed to hit the regulated limit of €1.5 million, he said. The raise included voluntary conversion of some of the lost funds into shares and tokens.

Addressing customers in a Jan. 25 letter, the CEO said that, due to the recent rise in the value of bitcoin and ether, the company still cannot refund 100% of the stolen assets to 9% of users. However, roughly 5,000 users will receive full refunds of BTC and ETH that was not previously converted.

For the 9% that would not receive the full amount, 2gether is offering a choice to accept “at most, 99% of the non-converted stolen funds, and at least, the value in euros that was lost when the cyber attack took place.” Otherwise, this group can choose to wait till the firm can afford full refunds or seek alternative solutions, Ferraz Estrada said.

Last July, the exchange suffered a cyber attack that saw €1.2 million ($1.45 million) in crypto assets stolen – 27% of the firm’s total holdings at the time.