Crypto sleuths uncovered more details from last week’s Alphapo exploit, with on-chain data showing over $60 million was siphoned from the lending platform. Meanwhile, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida showed support for the Web3 ecosystem and Binance said it planned to file a motion to dismiss the Commodity Futures Trading Commission lawsuit against it, according to a new court filing. 

Alphapo exploit reaches over $60M in losses

The alleged hack of crypto payment provider Alphapo has swelled to over $60 million in losses, far exceeding the previously reported $31 million, according to on-chain sleith ZachXBT.

In a Twitter thread, ZachXBT identify dan additional $37 million that was drained from old addresses on the Tron and Bitcoin networks. Alphapo told Cointelegraph that deposits and withdrawals were being reinstated on newly created addresses.

The on-chain sleuth blamed Lazarus Group, a hacking organization with ties to the North Korean government, for the attack.

News of Alphapo’s hack first surfaced on July 22. As Cointelegraph reported, attackers stole the funds on the Ethereum network, swapped them for Ether (ETH) and then bridged the assets to the Avalanche and Bitcoin networks.

Cointelegraph reported another security breach on July 25 after lending app Era Lend was exploited for $3.4 million worth of crypto. The attacker drained the funds using a “read-only reentrancy attack.

Japan PM reaffirms Web3 plans as Binance announces imminent launch

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reaffirmed the country’s inclination toward the Web3 industry, while acknowledging the technology’s potential to transform the internet and kindle social change. 

On the same day, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao announced the cryptocurrency exchange would launch its services on a new Japanese platform in August 2023.

“I hope that the Web3 industry will regain its attention and vitality, and that various new projects will be born,” Kishida stated during a keynote speech at WebX conference in Tokyo, Japan.

Binance and CZ plan motion to dismiss CFTC complaint

Binance and its CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao are looking to file a motion to dismiss the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) suit against the exchange.

In a July 24 court filing, Zhao, Binance’s former chief compliance officer Samuel Lim and multiple Binance entities said they will file motions to dismiss the complaint before July 27 and asked permission to go over the 15-page limit on the filing.

In March, the CFTC sued Binance and Zhao alleging the firm did not properly register with the regulator, allowed U.S. customers to illegally trade crypto on its platform since at least 2019 and obscured its location and activities outside of the U.S. with the aim of evading regulations.

Binance and Zhao also face a suit from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on various allegations including selling unregistered securities and allowing U.S. customers to use its global platform. The Department of Justice is also reportedly investigating the exchange for sanctions violations.

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