Decentralized liquidity protocol THORChain saw its highest-ever daily transaction volume on Thursday, as hackers continued to exploit the network to launder stolen funds.
According to data from THORChain, the platform facilitated $355 million in trades on October 5th. This beats the previous single-day volume record of $344 million, set in July during a period of elevated trading activity across decentralized finance (DeFi) markets.
Over the past five days, cumulative transaction volume on THORChain has topped $1 billion. The surge in volume comes even as the cross-chain dex grapples with an ongoing hacker attack.
On October 5, the transaction volume on the ThorChain was US$355 million, hitting a record high. The cumulative transaction volume in the past five days has exceeded US$1 billion, which may be related to the surge in hacker activities to conduct cross-chain transactions for BTC.…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 6, 2023
Since July, thieves have stolen an estimated $190 million from THORChain by exploiting a vulnerability in its code. Research suggests over 50% of ETH converted to BTC through THORChain over the past four months represents laundered funds.
Hackers are drawn to THORChain because it allows them to easily move stolen crypto across different blockchains. By jumping between chains, they can cash out rewards with less risk of getting caught.
THORChain developers have issued multiple patches and upgrades to improve security on the platform. However, hackers have managed to bypass these measures and continue targeting the dex.
The team maintains that user funds remain safe as long as they do not interact with THORChain during an active hack. They also say upcoming releases will permanently plug weaknesses, stopping future attacks.
But critics argue that persistent security issues and lax oversight enable unlawful behavior on THORChain. They say that while volume may be increasing, much of the activity is driven by criminals rather than organic user growth.
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