Popular P2E Game 'Axie Infinity' Suffers Cryptocurrency Theft Worth 750 Billion KRW by Hacker

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[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Amid growing global interest in digital assets such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and blockchain, a major incident occurred in Axie Infinity, a leading Play to Earn (P2E) game, where cryptocurrency worth approximately 750 billion KRW was stolen by hackers.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and others on the 29th (local time), Sky Mavis, a Vietnamese game startup operating Axie Infinity, announced that on the 23rd, hackers infiltrated the Ronin Network, a remittance program, and stole 173,600 Ethereum and 25.5 million stablecoin USDC from the accounts. At the time of the theft, the value of the cryptocurrency was about $540 million (approximately 660 billion KRW), but it has since increased to $615 million (approximately 750 billion KRW).

Sky Mavis stated that the stolen cryptocurrency remains in the hacker’s account and that they are tracking the account with analysis firms.

The Ronin Network, which operates the remittance program, announced that it detected the hacking during an attempt by a user to withdraw 5,000 Ethereum. Ronin is working with law enforcement to resolve the situation and has assured investors that it will fully restore or compensate for the losses. Ronin stated, "We acted swiftly upon recognizing the incident and are preparing measures to prevent future attacks," and announced a temporary suspension of network usage in Axie Infinity.

WSJ evaluated this incident as the second largest cryptocurrency hack in history after Poly Network (which was $611 million at the time of hacking), calling it one of the biggest events in the 13-year history of the crypto sector. Analysts suggest that such incidents could negatively impact market expansion amid rising global interest in digital asset markets. The U.S. government is currently considering additional regulations on digital assets.

Axie Infinity, launched in 2018, is a P2E game that uses blockchain and NFTs to buy, sell, and trade virtual assets. It is highly popular, with daily users reaching 1.7 million last month. In the game, players collect creatures called Axies, which are like pets, raise them, and battle others. Axies are traded using digital assets when bought or sold.