The Truth Behind A $44 Billion Bitcoin Error That Sent Funds To Users By Accident

There are certain steps you should take when someone accidentally sends you money, but if the amount you receive is over $100 million, there might be some even bigger red flags to look out for. This was the exact situation that users of the popular South Korean cryptocurrency exchange, Bithumb, experienced when the company mistakenly sent out around $44 billion worth of bitcoin to 695 account holders during a promotional event in early February 2026.

The company had initially intended to distribute rewards of 620,000 won in total, an amount equal to about $426 at the time, per Reuters. Instead, it released 620,000 bitcoin, in 2,000-bitcoin increments, to hundreds of customers. Bitcoin peaked at $71,681 that day, meaning individual Bithumb users received payments worth upwards of $143 million dollars, each. While that makes the $12,000 in cryptocurrency payments awarded to some New York residents pale in comparison, the error had serious consequences. In fact, within minutes of the mistake, bitcoin's value dropped 17% — to around $55,000.

While the price did quickly correct, Bithumb only possessed about 42,000 bitcoin at the time of the error and had to scramble to recover. According to a company press release, Bithumb was ultimately able to recover 99.7% of the wrongfully distributed currency almost immediately, but that missing .3% still equated to millions in unrecovered funds. Though, in fairness, the U.S. has wasted considerably more than that on more than one occasion.

Bithumb announced that blame for the incident belonged internally, and even issued a series of press releases detailing the steps it would be taking to prevent similar situations. In one announcement, the company revealed that it was implementing a new crisis management department and even establishing an Investor Damage Relief Task Force to ensure individuals affected by the events of February 6 would be compensated and reassured. Bithumb also announced that it would pay out of pocket for the .3% of bitcoin it failed to recover, and award anyone that was logged into the exchange when the error occurred a 20,000-won credit — roughly $13 as of June 2026. Additionally, the company announced that any users who sold bitcoin at a loss in the immediate 15-minute window post-error — in which prices dropped on the platform — would be awarded an additional 10% to their sale price.

Of course, these measures can only go so far in the court of public opinion. Crypto investors have since called Bithumb's legitimacy into question in response to the event. Additionally, the South Korean Financial Service Commission launched an investigation into the company, as well as the nation's other digital currency marketplaces, in order to design more restrictive digital trading laws. Meanwhile, the accident seems to have put a damning spotlight on Bithumb as a whole. In March, the company was placed on a six-month partial business suspension, and fined almost $25 million, due to alleged anti money-laundering violations. However, a judge lifted the suspension in early May.