Mercado Bitcoin Incident Highlights Different Risks in Exchange and DeFi

Mercado Bitcoin’s Nov. 2 security incident involved wallets tied to the Brazilian exchange, while the available tracing does not identify a decentralized finance contract as the cause. The distinction separates exchange custody risks from permissions users grant to DeFi apps. At 7:56 a.m. ET (12:56 UTC) Nov. 2, Mercado Bitcoin said it had contained an incident in one of its systems and paused deposits and withdrawals. The exchange did not identify the affected system or explain how access was obtained. At least $46 million moved from Mercado Bitcoin hot wallets across 10 or more blockchains.