Liquid Network Drained of $320M in Cache Bug Exploit
Liquid said the network is halted while Blockstream contacts the actors, who claim they will return the funds after a patch is applied.
- On Sunday, September 6, 2026, the Liquid Network halted transactions after an unknown actor drained roughly $320 million in Bitcoin through an exploit of the settlement layer used by major exchanges.
- An unpatched range-proof cache bug in the Elements codebase allowed the attacker to mint unbacked L-BTC tokens, as federation nodes running outdated software failed to validate the invalid transactions.
- The attacker claimed to be a 'white-hat' researcher via on-chain OP_RETURN messages and returned 3,400 BTC to the federation on September 7, leaving 598.5 BTC—worth about $47 million—in their controlled address.
- Blockstream patched bridge nodes, but the network remains frozen as of Wednesday, September 9, 2026, exposing vulnerabilities in a system dependent on 15 functionaries keeping software current.
- Recovering 85% of stolen funds within 30 hours is considered favorable by some, yet critics argue the reliance on attacker goodwill rather than protocol safeguards reveals systemic risks in federated sidechains.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Liquid Network drained of $320M in cache bug exploit
A range-proof cache bug in the Elements codebase let an unknown actor mint unbacked L-BTC, drain 95% of the federation reserve through SideSwap, then negotiate its return on-chain via OP_RETURN messages. The network remains frozen, 598.5 BTC sits in the…
Liquid Network Sidechain Targeted By Alleged White-Hat Hackers
The Liquid Network – a federated sidechain of Bitcoin founded by Blockstream – reported Sunday, Sept. 6 that purported white-hat hackers withdrew approximately 4,000 bitcoin from the federation wallet that backs its L-BTC token, according to reports. The stolen amount was worth about $320 million at the time of the transaction. The official Liquid Network account stated on X that bridge nodes were disabled and the sidechain was paused following …
Top Crypto Updates: Bitcoin ETFs near $1B as Zcash Rally Triggers Liquidations & $320M Liquid Hack
9th September 2026 By Anjali Kochhar The crypto market is entering the second week of September with a mix of institutional optimism, sharp volatility, regulatory developments and fresh security concerns. Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States recorded nearly $1 billion in weekly inflows, while Ethereum funds also remained in positive territory. At the […]
Hackers Drain $320 Million From Liquid Network, Then Return Most of It
The size of the initial theft makes this much more serious than another crypto hack. The attacker took nearly 95% of the wallet’s Bitcoin in a single transaction, leaving the fund behind Liquid’s L-BTC token with only about 197 BTC. This wasn’t a partial breach. The attacker drained almost the entire collateral pool that should
$320M Bitcoin Hack: What Really Happened to Liquid Network?
On Sept. 6, Liquid Network disclosed that about 4,000 BTC — about $320 million at that time — had been withdrawn from Liquid Federation wallet.... The post $320M Bitcoin Hack: What Really Happened to Liquid Network? appeared first on Bitcoin Foundation. The post $320M Bitcoin Hack: What Really Happened to Liquid Network? appeared first on newsdio.com.
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