On-chain detective ZachXBT drew attention to a "suspicious" transfer of 3520 BTC ($330.7 million), which is highly likely to be a theft of assets.
"Shortly after, the funds began to be laundered through instant exchanges on more than six platforms and converted to Monero, resulting in a 50% spike in the price of XMR," the expert noted.
During a brief rally, the price of the privacy-focused cryptocurrency reached $329. At the time of writing, quotes have adjusted to $267. Over the past 24 hours, the increase has been around 20%.
ZachXBT explained the signs that led him to suspect theft:
The likely victim is a long-term holder of Bitcoin and an experienced user who has interacted with Gemini, River, Coinbase, and other platforms;
Coins worth $330 million were suddenly broken into numerous small amounts, creating hundreds of orders;
Transaction fees reached a "seven-figure amount," which is clearly unprofitable for ordinary operations.
