NEAR Intents Says $3.8 Million Exploit Return Included Monero

NEAR Intents recovered about $3.8 million taken in an Oct. 1 exploit, but part of the funds was returned in Monero (XMR) rather than Bitcoin (BTC), General Manager Alex Shevchenko said.

The Bitcoin return totaled 34.59 BTC, representing about 78% of the total returned funds. Shevchenko acknowledged that the remainder came through a different route.

“Everything was correctly identified on the Bitcoin blockchain,” Shevchenko said. He added that the non-Bitcoin assets had been traded into XMR.

The team has replenished its smart contracts with its own funds and is working to convert the returned Monero into Tether (USDT). Shevchenko said companies involved in the conversion had asked about the source of the funds.

The recovery followed NEAR Intents’ announcement that it recovered the full amount. Shevchenko initially said the funds had been returned in full and that the investigation was ending.

He did not disclose how much of the returned funds arrived in Monero. The comments were recorded Oct. 8.

NEAR Intents also received several bug-bounty submissions after the exploit. Shevchenko said one submission was valid and will be paid.