In one of the most staggering operational blunders in cryptocurrency history, South Korean exchange Bithumb accidentally distributed over $44 billion worth of Bitcoin to its users on Friday, February 6, 2026. The incident, caused by a simple data entry error during a promotional event, triggered a chaotic 17% flash crash on the platform and forced an emergency trading freeze. This massive Bithumb Bitcoin error has sent shockwaves through the crypto community, highlighting the fragile nature of digital asset infrastructure even in established markets.
The $44 Billion 'Fat Finger' Moment
The chaos began during a routine "Random Box" promotional campaign intended to reward loyal customers with small cash prizes. According to internal reports, an employee mistakenly selected "BTC" instead of the intended "KRW" (South Korean Won) as the payout unit. Instead of receiving a modest 2,000 won (approximately $1.37), hundreds of stunned users found their wallets credited with 2,000 Bitcoin each.
With Bitcoin trading at approximately $71,000 at the time, each user effectively received a windfall of roughly $142 million. In total, the exchange erroneously distributed approximately 620,000 BTC—a sum that technically exceeded the exchange's own cold wallet reserves and represented a value of nearly $44 billion. This momentarily made the accidental recipients some of the wealthiest individuals in the country, at least on paper.
Flash Crash: 17% Drop in Minutes
The market reaction was instantaneous and violent. Realizing the error, dozens of users attempted to liquidate their accidental holdings immediately. This sudden, massive sell pressure overwhelmed Bithumb's order book, causing a localized Bitcoin flash crash. Within minutes, the price of Bitcoin on the exchange plummeted by over 17%, dropping to as low as 81.1 million won, while global prices remained relatively stable.
Analysts described the event as a "reverse Kimchi premium," where South Korean prices briefly traded significantly lower than the global average. "Liquidity evaporated in seconds," noted one local market observer. "The order book simply couldn't absorb hundreds of millions of dollars in sudden sell orders."
Emergency Response and Recovery
Bithumb's security teams identified the anomaly within 20 minutes. In a desperate bid to contain the damage, the exchange initiated an emergency trading freeze, locking withdrawals and restricting access for the 695 affected accounts. The freeze lasted approximately 35 minutes, a critical window that prevented the erroneous funds from being siphoned off to external wallets.
In an official statement released on Saturday, Bithumb confirmed that they had successfully recovered 99.7% of the mistakenly distributed funds. "We would like to make it clear that this incident is unrelated to external hacking or security breaches," the company stated, reassuring investors that customer assets remained safe. However, the exchange is still negotiating the return of the remaining 0.3%, which some users managed to withdraw or trade before the freeze was implemented.
A History of Crypto Exchange Failures
This $44 billion BTC mistake is not the first time a major financial institution has suffered from a "fat finger" error, but it is certainly one of the largest by value. The incident recalls similar blunders, such as Crypto.com's accidental $10 million transfer to a user in 2022. However, the sheer scale of Bithumb's error—involving a sum larger than the reserves of many central banks—places it in a league of its own.
The incident has drawn immediate scrutiny from South Korean financial regulators. The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has reportedly launched a preliminary probe into Bithumb's internal control systems. For an exchange already facing regulatory pressure regarding its listing policies, this operational failure could have lingering legal consequences.
What This Means for Crypto Security
While Bithumb managed to claw back the vast majority of the funds, the incident serves as a stark warning about the lack of safeguards in centralized exchanges. The fact that a single employee could authorize a transfer of 620,000 Bitcoin—an amount that represents a significant percentage of the total circulating supply—without triggering an immediate automated hard stop is alarming to security experts.
For now, the South Korea crypto news cycle is dominated by the near-miss. Had the users managed to withdraw these funds to self-custody wallets, the fallout could have bankrupted the exchange and destabilized the global crypto market. As Bithumb works to restore user confidence, the "2,000 BTC giveaway" will likely be remembered as the most expensive typo in history.
