Disgruntled investors launch class action against Atomic Wallet following major breach and losses

Dozens of high-net worth investors from Russia and CIS join class action

A group of cryptocurrency investors have launched a class action against Atomic Wallet, a noncustodial cryptocurrency wallet, following a major breach and $100 million in losses back in June. The lawsuit, reported by German business media agency bne IntelliNews on Aug. 21, is being coordinated by German lawyer Max Gutbrod and Boris Feldman, co-founder of Moscow legaltech firm Destra Legal. The lawyers claim to be representing about 50 clients who lost a total of $12 million in the aftermath of the breach.

Pursuit of justice

In an effort to recover assets for their clients, Gutbrod and Feldman are preparing to file a class action against Atomic Wallet. They allege that the company failed to provide any information about the hack or report it to the police. The lawyers are claiming that the breach was not the work of Lazarus Group, the North Korean cybercrime group initially blamed for the attack, but rather a Ukrainian hacker group.

Atomic Wallet's response

Atomic Wallet suffered a massive $100 million exploit in mid-June 2023, affecting at least 5,500 crypto accounts on the platform. The company has been under scrutiny for its handling of the breach and subsequent communication with its users. While Atomic Wallet highlighted four potential causes for the exploit, it did not disclose the exact conditions that led to the breach. The company maintains that less than 0.1% of app users were affected and has not commented on the impending class action.