Bybit CEO Ben Zhou has pledged to pursue all measures to recover funds stolen in the recent hack involving the Lazarus Group. During a discussion on X Spaces on February 22, Zhou outlined the exchange’s strategy, which includes launching a bounty program, working with law enforcement, and consulting with the Ethereum Foundation to find a solution.

Looking into the Possibility of Restoring the Ethereum Blockchain
One of the notable proposals raised was the possibility of restoring the Ethereum blockchain to reverse the attacker’s transactions. Zhou emphasized that this decision cannot be made by just one individual or organization, but requires input from the community.

The situation is reminiscent of the 2016 DAO hack, when Ethereum decided to perform a hard fork to fix the damage, leading to the creation of Ethereum Classic. However, Ethereum core developer Tim Beiko warned that reverting Ethereum to its pre-February 21 state is not a simple solution. He said it is technically complex and could have serious consequences for the network.

Unlike the DAO hack, the transactions in the Bybit attack still followed protocol rules, and there is no way to reverse them without causing a major impact on the entire Ethereum network, according to Beiko.

Lazarus Group and $1.3 Billion in ETH
The Lazarus hacker group, which is believed to be linked to North Korea, currently holds around 489,395 ETH, worth around $1.3 billion, spread across 54 different wallets. According to blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain, the group has been continuously moving the stolen funds between wallets to conceal their origins and conduct on-chain money laundering.

Bybit and Partners' Response
To expedite the recovery of the stolen assets, Bybit has launched a 10% bounty program, offering up to $140 million to white hat hackers who can assist in tracing and recovering the stolen funds.

In addition, several organizations in the industry have also taken action. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino confirmed that he had frozen 181,000 USDT related to the attack, while Bitget CEO Gracy Chen announced that he would block transactions related to Lazarus Group's wallet.

Security Advice From Experts
Following the attack, many security experts have issued recommendations to help users protect their assets against similar risks. “Quit,” vice president of blockchain at Yuga Labs, recommends that users use multi-signature wallets, hardware wallets, and simulate transactions before executing them for added security.

The Bybit hack continues to pose major challenges for the cryptocurrency industry, especially in protecting assets and maintaining the stability of the blockchain ecosystem. Further developments in asset recovery efforts and decisions regarding Ethereum will be important to watch.