US authorities to return 94,643 BTC stolen from Bitfinex

US prosecutors have asked a court for permission to return to Bitfinex almost 80% of the 119,754 BTC stolen in the 2016 hack, according to a request.

If approved, authorities will transfer 94,643 BTC to the platform, seized from hacker Ilya Lichtenstein’s wallet, in kind. The move also covers corresponding amounts in Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Satoshi Vision and Bitcoin Gold created by hard forks.

In November 2024, a US court sentenced Lichtenstein to five years in prison for laundering funds stolen from the exchange. His wife, Heather Morgan, received 18 months in prison for assisting in the criminal operations. Both pleaded guilty and agreed to return the stolen assets.

As for the remaining ~25,000 BTC, prosecutors said their seizure will require an «additional forfeiture procedure».

Those funds were laundered by the convicted using various means, including unregulated exchanges, darknet markets, mixers and other services and actions. As a result, the assets cannot be characterised as the “specific property” Bitfinex lost in the hack.

In October 2024, authorities recognised the exchange as the sole victim in the incident.

In December, Lichtenstein published a video message from prison in which he said he planned and carried out the Bitfinex hack alone.