NEAR Intents Reports Freezing $503,000 Linked to Bitget Hack

WHY IT MATTERS

When a cryptocurrency exchange gets hacked, the stolen funds often get moved through various platforms and networks as the thieves try to hide the money trail — similar to how a bank robber might move cash through multiple accounts to make it harder to trace. In this case, NEAR Intents, which acts like a bridge or routing system that helps move crypto between different blockchains, says it spotted some of the stolen money passing through its system and was able to freeze it. This is notable because it shows that some parts of the crypto infrastructure can step in to stop stolen funds from being moved further, though it also means those systems have a degree of centralized control — something that goes against the fully decentralized ideal that many crypto projects aim for.