US Charges Jonathan Spalletta Over Alleged Uranium Finance Hacks
Summary
Jonathan Spalletta was charged over alleged 2021 exploits of Uranium Finance’s smart contracts, including a $53.3 million withdrawal across 26 pools. The indictment alleges laundering and extortion; authorities previously seized about $31 million.
Key points
- The indictment alleges Spalletta exploited Uranium Finance’s reward distribution system on April 8, 2021, withdrawing about $1.4 million.
- The indictment says he later extorted Uranium to keep about $386,000 as a purported bug bounty and returned roughly $1 million.
- A second alleged smart contract exploit on April 28 withdrew about $53.3 million across 26 liquidity pools, draining the exchange and causing it to shut down.
- The indictment alleges Spalletta laundered funds through cryptocurrency transactions, including Tornado Cash, and used money to buy collectibles.
- US law enforcement announced the seizure of about $31 million in cryptocurrency from Spalletta; the funds had been held in dormant wallets before moving again in 2024.
- Spalletta surrendered and was charged with computer fraud and money laundering; the allegations have not been established at trial.
Article Details
- Event Type
- US criminal charges against an individual accused of hacking a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange and laundering the proceeds
- Impact
- The indictment alleges that Jonathan Spalletta exploited Uranium Finance smart contract vulnerabilities twice in 2021, stealing approximately $54.7 million in cryptocurrency in total. The April 28 theft reportedly drained the exchange and caused it to shut down. US law enforcement later announced the seizure of approximately $31 million in cryptocurrency. Spalletta surrendered and was charged with computer fraud and money laundering; the article reports that, if convicted, he could face up to 10 years for fraud and 20 years for money laundering.
MITRE ATT&CK
Threat Actors
Products
Industries
CryptocurrencyA US national was charged with hacking the decentralized cryptocurrency exchange Uranium Finance and causing it to shut down.Decentralized financeat Uranium twice in 2021 to drain large amounts of cryptocurrency in one of the largest decentralized finance (DeFi) cyber incidents at the time.