Thailand SEC files criminal complaint against Bitkub over undisclosed $47 million hack

Thailand's SEC has filed a criminal complaint against crypto exchange Bitkub and two former directors over an undisclosed $47 million hack from May 2021. The regulator alleges the company submitted false daily capital filings for months to hide the theft. A former director has taken responsibility, stating the hack was concealed to prevent a bank run. Bitkub claims customer funds are safe, as its co-founders covered the loss with their own money.

2021 Bitkub hack

• ▪In a May 2021 cyberattack, 16 types of digital assets worth 1.7 billion baht ($47 million) were stolen from the crypto exchange Bitkub.
• ▪The theft was not disclosed at the time to avoid a "bank run" of panic withdrawals.

SEC criminal complaint

• ▪The complaint was lodged with Thailand's Economic Crime Suppression Division and will be reviewed by police and prosecutors.
• ▪Former director Sakolkorn Sakavee apologized, resigned from Bitkub's boards, and pledged to cooperate with regulators.
• ▪Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a criminal complaint against crypto exchange Bitkub and two of its former directors.

False regulatory filings

• ▪Sakolkorn Sakavee took sole responsibility, stating he altered the filings himself without informing other directors or staff.
• ▪The alleged false reports were a breach of Thailand's Digital Asset Business Decree.
• ▪Former directors Sakolkorn Sakavee and Thaweesap Rawan are accused of making false entries to mislead the regulator.
• ▪The SEC alleges Bitkub's daily net-capital filings from May to October 2021 falsely hid the loss of assets.

Customer fund protection

• ▪Bitkub added that the SEC had confirmed its holdings were intact as of September 2025.
• ▪Bitkub stated that all customer funds are safe.
• ▪Bitkub's co-founders used their own money to buy replacement assets to cover the $47 million theft.

Bitkub market position

• ▪According to CoinMarketCap, Binance TH ranks 31st among global exchanges, while Bitkub ranks 68th.
• ▪Bitkub, once Thailand's dominant crypto exchange, has been overtaken by Binance's local arm, Binance TH.

IPO plans

• ▪Bitkub shelved a planned IPO on the Stock Exchange of Thailand in November 2025 and was considering a $200 million offering in Hong Kong.
• ▪The criminal complaint comes as Bitkub is working towards a public listing.

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