Hacker in Poly Network heist returns most of the stolen money, but there is catch

Drama is brewing in the US$613 million Poly Network heist which was discovered last week.

The thief who stole the digital currencies has returned all the funds except for US$33 million worth of stablecoin USDT. The funds will be returned, said the hacker, but there is a catch.

The money is kept in a digital account and the hacker has not given the password to allow Poly Network to access the cryptocurrencies.

When the heist was uncovered, Poly Network offered to pay the hacker US$500,000 to return the money. Initially, the hacker refused but appears to have a re-think.

In the past few days, Poly Network and other parties have been negotiating with the attacker to return the money. It has not been determined if there is only one hacker or hackers — or the gender — involved in the heist.

Negotiations are ongoing. The hacker will not be able to withdraw the crypto. Any crypto movement on the blockchain can be traced. So better take the US$500,000 than walk away empty handed.

In earlier communications, the hacker said there was no interest in keeping the money, that it was all about highlighting the security vulnerabilities.

Is this a white or black hacker? Is it a woman or man? And is she/he acting alone or in a group?

The Poly Heist would be a saga Netflix would be proud to commission as a TV programme.