Coldcard Bitcoin Hacks Slow, $150M Losses Loom
Coldcard Bitcoin Thefts Slow, But Losses Could Top $150 Million: Galaxy
Bitcoin thefts linked to Coldcard hardware wallets have slowed, but total losses could ultimately exceed $150 million, according to analysis from Galaxy.
The note frames the incident as a significant security event for self-custody users, even as the pace of new thefts appears to be declining. Galaxy’s estimate focuses on the potential scale of funds that may have been taken, underscoring that the impact may be much larger than early tallies suggested.
Hardware wallets like Coldcard are widely used by long-term holders and institutions because they are designed to keep private keys offline. When thefts tied to a hardware wallet brand surface, the implications extend beyond the immediate victims: confidence in self-custody practices, supply chain security, and user operational security can all come under renewed scrutiny.
Galaxy’s assessment highlights how difficult it can be to quantify losses in crypto incidents. Funds can move quickly across addresses, and attribution often depends on patterns in on-chain activity and external signals. Even when new thefts slow, the full accounting can take time as analysts map related transactions and victims identify compromised holdings.
The episode adds to a broader pattern in crypto security where attackers increasingly target the weakest link around self-custody—such as setup processes, backups, or user handling—rather than attempting to break the underlying cryptography. For the industry, incidents of this scale tend to prompt fresh debate about best practices and the tradeoffs between controlling assets directly and delegating custody to third parties.
