#crypto · 8sync News

Poland busts SIM-swapping gang tied to millions in crypto theft

Polish authorities arrested four members of a cybercrime gang responsible for SIM-swapping attacks that resulted in millions of dollars in cryptocurrency theft. The Polish Cybercrime Bureau (CBZC), with FBI and HSI support, found the suspects used specialized software and social engineering to breach telecom partner infrastructure and hijack employee email accounts. This gave them the data needed to clone victims' phone numbers, intercept communications, and take over cryptocurrency exchange accounts. Stolen funds exceeding $5 million were laundered through multiple bank accounts and digital wallets across countries. The four arrested face charges including organized crime participation, IT system hacking, and money laundering, with a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison. Blockchain investigator ZachXBT identified one suspect as Wojtek Kulisz, aka 'Merry.'

Polymarket confirms hackers stole $3M from users after third-party vendor was compromised

Polymarket confirmed hackers stole approximately $3 million in cryptocurrency from over 11 users after a third-party vendor was compromised, injecting malicious code into the prediction market's frontend. The stolen funds were bridged from Polygon to Ethereum and converted into roughly 1,893 ETH. Polymarket says it has contained the incident and is refunding affected users in full. The attack was a supply chain compromise — no core smart contracts were exploited. The breach is the latest in a string of bad news for Polymarket, which also faced a separate $520K smart contract drain in May, a Wall Street Journal investigation into deceptive promotional videos, a Google engineer insider trading charge, regulatory blocks in multiple countries, and a $345 million governance dispute.

Polymarket says hackers stole users' funds

Prediction market platform Polymarket confirmed that hackers stole cryptocurrency funds from users after a third-party vendor was compromised, allowing malicious code to be injected into its website. Blockchain monitoring firm PeckShield reported approximately $3 million in stolen crypto across more than 11 victims. Polymarket says it has contained the incident and is refunding affected users in full. The breach follows a separate controversy this week in which Polymarket was found to have paid creators to post deceptive videos about fake bets.

Best Mass Payout Platform 2026

A comparison of five mass payout platforms for 2026: NOWPayments, Wise, Stripe Connect, PayPal Payouts, and BitPay Send. The piece evaluates each on supported payout options, transaction fees, and business-focused features. NOWPayments is ranked first for its 0% service fees on crypto batch transfers, support for 30+ stablecoins, and sub-second email payouts via ChangeNOW Pro. Wise leads for fiat cross-border transfers with mid-market FX rates. Stripe Connect excels for marketplace compliance and developer tooling. PayPal Payouts suits businesses with existing PayPal user bases. BitPay Send targets enterprises wanting blockchain delivery funded in fiat.

CryptoProcessing’s MLRO on why banking access is still crypto’s biggest challenge

Jelizaveta Paskovskaja, MLRO at CryptoProcessing by Coinspaid, explains why crypto firms still struggle to access banking services despite increased regulation. The core issue is that regulation creates a framework but not automatic trust — banks often prefer blanket refusals over the work of properly assessing individual crypto firms. She outlines what actually convinces banks: real governance, transparent ownership structures, documented onboarding, and compliance teams with genuine authority. She also challenges common misconceptions, such as crypto being untraceable or all crypto businesses carrying the same risk profile. The piece argues that the future dividing line for crypto firms will be credibility — demonstrated through proactive AML controls, ongoing monitoring, sanctions screening, and operational maturity rather than marketing claims.