Full story
Coldcard hack and ETF pull
A Coldcard hardware wallet exploit has become a focal point for Wall Street analysts, who said it could lift demand for regulated bitcoin exposure and support crypto-related stocks tied to institutional adoption.
“the breach could push Coldcard users toward managed custody providers”
CoinDesk reported that Cantor Fitzgerald said the breach could push Coldcard users toward managed custody providers, potentially benefiting Robinhood Markets (HOOD), Coinbase Global (COIN), BitGo Holdings (BTGO), Bullish (BLSH), eToro Group (ETOR) and Gemini Space Station (GEMI).
CoinDesk also said the exploit has resulted in at least 1,816 bitcoin, worth about $114 million, being drained from more than 5,200 addresses since July 30.
In a separate framing, TradingView said US-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded $211.5 million in net inflows on Tuesday and added to Monday’s $170 million, as the ongoing Coldcard hack drew attention from analysts.
Custody debate and analyst quotes
Cantor’s view was echoed through a specific “second-order” expectation in CoinDesk’s account, where Nico Pasquariello wrote in a Wednesday client note that “we would expect that token flows to custodians and exchanges will increase following the hack.”
FRNT Financial, also cited by CoinDesk, argued that the incident exposed a key trade-off in self-custody while noting that “the reaction within the BTC community to the exploit was one of heartbreak.”
TradingView added that Eric Balchunas, senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, said the Coldcard hack could encourage greater migration toward Bitcoin ETFs as investors reconsider the role of institutional custody.
TradingView quoted Balchunas describing a shift in perception, writing that what was once considered a “bug” by some crypto users may “all the sudden seem like a feature” as investors compare institutional custodians with smaller crypto companies.
Security losses and market ripples
Benzinga tied the Coldcard incident to cybersecurity-focused investing, saying the theft of an estimated $130 million in Bitcoin from Coldcard hardware wallet users is putting cybersecurity back in the spotlight.
“The theft of an estimated $130 million in Bitcoin from Coldcard hardware wallet users”
Benzinga also said security researchers reported attackers took advantage of a flaw in the wallet’s seed phrase generation process, allowing them to predict recovery phrases rather than break encryption or physically access devices.
CryptoSlate reported Galaxy confirmed 1,596 BTC stolen from about 7,300 addresses across three major attack waves, and said a possible fourth wave could increase the total to 2,055 BTC, worth about $130 million.
CryptoSlate further described how the crisis pushed Bitcoin activity higher, with Santiment showing 712,000 active Bitcoin addresses over the past seven days, the highest in three months, and transactions worth more than $100,000 reaching 61,800 during the same period.
