Coinkite Sued Over $140M Bitcoin Theft Linked to Coldcard Wallet Flaw
A class action lawsuit alleges a firmware flaw in Coldcard hardware wallets led to the theft of $140 million in Bitcoin.
A class action lawsuit alleges a firmware flaw in Coldcard hardware wallets led to the theft of $140 million in Bitcoin. Bitcoin (BTC) is trading at $81,297.00, up 0.3% since this brief published. This is an original TLT brief synthesising 2 outlets (Bitcoin.com, Crypto Economy), with their figures cross-checked, plus live market data, as of Thu, 22 Oct 2026 19:00:06 UTC.
The lawsuit highlights critical security vulnerabilities in widely-used hardware wallets, raising concerns about consumer trust and the potential financial impact on both users and the manufacturer. If proven true, it could set a precedent for accountability in the crypto hardware industry.
- Coldcard wallets allegedly generated predictable recovery phrases for over five years.
- Attackers exploited the flaw to steal $140 million in Bitcoin, according to multiple outlets.
- Coinkite released a fix in July 2026, but customers claim the company knew of the issue since 2025.
- Bitcoin price down 4.25% in 24 hours amid broader market decline.
Bitcoin.com, Crypto Economy, and Cryptopolitan all report that Coinkite is facing a class action lawsuit over a firmware flaw in its Coldcard wallets that allegedly led to the theft of $140 million in Bitcoin. The outlets agree that the vulnerability caused the devices to generate predictable recovery phrases for more than five years. However, Cryptopolitan specifically claims that Coinkite's co-founders were aware of the issue as early as May 2025, while the other outlets do not specify when the company knew about the problem. The reported $140 million loss is consistent across Bitcoin.com and Crypto Economy.
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Coinkite, the manufacturer of Coldcard hardware wallets, after a security flaw was exploited to steal approximately $140 million in
Bitcoin. The lawsuit alleges that a firmware error, which was present for over five years, caused the devices to generate predictable recovery phrases, leaving users vulnerable to theft.
According to Crypto Economy, the vulnerability was introduced in 2021 and affected a significant number of Coldcard devices. The company reportedly released a fix in July 2026, but the damage had already been done. Cryptopolitan adds that the lawsuit claims Coinkite's co-founders were aware of the issue as early as May 2025 but failed to address it promptly.
The allegations are supported by the fact that multiple outlets, including Bitcoin.com and Crypto Economy, confirm the $140 million loss figure. This incident raises serious questions about the security practices of hardware wallet manufacturers and the potential consequences for consumers.
The Coldcard vulnerability is particularly concerning given the widespread use of hardware wallets in the crypto community. These devices are typically considered one of the most secure ways to store cryptocurrencies, and any flaw in their design could have far-reaching implications for user trust and the overall security of the ecosystem.
In the broader market context, Bitcoin's price has dropped by 4.25% in the past 24 hours, contributing to a decline in the total crypto market cap, which now stands at $2.78 trillion. The Fear & Greed Index remains in 'Greed' territory at 68, indicating that investors are still relatively optimistic despite the recent downturn.
Since this brief published about 5 hours ago, Bitcoin (BTC) has moved from $81,051.00 to $81,297.00 — +0.30%.
The chart plots BTC's price: grey is the move before this brief published, the vertical dashed line marks the moment it published, the horizontal dashed line is the price then, and the coloured area is the move since — from TLT's market data (daily resolution). It shows what happened after the news, not that the news caused it; many factors move prices. Not financial advice.
Will Bitcoin dip to $50,000 by December 31, 2026?
Crowd-implied probability on Polymarket, $258.71K 24h volume, resolves Jan 1 — snapshotted when this brief published (Oct 22 18:05 UTC). A market price reflects what traders collectively expect; it is not a forecast by TLT and will have moved since. View the market ↗
At today's peer-to-peer rate, 1 BTC ≈ ₦111.18M (about $81,297.00), down 3.7% over 24 hours. The naira itself trades about 2.5% above the official rate on the P2P market, so a Nigerian buyer's effective cost differs from the headline dollar price.
Live market data
Current prices for the asset in this story — live, source-stamped, updated every 15 minutes.
1 key figure independently matched across 2 outlets reporting this story.
TLT extracts the figures each outlet reports and flags the ones that agree. Numbers cited by only one outlet are attributed in the brief, not shown as corroborated.
Figures and sectors in this story, checked live against on-chain aggregators · October 22, 2026.
TLT reads these figures directly from on-chain aggregators (DeFiLlama, mempool.space) at build time — independent of what any outlet reported. Sector totals aggregate every protocol DeFiLlama tracks in that category. Values are live and will change.
Coinkite Sued Over $140M Bitcoin Theft Linked to Coldcard Wa — questions & answers
What is the specific security flaw in Coldcard wallets?
The flaw caused devices to generate predictable recovery phrases, making them vulnerable to theft.
How much Bitcoin was allegedly stolen due to the flaw?
Approximately $140 million in Bitcoin was stolen, according to multiple outlets.
When did Coinkite release a fix for the vulnerability?
Coinkite released a fix in July 2026, according to Crypto Economy.
How much is 1 Bitcoin worth in naira today?
About ₦111.18M at the live peer-to-peer (P2P) USDT rate, which is what Nigerians typically trade at — equivalent to roughly $81,297.00. The naira price moves with both BTC's US-dollar price and the USDT/NGN rate; use our Bitcoin in naira page for any amount.
Has Bitcoin's price moved since this brief was published?
BTC is up 0.30% since this brief first published — trading at $81,297.00 now versus $81,051.00 at publication. TLT re-checks this figure against CoinGecko and Binance every 15 minutes.
Which outlets reported this story?
This is an original TLT brief that synthesises reporting from Bitcoin.com, Crypto Economy, with the key figures cross-checked for agreement across them. It is not a copy of any one article — follow the source links above for the original reporting.
Original summary — not financial advice. This is an original TLT brief that summarises a development reported elsewhere and adds live market data for context; it is not the original article and reproduces no part of it. Follow the source link above for full details. Crypto is volatile and high-risk — always do your own research.