BitGrail
HackedExchange · born 2017 · ✝ 2018
An Italian exchange lost ~17M NANO and blamed everyone but itself.
BitGrail was a small Italian exchange that became the main market for NANO (formerly RaiBlocks). In 2018 it reported ~17 million NANO (~$170M) missing; an Italian court later found founder Francesco 'The Bomber' Firano liable for most of the loss.
- Peak
- ~$170M missing (NANO)
- Cause
- Hacked
- Year of death
- 2018
☠️ Cause of death
Poor accounting and a withdrawal flaw let balances drain undetected; investigators concluded Firano knew of shortfalls and kept operating. Courts ordered restitution and bankruptcy proceedings followed.
📓 Lessons left behind
- —Small exchanges concentrating one token's liquidity are fragile.
- —Operators who delay disclosure deepen the hole.
- —'It was a hack' doesn't absolve negligent custody.
🌱 The idea that survived
Independent reserve audits
The case pushed even small venues toward third-party reserve verification rather than founder say-so.
#exchange#nano#italy#negligence