Blockchain intelligence firm Arkham has uncovered a startling revelation in the world of cryptocurrency: numerous crypto addresses containing millions of dollars are stuck or forgotten in two major bridge contracts. In a recent post on April 22, Arkham disclosed that accounts associated with prominent figures like Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, and various DeFi whales have significant funds trapped in these contracts.

Arkham's findings were substantiated by screenshots of fund transfers to and from the Arbitrum and Optimism bridges, shedding light on the magnitude of the issue. One striking case highlighted by Arkham involves a wallet receiving 50 Ether (ETH) from Buterin, with $1.05 million stuck in the Optimism bridge for the past seven months. Despite representing only a fraction of Buterin's cryptocurrency portfolio, this amount underscores the severity of the situation.

Another instance involves a wallet linked to Bofur Capital, potentially associated with a Celsius creditor, which has $1.8 million in wrapped-Bitcoin (WBTC) trapped in the Arbitrum bridge for the past 27 months. Similarly, a wallet owned by Thomasg.eth, the pseudonymous founder of decentralized air transportation solution Arrow, has $800,000 worth of Ether stuck in the Arbitrum bridge for nearly two years.

Additionally, Arkham reported that Coinbase attempted to bridge $75,000 in USD Coin (USDC) to Ethereum via the Optimism bridge six months ago, but the funds remain unclaimed on Ethereum's base layer.

While these funds remain inaccessible, it's plausible that wallet owners still retain control and have opted to temporarily park the funds there. However, the situation underscores the risks associated with cross-chain bridges, which play a vital role in modular blockchain networks like Ethereum. These bridges offload transaction responsibilities to layer 2 solutions while prioritizing data availability and security on the base layer. Nevertheless, they have become prime targets for hackers due to potentially vulnerable smart contracts or centralized validator sets.

Arkham's discovery comes amidst growing concerns about security breaches in the crypto space, exemplified by the $650 million Ronin bridge hack orchestrated by North Korea's state-backed Lazarus Group in March 2022.

In response to these challenges, Arkham launched the Arkham Intel Exchange, billed as the world's first on-chain "intelligence marketplace." The platform aims to address the demand for on-chain analysis by connecting buyers and sellers of blockchain-related intelligence through a bounty mechanism. This initiative provides an opportunity for talented on-chain researchers to monetize their skills while meeting the growing demand for comprehensive on-chain research in a scalable manner.