Cryptocurrency firm Bybit said hackers stole $1.5bn (£1.1bn) worth of digital currency in what could be the biggest crypto theft in history.

The Dubai-based company’s founder told users that their funds were “safe” and that it would refund any of those affected.

It said hackers stole from its Ethereum coin digital wallet. Ethereum is the second largest cryptocurrency by value after Bitcoin.

Bybit’s founder Ben Zhou said the money could be covered by the firm or by a loan from partners. Bybit holds $20bn (£15bn) in assets.

Bybit said the hackers exploited security features, then transferred the money to an unidentified address.

After the theft, the value of Ethereum fell by around 4% on Friday, leaving it worth $2,641.41 (£2,090) per coin.

The scale of the theft would exceed a previous record, which was a $620m (£490m) heist of Ethereum and USD Coin from the Ronin Network in 2022.

Bybit was founded in 2018. US President Donald Trump and former Paypal chief Peter Thiel were reportedly among its early investors.

Bybit says it has more than 60 million users worldwide and offers access to various cryptocurrencies.

“Bybit is solvent even if this hack loss is not recovered, all of clients assets are 1 to 1 backed, we can cover the loss,” Mr Zhou added.

The company said in a post on X that it had reported the case to authorities and that it was working “quickly and extensively” to identify the hackers.

Cryptocurrencies, which have become popular with investors, have sparked division as many criticise their value for being based purely on speculation, allowing their value to be easily manipulated.

Most recently, Donald Trump has been criticised for launching his own digital coin while saying he “doesn’t know much” about the cryptocurrency.

The digital coin called TRUMP appeared on his social media accounts ahead of his inauguration and quickly became one of the most valuable crypto coins, but has since fallen significantly in value.

It highlights security concerns within the digital currency market, which was hoping for renewed trust after Mr Trump launched his coin. His adviser and and multi-billionaire owner of Tesla, Elon Musk, has also in the past talked up Bitcoin.

In 2014, crypto exchange Mt Gox filed for bankruptcy after $350m (£210m) worth of digital currency had been stolen due to a loophole in its security.

In 2019, hackers stole stolen $41m worth of Bitcoin from the Binance exchange in another major crypto-currency heist.