Last month, the swindling of more than 200 billion ISK resulted in an actual run on a virtual bank in EVE Online. The best part? The loot was sold IRL - just $5,000.
No, griefers from Something Awful are not claiming responsibility. Not that any of them would have the patience to play nice long enough to become a controller for EBank. User Ricdic was, and then he took the dough and sold it off, he says in order to place a down payment on a house and pay medical bills.
The heist dwarfs the earlier 100 billion ISK embezzled by an in-game investments manager. But 250 billion ISK was just 8 percent of the bank's 2.8 trillion held in deposits. Still a tidy sum, but hardly the whole kitty. That didn't stop EVE Ebankers from rushing the teller windows once word passed of Ricdic's dirty deeds.
He has since been kicked out of EVE, as selling in-game currency for real-world value is a no-no according to the TOS. Had he kept the ISK in-game, he would not have been sanctioned - by CCP anyway. In-game depositors may have had something to say and/or do about it.
Billions Stolen in Online Robbery [BBC]