New data collated on Dune Analytics from 21.co, the parent company of 21Shares, has shown that the notorious North Korean hacking collective Lazarus Group holds a total of $47 million worth of cryptocurrencies.
A significant portion of this holding is in Bitcoin (BTC) while the others are in Ether (ETH), Binance Coin (BNB), and stablecoins including Binance USD (BUSD).
According to the breakdown provided, the loot includes $42.5 million worth of BTC, $1.9 million in Ether, $1.1 million in BNB, and an additional $640,000 in stablecoins.
Stake Lose $41M to Lazarus Group
Crypto gambling site Stake was attacked a few weeks ago and upon investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) concluded that Lazarus Group was the culprit.
The hack led to the loss of $41 million worth of cryptocurrency from Stake’s hot wallets. Considering the value of digital assets siphoned from the gambling site, Lazarus Group’s holding was calculated to have reached $86 million.
Hence, the value quoted by Dune Analytics shows that the amount of crypto held by the hackers have dropped significantly.
North Korea Hackers Hijacks $1.2B
By the end of last year, it was discovered that over the last five years, North Korean hackers have stolen cryptocurrencies worth more than $1.2 billion per a statement from National Intelligence Service (NIS), South Korea’s top intelligence agency. In 2022 alone, the hackers siphoned $626 million from the digital asset ecosystem including an attack on Axie Infinity Ronin bridge.
The United Nations (UN) highlighted that North Korea stole more crypto assets in 2022 than in any other year. Markedly, the hackers’ targets were usually foreign aerospace companies and defense organizations who they usually employ advanced technologies and techniques to carry out their illicit activities.
Lazarus Group Attempts to Move Stolen Funds
Most times, these hackers obfuscate the source of their loot by plunging them into crypto mixers like Tornado Cash. At other times, they leave the funds to rest for sometime before attempting to move them. Last month, the FBI warned the public that hackers from North Korea are on the brink of liquidating some of their stolen crypto assets.
The imminent movement was discovered by the FBI as the agency has been keeping track of the funds stolen by the Lazarus Group.
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