Rich by Coin

A new Chainalysis report reveals that North Korean hackers stole about $20.2 billion in virtual assets this year, up 51% from the previous year, representing a record in violent crypto crime. Globally, crypto theft and misappropriation totalled roughly $3.4 billion this year, with North Korea responsible for about 76% of the incidents, according to the data. Chainalysis estimated the cumulative losses attributed to North Korean hackers at least $6.75 billion, underscoring the scale and sophistication of their operations. Analysts note that infiltrating IT staff at crypto exchanges, custodians, and Web3 firms has become a central tactic to gain initial access and enable subsequent large-scale theft.

Despite a decrease in attack frequency this year, the monetary impact has reached an all-time high. The report highlights that North Korean actors tend to target large-scale services to maximize damage, employing covert money-laundering methods—such as cross-chain bridges and Chinese-language services—to obscure transactions. Laundering typically spans about 45 days, reflecting the attackers’ preference for rapid turnover. Overall, the findings suggest that North Korea’s crypto-threat operations operate under distinctive constraints and objectives compared with other cybercriminal groups, leveraging regional networks to facilitate illicit activity across the Asia-Pacific region.