The North Korean hacker group Lazarus has successfully laundered the entire 499,000 ETH stolen from Bybit, one of the largest crypto exchanges.
This comes weeks after the major attack on the crypto exchange, which resulted in losses worth $1.4 billion. Despite Bybit’s effort to recover the stolen assets, the hackers managed to move the funds through various channels, avoiding detection.
Bybit’s $1.4 Billion Hack
Bybit suffered a significant security breach in February, losing approximately 499,000 ETH, valued at around $1.5 billion at the time. The attack was one of the largest crypto exchange hacks in recent years, and the infamous Lazarus group reportedly executed it. The hackers used advanced techniques to drain funds before quickly transferring them across different wallets.
Following the attack, Bybit took immediate action to strengthen its security systems and launched investigations with a blockchain analytics firm. Yet, the hackers continued laundering the stolen funds, using crypto mixers to hide the transactions.
They transferred the funds in small amounts across multiple wallets before using services like ThorChain, a cross-chain protocol that allows users to swap assets across blockchains directly. Around 361,255 ETH, worth $757 million, was transferred through ThorChain and converted to Bitcoin (BTC), according to Bybit’s CEO Ben Zhou.
Bybit’s Response and Recovery Efforts
In response to the attack, Bybit took several steps to recover financially and secure users’ assets. The exchange secured a loan to maintain liquidity and ensure users could still access their funds.
Additionally, Bybit is working with law enforcement agencies to track stolen crypto, although this has yet to yield significant recoveries. To prevent further breaches, security measures may also be enhanced, alongside implementing stricter withdrawal measures.
ETH Price Reacts
The crypto market reacted negatively to the news that the Lazarus group successfully laundered all stolen ETH. The price of ETH dropped from $2,336 to $2,091 as investors fear the impact of moving such a large volume of stolen funds and are concerned about security in the crypto space. As of the time of writing, ETH trades at $2,089, representing 11.53% over the past 24 hours.
