New Report Evidences North Korea Stealing Billions

This year it has been reported that North Korea’s cryptocurrency hacking operations shattered previous records. With new research showing the regime stole more than USD 2 billion in digital assets bringing its total crypto theft haul in recent years to around USD 6.7 billion.

According to a report published by blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) broke its own record for cryptocurrency theft, surpassing the USD 1.3 billion tally it hacked in 2024.

These staggering figures come amid a global surge in crypto theft, but North Korea’s operations are the main antagonist with large scale, sophisticated and state directed. Experts warn that the proceeds from these illicit activities are likely funding the regime’s nuclear weapons and missile programs, helping Pyongyang evade international sanctions.

2025: The Year Of The Crypto Crime

Crypto theft reached an all time high in 2025 with Chainalysis reporting that North Korean linked hackers stole USD 2.02 billion worth of cryptocurrency this year alone making it almost a 60 % increase than in 2024. This number is part of a broader USD 3.4 billion total of stolen crypto worldwide tracked by the firm.

A major driver of this spike was the February 2025 breach of Dubai based exchange Bybit, where hackers allegedly linked to North Korea siphoned off approximately USD 1.5 billion in Ethereum and other assets. The U.S. Secret Service and FBI publicly linked the attack to North Korean government hackers, stating that it is the largest single crypto heist ever recorded.

It is also estimated that North Korean thieves have stolen over USD 2 billion in crypto during the first nine months of 2025 and that the cumulative known total of DPRK linked crypto thefts now tops USD 6 billion.

Part of the regime’s strategy also involves recruiting North Koreans to pose as remote technical workers in foreign companies, gaining legitimate access that can be leveraged by hackers back home. U.S. Treasury sanctions in 2025 targeted entities and individuals involved in such schemes after it was revealed that these covert IT roles funnelled stolen intellectual property, credentials, and access to hacker networks.

Global Government Responses

We previously reported on how Australia was joining the United States in tackling this problem We are now seeing centralized exchanges (CEX0, blockchain analytics firms, and international law enforcement agencies increasingly focused on countering these threats. Chainalysis, Elliptic, TRM Labs and other companies now routinely trace stolen funds and assist regulators and platforms in flagging suspect addresses.

But much more remains to be done. Digital assets are inherently harder to police than traditional money, mainly because transactions aren’t reversible and criminals can move funds across borders in seconds. Decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms and privacy focused services make it easier to obscure the stolen funds.

Government agencies in the U.S., Europe and Asia have called for tighter security standards for exchanges, mandatory audits and greater cooperation on sanctions enforcement. Some proposals include increased intelligence sharing between national cybersecurity centres and financial regulators, as well as stricter controls on crypto mixers and shielded transactions.

It is starting to look like the world is taking these financial crimes seriously especially given the risk they pose to global stability with North Korea utilising the wild west of finance to bypass sanctions and continue to develop it's weapons of mass destruction.

This threat alone brings broader instability should it be left unchallenged.

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