by Rubab Fatima
The Lazarus hackers directed funds acquired from the Bybit hack into Bitcoins which allowed North Korea to replace El Salvador and Bhutan as leading Bitcoin holders according to Arkham data as of March 17. New data proves North Korea is increasing its cryptocurrency market standing through continued hacking activities.
Arkham data shows Lazarus Group successfully changed its $1.5 billion Bybit hack Ether into 13,518 Bitcoin that represents $1.14 billion worth of Bitcoin. Besides their massive Bitcoin holdings the group stores 13,791 Ether and 5,022 Binance Coin (BNB) valued at $26.68 million and $3.16 million.
North Korea’s Bitcoin Reserves Surpass Bhutan, El Salvador
Cryptocurrency holdings in North Korea surpasses the resources of both Bhutan with 10,635 Bitcoin and El Salvador with 6,118 Bitcoin. North Korea continues trailing behind major nations including the USA, China, UK, and Ukraine since these 4 countries control much larger Bitcoin holdings totalling 198109 BTC, 190000 BTC, 61245 BTC, and 46351 BTC according to Bitcoin Treasuries statistics.
Through ongoing cyberattacks and major blockchain thefts North Korea has built substantial crypto assets over many years. In 2024 Lazarus hacked DMM Bitcoin Japan and stole $308 million while in 2022 the group drained $600 million from Ronin Network. Through repeated advanced digital operations North Korea has become a top criminal force in the world of digital money transactions.
North Korea’s Reconnaissance General Bureau uses The Lazarus Group to conduct cyber attacks that have become famous worldwide. Members of the Lazarus Group improve their money laundering techniques regularly to evade system security and law enforcement monitoring.
Data shows North Korea built up its Bitcoin holdings through the February 2025 theft at the Dubai-based Bybit exchange. One high security measure known as multi-signature shielded Bybit’s assets in their cold wallet from theft except for the Lazarus Group who took over 400,000 Ether.
Lazarus Group’s Advanced Tactics for Crypto Laundering
After the theft the group developed advanced methods to exchange Ether for Bitcoin. According to experts Lazarus Group directed its funds through THORChain but analysts note that this DeFi protocol lacks proper crime prevention measures. The platforms enabled Lazarus to cover the money’s source which made tracing the stolen funds much more challenging for law enforcement.
The Bybit loss has created problems for users and market stability throughout the entire crypto system. The Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) verifies that international hackers help develop North Korea’s nuclear missile arsenal through their online stealing methods.
State hackers working with North Korea use stolen crypto to finance weapons and money laundering that worry every nation with cybersecurity dangers. Chainalysis Crypto Crime in 2025 Report confirms that North Korea is rapidly expanding its cybercrime activities. During 2023 North Korea took $660.5 million from its digital theft while 2024 numbers jumped to $1.34 billion marking a 102.88% yearly rise.
States must work together to develop better cybersecurity systems and rules that can stop growing cyberattacks sponsored by nations. North Korean illegal cryptocurrency activities put pressure on worldwide security authorities to strengthen their monitoring systems.
Without worldwide cooperation Pyongyang’s uncontrolled cyber activities will keep harming both security and financial systems throughout the planet.
#blockchain #crypto, #decentralized, #distributed, #ledger
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