US Government, Chainalysis Recover $30M From the $600M Axie Infinity Hack
The US Government, assisted by Chainalysis, successfully recovered $30 million of digital assets stolen during March’s Axie Infinity hack, valued at $600 million.
DeFi protocol hackers have received the proverbial warning shot from the US Government, which has recovered $30 million worth of digital assets from March’s Axie Infinity hack.
In a recent blog post, the team at Chainalysis announced the recovery of the $30 million in crypto. They also explained that they assisted law enforcement in getting the funds back from the North Korean hacker group known as Lazarus.
Chainalysis’ Erin Plante added:
With the help of law enforcement and leading organisations in the cryptocurrency industry, more than $30 million worth of cryptocurrency stolen by North Korean-linked hackers has been seized. This marks the first time ever that cryptocurrency stolen by a North Korean hacking group has been seized, and we’re confident it won’t be the last.
A Recap of March’s Axie Infinity Hack
According to the Chainlysis team, the $30 million seizure represents approximately 10% of the stolen funds from Axie Infinity, factoring in Ethereum’s price decline since the hack happened.
The hack, which happened in late March 2022, resulted in the loss of 173,600 Ethereum and 25.5 million USD Coin, estimated to be worth $600 million using an ETH rate at the time of $3,400. The Lazarus group managed to take control of five out of nine validator nodes belonging to the Ronin Bridge, thus kickstarting the exploit and loss of funds.
The Recovery of $30M From the Axie Infinity Hack, Proves Crypto is the Worst Tool for Criminals.
The recovery of the crypto from the Axie Infinity hack is a significant win for the crypto industry that has been accused on numerous occasions by politicians of aiding criminals, money launderers, and possibly terrorist organisations.
The seizure proves what the team at Binance and CZ have repeatedly pointed out: that crypto is an awful vehicle for laundering money. Crypto transactions on the blockchain are publicly available and immutable. Therefore, anyone wishing to commit a crime leaves an unmistakable trail of breadcrumbs that ultimately leads to information regarding their location or identity.
In addition, funds on exchanges and other crypto platforms can be frozen at the request of law enforcement, leaving criminals with little options for cashing out their loot.
~ By John P. Njui ~
