North Korea Owns 13,562 Bitcoins Worth $1.14 Billion

The increase in holdings comes after a Feb. 21 cyberattack on Dubai-based trading platform Bybit.

The cryptocurrency empire of the North Korean regime is now reportedly valued at 13,562 bitcoin, a sum that translates to an estimated US$1.14 billion, as per Bitcoin.com. This staggering figure is based on data from crypto-security firm Arkham Intelligence.

Only the U.S., with 198,109 bitcoin, and the U.K., with 61,245 bitcoin, hold more than the North Korean regime, according to the report.

The increase in North Korea’s bitcoin holdings follows a Feb. 21 cyberattack on Dubai-based trading platform Bybit by the Lazarus Group, a hacking collective said to be working for the North Korean government.

The heist, which the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation said was the largest cryptocurrency theft ever recorded, resulted in the theft of digital assets valued at US$1.5 billion.

While most of the stolen funds were in Ethereum, a significant amount was later converted into bitcoin.

In response to the theft, Bybit launched "LazarusBounty," a US$140 million program offering a 10% reward for recovered assets, Fintech Weekly reported.

As of March 10, only US$40 million of the stolen funds had been recovered, according to the BBC.

The Lazarus Group has been linked to multiple major crypto thefts, including US$1.34 billion worth of assets stolen in 2023, which accounts for 61% of all crypto stolen this year, according to Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange.