The government of North Korea is being accused of laundering $147.5 million U.S. worth of stolen cryptocurrencies during the month of March, according to a report by the United Nations.
The report, which has been presented to the U.N. Security Council sanctions committee, further claims that North Korean cyberattacks on cryptocurrency companies between 2017 and 2024 led to $3.6 billion U.S. worth of digital assets being stolen.
Late in 2023, $147.5 million U.S. was stolen from the HTX crypto exchange. Those stolen proceeds were laundered within North Korea in March of this year, states the U.N. report.
North Korea's government has long been accused of carrying out cyberattacks and online thefts, often targeting cryptocurrencies that are harder to track and recover than cash.
However, North Korea has always denied any involvement in crypto thefts and cyberattacks.
North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006 and those measures have been strengthened over the years in a bid to cut funding for its nuclear weapons program.
The new revelations related to the laundering of stolen cryptocurrencies could lead to additional economic sanctions being imposed on North Korea by the U.N., according to media reports.
North Korea has also been accused of using the proceeds from stolen cryptocurrencies to develop conventional weapons, some of which have been sold to Russia for use in Ukraine.
The North Korean delegation to the U.N. has denied any wrongdoing.
