Cryptocurrencies and imposture. What if behind the anonymous developer that you recruited on a freelance platform hid … An agent at the service of Pyongyang? It is the scenario worthy of a geopolitical thriller that has just confirmed by the United States Department of Justice (DoJ), by attacking a vast North Korean Cryptos laundering network, the last taken of which rises to $ 7.74 million. Details.
- The United States Department of Justice has confirmed the existence of a North Korean cryptocurrency money laundering network involving infiltrated developers.
- A civil entry complaint revealed digital assets of $ 7.74 million, hidden by North Korean IT workers using sophisticated money laundering techniques.
When the dictatorship puts on stablecoins
This June 5, 2025, the Doj has laid a civil entry complaint aimed at a real loot : Stablecoins (USDC, USDT), Bitcoin, NFT and Ethereum domain names, all hidden in autonomous wallets and Binance accounts.
These assets would come fromfictitious jobs Obtained by North Korean workers scattered around the globe, infiltrated in blockchain companies thanks to false papers.
Paid in cryptos, these developers of the Kim Jong-un regime do not only code smart contracts: they weave the financial canvas of a state under sanctions, using techniques worthy of a professional whitening manual-« Chain Hopping », « Token Swapping », purchase of NFT, fictitious accounts, and even exploitation of stolen identities of American citizens.
“The ministry files a complaint for civil confiscation against more than $ 7.74 million laundered on behalf of the North Korean government. »»
A millimeter operation… and strategic
This legal action follows a FBI Investigation Series and is part of the initiative DPRK Revgenlaunched in 2024 to defuse the illicit financing channels of North Korea.
The name to remember? Sim Hyon SOPbanker based in China, who played the conductor of this symphony of fraud, in tandem with Kim blood manboss of Chilyong, a very official « IT cooperative », but directly subordinate to the North Korean Defense Ministry.
« Crime May Pay in Other Countries But that’s not How It Works here, » said US Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, with the panache of a legal series. The message is clear: there is no question of letting the blockchain become an automatic fundamental distributor for sanctioned diets.
« Maybe the crime may be in other countries, but that’s not how it works here. »
Judge Jeanine Ferris Pirro – Press release
Crypto, hybrid warfare
This is not the first time that the crypto has been at the heart of the North Korean ambitions. THE Threat Intelligence Group De Google already alerted in April 2025 on the expansion of North Korean operations outside the United States, with increased targeting of European blockchain companies.
As for analyst Zachxbt, in 2024 he unveiled a real north-Korean developers who won up to $ 500,000 per month. Recently again, the historic Hack of Bybit, whose ramifications remain obscure, could well add to the long list of blows mounted by North Korea, master of digital burglary with masked face.