Bybit Hacker Launders Over $600 Million in Stolen Ethereum Within a Week
In a startling development, the hacker responsible for the recent Bybit exchange breach has successfully laundered more than half of the stolen Ethereum, valued at approximately $614 million, in just six days. The incident, which occurred on February 21, 2025, saw hackers compromise Bybit’s ether cold wallet, resulting in a total theft of $1.5 billion worth of cryptocurrency.
According to data from Spot On Chain, the hacker has been systematically washing 48,420 Ethereum daily using ThorChain. At this rate, experts predict that the remaining 229,469 ETH could be laundered within the next five days. The FBI has dubbed this cyber heist “TraderTraitor” and reports that the stolen assets are being rapidly converted to Bitcoin and other virtual currencies, dispersed across thousands of addresses on multiple blockchains.
The FBI has requested help from cryptocurrency exchanges, blockchain developers, and other industry players to identify and block the stolen funds.
The agency released a list of Ethereum addresses that are holding or have held assets from the theft, allowing the crypto community to monitor these addresses. Investigators are using advanced blockchain analysis tools to quickly identify and report suspicious movements of funds. The FBI is working with companies like Chainalysis and TRM Labs, which provide specialized tools for tracking suspicious transactions and identifying wallets linked to illicit activities.
The agency is monitoring the conversion of stolen assets into Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies across multiple blockchains. The FBI has called on Remote Procedure Call node operators, exchanges, bridges, and decentralized finance service providers to block transactions linked to the hackers.
In a significant development, the FBI has attributed the hack to a North Korean group. However, North Korean officials have remained silent on these allegations, with Pyongyang’s mission to the United Nations in Geneva declining to comment on the matter.
The cryptocurrency community is closely watching this unfolding situation, as it highlights the ongoing challenges in securing digital assets and the sophisticated methods employed by cybercriminals to launder stolen funds.
As investigations continue, the incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of robust security measures in the rapidly evolving world of cryptocurrency exchanges.
Angel Marinov is the Managing Editor at Coinlabz. With extensive knowledge of crypto payments and blockchain use cases, Angel is a trusted source of accurate and timely information
