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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchNorth Korea-linked actors stole nearly $400 million in digital assets across at least seven cryptocurrency-platform attacks in 2021, according to a January 2022 estimate from Chainalysis. The figure is an estimate, not an independently audited total; a U.S. House hearing record later reproduced it as about $390 million across seven hacks.
What does the $400 million figure measure?
Chainalysis described at least seven attacks on cryptocurrency platforms during 2021 that extracted nearly $400 million worth of digital assets. The rounded headline figure refers to the value stolen in those attacks, not to a count of all North Korean cybercrime or to funds that were later recovered. In its January 13, 2022 report preview, the company used the phrase “nearly $400 million.” A U.S. House hearing record quoting Chainalysis put the estimate at about $390 million across seven hacks.
The two figures are compatible levels of precision: “nearly $400 million” is the rounded description, while “about $390 million” is the approximate amount reproduced in the hearing record. Neither should be presented as a separately verified final accounting.
Who did Chainalysis say was responsible?
Chainalysis attributed the activity broadly to North Korea-linked actors and said many of the attacks were likely carried out by Lazarus Group, also known as APT38. It described Lazarus as led by the Reconnaissance General Bureau, North Korea’s primary intelligence agency. The qualification matters: the report did not conclusively assign every one of the seven attacks to Lazarus.
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As later context, the FBI attributed a separate $100 million theft from Harmony’s Horizon bridge in 2022 to Lazarus Group/APT38 in a January 23, 2023 announcement. That attribution concerns a different incident and does not independently confirm the 2021 aggregate.
What was targeted, and how were the assets taken?
Chainalysis said the 2021 attacks primarily targeted investment firms and centralized exchanges. Its account describes attackers using phishing lures, code exploits, malware, and advanced social engineering to siphon assets from internet-connected “hot” wallets to addresses they controlled.
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A separate joint advisory from the FBI, CISA, and Treasury described North Korean state-sponsored actors targeting cryptocurrency exchanges, decentralized-finance protocols, trading firms, venture funds, and individual holders. The agencies’ April 18, 2022 advisory provides broader threat context; the detail available here does not support specific claims about its recommended mitigations.
Which cryptocurrencies made up the stolen value?
Chainalysis reported the following mix by dollar value for the 2021 thefts:
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems| Asset category | Share of value |
|---|---|
| Ether | 58% |
| Bitcoin | 20% |
| ERC-20 tokens or altcoins | 22% |
Ether was the largest category in the report’s breakdown. These are shares of the stolen value, not shares of the number of attacks or tokens.
How did the stolen cryptocurrency move through laundering?
Chainalysis described a laundering sequence that converted assets across different services and networks before funds reached crypto-to-fiat exchanges in Asia:
- ERC-20 tokens and altcoins were exchanged for Ether through decentralized exchanges.
- Ether was mixed, then exchanged for Bitcoin.
- The Bitcoin was mixed and consolidated into new wallets.
- Bitcoin was sent to deposit addresses at crypto-to-fiat exchanges based in Asia.
Chainalysis said more than 65% of DPRK’s stolen funds were laundered through mixers in 2021, compared with 42% in 2020 and 21% in 2019. The figures describe the share routed through mixers in each year, not the percentage of the $400 million that was necessarily recovered or converted to cash.
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How is the $170 million balance figure different?
Chainalysis also estimated that $170 million in then-current balances from 49 separate hacks dated 2017 through 2021 had not yet been laundered through services. This is a snapshot of unlaundered balances across several years and incidents, not another portion to add to the 2021 theft estimate. The same report separately discussed $91.35 million laundered after the 2021 Liquid.com hack; that incident-specific laundering amount is not a substitute for the aggregate theft total.
What the available figures do—and do not—establish
Chainalysis’s report establishes an estimated scale, broad methods, and aggregate asset mix, but the cited material does not provide a complete incident-by-incident list of all seven 2021 attacks and their individual losses. It therefore does not support assigning a precise share of the total to each platform or claiming that all seven incidents were definitively the work of Lazarus. The House hearing record reproduces the approximate Chainalysis estimate, rather than independently auditing it.
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