Cryptocurrency analytics firm Chainalysis said on Thursday it had helped the US government seize
Given the more than 50% drop in priceson cryptocurrencies since the theft in March, the seizure is only about 12 percent of the total amount of stolen funds. The people who committed the theft transferred 173,600 ETH, worth about $594 million at the time and $25.5 in USDC stablecoins, making it one of the largest cryptocurrency thefts in history.
"We have proven that with the rightWith blockchain analysis tools, world-class investigators and compliance professionals can work together to stop even the most sophisticated hackers and money launderers." wrote by Erin Plant, Senior Director of Investigations at Chainalysis
The FBI attributes the theft to Lazarus.According to Axie Infinity developer Sky Mavis, the hackers made the transfer after gaining access to five of the nine private keys held by transaction validators for Ronin Networks' cross-bridge, the game's custom blockchain. The hackers then initiated a complex laundering process involving the transfer of funds to over 12,000 different currency addresses in an attempt to hide the movement of the stolen coins.