Crypto Heist: Where Did $644 Million Go? The Mystery Deepens! 🕵️‍♂️💰

Ah, the grand spectacle of modern finance! Three moons have waxed and waned since the audacious heist of $1.4 billion from Bybit, and lo and behold, nearly half of that treasure has slipped into the shadows, like a magician’s rabbit! 🐇✨

According to the oracle of blockchain data, a staggering $644 million—almost half of the ill-gotten gains—has vanished from the public eye, processed through the murky waters of mixing services. Meanwhile, a mere $693 million (or 49.5%) remains traceable, while the authorities have managed to freeze a paltry $63 million (4.5%). Bravo! 👏

These funds, like a well-rehearsed play, were laundered with precision through various mixing services. The star of the show? A whopping $247.5 million (around 966 BTC) was funneled through Wasabi Wallet, while another $94.1 million danced through eXch, a service that claimed to have closed its curtains in April but is still very much alive and kicking! 🎭💃 Smaller amounts took a detour through Tornado Cash ($2.5 million in ETH) and Railgun ($1.7 million in ETH). Quite the cast, wouldn’t you say?

But wait! The plot thickens! eXch continues its performance despite its supposed retirement. As reported by the wise sages at crypto.news, analysts from TRM Labs have confirmed that this service still operates through back-end APIs. The mixer’s transactions are like a foggy night—opaque and mysterious, making it nearly impossible to trace the players behind the curtain. “All received and sent transactions are mixed together,” they say, “and good luck figuring out who’s who!” 🎩🔍

In a twist worthy of a thriller, a North Korean hacking group, cheekily named TraderTraitor, compromised a Safe{Wallet} developer’s laptop. They used stolen AWS session tokens to bypass multi-factor authentication, gaining access to Bybit’s treasure trove. How quaint! 🥳

The breach unfolded in early February, when a Docker project—masquerading as a “stock investment simulator”—was downloaded onto the unsuspecting developer’s Mac. This project, like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, communicated with a suspicious domain, leading to the installation of malware. Oh, the irony! 🐑💻

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2025-05-27 14:26