www.elliptic.co North Korea Launders $430K from Binance Hack Using Meme Coins
Article Content
- •North Korean hackers laundered $430,000 using six disposable meme coins.
- •The laundering method obscures wallet-to-wallet transfers through decentralized liquidity pools.
- •This technique was previously observed in the Bybit hack, indicating a repeat strategy.
North Korean hackers have reportedly laundered approximately $430,000 in stolen cryptocurrency from the $6.3 billion Binance hack by creating six disposable meme coins. These tokens were launched on the NEAR blockchain between November 5 and 7, 2026, and were paired with NEAR in decentralized liquidity pools to obscure the movement of funds. The laundering operation involved two sets of wallets: one that bought the tokens using stolen NEAR and another that sold them back to withdraw NEAR, effectively disguising the stolen funds as trading profits. Elliptic, a blockchain analytics firm, noted that the tokens were designed for single-use and attracted little outside trading, indicating they were created solely for laundering purposes. This method mirrors techniques previously used in the $1.5 billion Bybit hack in 2025. As of now, 11.8 million NEAR from the Binance hack remains unspent, valued at approximately $43.7 million.
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North Korean TraderTraitor Group Hacks Binance for $6.3 Billion On October 29, 2026, Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange, suffered a massive hack resulting in the theft of approximately $6.3 billion in crypto assets. The FBI attributed the attack to the North Korean hacking group TraderTraitor, which reportedly gained access to Binance's internal systems eight weeks prior… 
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