In an ironic turn of events, this Cambodian currency exchange received over $150,000 worth of crypto from North Korean hackers.
Reuters reported on Monday that Huione Pay, a Phnom Penh-based currency exchange and payment processor, received over $150,000 worth of crypto from a wallet connected to the Lazarus hacking group.
Huione Pay received these funds between June of last year and February this year, according to the report, which cited blockchain data. Allegedly, the cryptocurrency was stolen by Lazarus hackers from three crypto companies in June and July of last year, Reuters said. In a statement, Huione Pay claimed it was unaware that it had “received funds indirectly” from the hacks, according to the report.
The National Bank of Cambodia informed Reuters that the company is prohibited from dealing or trading in cryptocurrency and stated it “would not hesitate to impose any corrective measures” against the platform.
Huione Pay is a payments firm connected to Cambodia’s ruling family. Additionally, the group includes Huione Guarantee, a marketplace that, according to crypto-tracing firm Elliptic, hosts merchants whose customers include scam artists involved in so-called pig-butchering schemes.
In September of 2022, the United States seized over $30 million in cryptocurrency stolen by the North Korean-linked hackers Lazarus from the popular online game Axie Infinity, crypto intelligence firm Chainalysis announced on Thursday.
In a blog post, the company stated it played a role in the recovery alongside U.S. law enforcement and other crypto organizations, marking the first-ever recovery of stolen cryptocurrency by a North Korean hacking group.
Ronin, a blockchain network that enables users to transfer crypto in and out of the game, reported that nearly $615 million in digital cash was stolen on March 23. While no one has explicitly assigned blame for the hack, the U.S. Treasury identified a digital currency address used by the hackers as being controlled by a North Korean hacking group commonly known as “Lazarus.”
