Bybit v. DPRK Lazarus Group -- $1.5B Hack Civil Lawsuit (August 2026)
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anchored·41RGWk…KLtVSummary
On August 7-8, 2026, cryptocurrency exchange Bybit announced that it had filed a civil lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), its Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), and the Lazarus Group over the February 21, 2025 theft of approximately $1.5 billion in Ethereum-denominated assets -- the largest recorded cryptocurrency theft in history. Alongside the lawsuit, the court granted a preliminary injunction freezing identified stolen assets held by unnamed intermediary defendants. This is the first known instance of a major cryptocurrency exchange filing civil suit against a nation-state actor for a crypto theft and securing a judicial asset freeze order at this scale.
Connected Entities
9 entities · 59 linked investigations- Bybit v. DPRK Lazarus Group -- $1.5B Hack Civil Lawsuit (August 2026)→mentioned with→ZachXBT(65%)
- Harmony Bridge→mentioned with→Bitcoin(75%)
- Bybit v. DPRK Lazarus Group -- $1.5B Hack Civil Lawsuit (August 2026)→mentioned with→Safe{Wallet}(70%)
- Bybit v. DPRK Lazarus Group -- $1.5B Hack Civil Lawsuit (August 2026)→mentioned with→Ethereum(80%)
- Bybit v. DPRK Lazarus Group -- $1.5B Hack Civil Lawsuit (August 2026)→mentioned with→Harmony Bridge(60%)
- Harmony Bridge→mentioned with→Ethereum(80%)
- Bybit v. DPRK Lazarus Group -- $1.5B Hack Civil Lawsuit (August 2026)→mentioned with→Bybit(70%)
- Bybit v. DPRK Lazarus Group -- $1.5B Hack Civil Lawsuit (August 2026)→mentioned with→Bitcoin(70%)
- Ronin Bridge→mentioned with→Ethereum(80%)
- Ethereum→mentioned with→Bitcoin(60%)
- + 19 more
Timeline(8 events)
19 February 2025
Malicious JavaScript code replaces legitimate Safe{Wallet} app code at 15:29 UTC, targeting Bybit's Ethereum multisig cold wallet, per Verichains forensic analysis.
Bybit Hack Traced to Safe{Wallet} Supply Chain Attack -- The Hacker News21 February 2025
Approximately $1.5 billion in Ethereum and stETH stolen from Bybit cold wallet at approximately 14:13 UTC during a routine transfer, in what becomes the largest recorded cryptocurrency theft in history.
FBI/IC3 Public Service Announcement26 February 2025
FBI issues public advisory (IC3 PSA250226) attributing the theft to TraderTraitor (Lazarus Group), listing 50 Ethereum wallet addresses and requesting assistance from exchanges and analytics firms to block transactions.
FBI/IC3 PSA25022630 April 2025
German federal authorities (BKA) and Frankfurt's Public Prosecutor's Office shut down cryptocurrency mixer eXch, seizing approximately $38.2 million and 8+ terabytes of data. Elliptic estimates more than $200 million in Bybit stolen funds were laundered through eXch.
German Operation Shuts Down Crypto Mixer eXch -- The Record28 November 2025
Swiss and German authorities dismantle Cryptomixer.io following coordinated actions in Zurich, seizing approximately 25 million euros in Bitcoin. Cryptomixer was linked to laundering proceeds from the Bybit hack.
Swiss, German Authorities Dismantle Cryptomixer.io -- Yellow.com18 June 2026
Bybit files civil lawsuit under seal in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia naming DPRK, RGB, and Lazarus Group as defendants; court grants a temporary restraining order (TRO) the same day.
Bybit Sues North Korea and Lazarus Group -- PR Newswire30 July 2026
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia grants partial preliminary injunction prohibiting transfer or dissipation of identified stolen assets held by John Doe defendants; court finds Bybit 'demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits.'
Bybit Sues North Korea and Lazarus Group -- PR Newswire7 August 2026
Bybit publicly announces the civil lawsuit and preliminary injunction. Reports $48.4 million recovered and $30.5 million frozen across 28+ exchanges -- approximately 5.26% of stolen funds. Case described as a landmark first in crypto civil litigation against a nation-state.
Bybit Sues North Korea and Lazarus Group over $1.5 Billion Hack, Secures Asset Freeze -- CoinDeskDecision Log
- slot 443510246 · hash 8dYEjtRTfRgfGLub6cVhjDXz7EEyN49YP8XQWpN973er
- slot 443510240 · hash 2oPQJNBdYYroZVg2Dr2JyzuxmwJVXRfMxcJcmQ8AiC3o
- slot 443510185 · hash D4iyi3AQcc2YLqYeuoA5pZHr3WSgSepGcDd4yejDrNwx
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (3 decisions). 20 of 20 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-sonnet-4-6
generated: 8/24/2026, 11:12:41 PM
last updated: 8/25/2026, 2:46:34 AM
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