Elliptic Indicates Evidences To FTX Hack Russia-linked Of $477 Million

Key Points:

• The FTX hack, resulting in the theft of $477 million in digital assets, is now believed to have stronger ties to Russia, according to Elliptic.
• The stolen Bitcoin was mixed with funds from Russian-linked criminal groups.

Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic indicates evidence points to FTX hack Russia-linked. Stolen Bitcoin was mixed with Russian funds, suggesting involvement of a broker or intermediary.

According to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, the attack on FTX that resulted in the theft of around $477 million in digital assets is now believed to have a stronger connection to Russia. The hacker, whose identity remains unknown, stole hundreds of millions of dollars from FTX’s corporate digital wallets in November 2022.

After the theft, nearly 3,000 Bitcoin tokens were sent through crypto mixers to obscure their transaction history. Elliptic’s analysis revealed that the stolen Bitcoin was mixed with Bitcoin associated with Russian-linked criminal groups, suggesting that the hacker is familiar with their networks.

FTX Hack Russia-linked

Elliptic stated that a Russia-linked actor seems to be a stronger possibility in this case. The stolen assets, when traced through ChipMixer, were found to be combined with funds from Russian-linked criminal groups, including ransomware gangs and darknet markets, before being sent to exchanges.

In March, the US Justice Department announced the shutdown of ChipMixer as a result of a coordinated international operation. The operator of ChipMixer, a Vietnamese individual, was charged with money laundering.

The identity of the FTX hacker has been a subject of speculation. After a period of inactivity, the stolen funds began moving again just before the trial of FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who is currently facing charges of defrauding investors out of billions of dollars. Bankman-Fried denies all charges.

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