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Agence France-Presse

A notorious North Korean hacking group is likely behind the theft of nearly US$300 million in cryptocurrency over the weekend, an affected party has said, in the biggest known crypto heist this year.
It is the latest such incident linked to North Korea, whose sophisticated cybercrime programme uses stolen cryptocurrency to help fund its nuclear weapons development, according to a United Nations panel.
Digital currency news site CoinDesk said the heist on the vault of online investment tool KelpDAO on Saturday was 2026’s biggest crypto exploit so far.
During the hack, two blockchain servers hosted by another crypto tech application called LayerZero were compromised, KelpDAO said on Tuesday.
That allowed a cryptocurrency token linked to the major Ethereum currency to be “drained” from KelpDAO, it said.
“On April 18, 2026, KelpDAO was exploited for approximately US$290 million,” LayerZero said in a statement.


“Preliminary indicators suggest attribution to a highly-sophisticated state actor, likely DPRK’s Lazarus Group,” LayerZero said, using the initials of North Korea’s official name.
It assured users that “there is zero contagion to any other cross-chain assets or applications”.
Blockchain technology allows transactions to do away with middlemen, including governments and banks – a concept known as decentralised finance (DeFi).
“This will make it more scary for new entrants to enter the DeFi world,” Henri Arslanian, co-founder of Nine Blocks Capital Management, said in a note on Wednesday.
“This is clearly the job of North Korea’s Lazarus group. No other group globally has the expertise and muscle power to conduct such a hack.”
A UN panel estimated in 2024 that North Korea had stolen more than US$3 billion in cryptocurrency since 2017.
Last year, the United States accused North Korea of being behind the theft of US$1.5 billion worth of digital assets, then the largest crypto heist in history.


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North Korea

A physical imitation of an Ethereum cryptocurrency token. Photo: AFP

The test-fire of an improved Hwasongpho-11 Ra surface-to-surface tactical ballistic missile at an undisclosed location in North Korea on Sunday. Photo: EPA/KCNA

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young (right) speaks to reporters at the government complex in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday. Photo: EPA/Yonhap

A sign located near the demilitarised zone (DMZ) at the central section of the inter-Korean border in Yeoncheon, north of Seoul, which says the DMZ is under the jurisdiction of the US-led UN Command. Photo:  EPA/Yonhap/Handout

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (centre) and his daughter Kim Ju-ae (left) inspect the test-fire of a ballistic missile at an undisclosed location in North Korea on Sunday. Photo: KCNA via KNS / AFP

Why North Korea’s Kim may shake hands with Trump again despite missile tests

US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un talk before a meeting in the demilitarised zone in Panmunjom on June 30, 2019. Photo: AFP

People watch a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test at a railway station in Seoul on Wednesday. Pyongyang said it had tested a radar-evading missile tipped with cluster bombs. Photo: AFP

Reporters raise hands to ask questions as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi holds a press conference in Beijing last month. Wang Yi will visit North Korea from Thursday to Friday. Photo: Reuters

A test-launch of 600mm calibre multiple rocket launchers in North Korea last month. Photo: KCNA/Reuters

North Korea’s Kim ramps up show of force as US war on Iran raises stakes

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits to observe the test launches of missiles at an undisclosed place on Sunday. Photo: KCNA/KNS/AP

A test-fire of cruise missiles and anti-warship missiles from the destroyer Choe Hyon in North Korea on Sunday. Photo: KCNA/EPA

A building destroyed in US and Israeli strikes as seen on Tuesday in Tehran, Iran. Photo: Xinhua

North Korea tests powerful missile engine. Will an ICBM launch follow?

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspects a test of a solid-fuel rocket engine at an undisclosed location in the country. Photo: KCNA via KNS/AFP


Kim (right) and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attend a banquet in Pyongyang. Photo: KCNA via Reuters

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Ethereum was ‘drained’ from KelpDAO in the biggest known cryptocurrency heist so far this year


Ethereum was ‘drained’ from KelpDAO in the biggest known cryptocurrency heist so far this year.


North Korea’s Lazarus suspected of stealing US$290 million in KelpDAO cyberattack

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Ethereum was ‘drained’ from KelpDAO in the biggest known cryptocurrency heist so far this year

Ethereum was ‘drained’ from KelpDAO in the biggest known cryptocurrency heist so far this year