US Treasury Sanctions the Blender.io Bitcoin Mixer for its Use by the North Korean Hacker Group, Lazarus

Abstract:

• The US Treasury Division has sanctioned a cryptocurrency mixer for the primary time
• Blender.io has been added to the OFAC’s SDN listing for aiding in illicit transactions that pose a menace to the USA and for aiding the North Korean hacker group, Lazarus, in laundering stolen funds
• The US Treasury Division has additionally added 4 Ethereum addresses linked to the Lazarus Group to the SDN listing

The US Division of the Treasury’s Workplace of International Property Management (OFAC) has for the primary time sanctioned a cryptocurrency mixer.

In response to the official announcement by the OFAC workplace, the Bitcoin mixer of Blender.io has been sanctioned by the US Treasury for getting used ‘by the Democratic Individuals’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to assist its malicious cyber actions and money-laundering of stolen digital foreign money.’

Particularly, the sanctions announcement focuses on the Lazarus Group that carried out the most important DeFi heist to this point on the Ronin Community and Axie Infinity, value $615 million. Blender was reportedly utilized in ‘the laundering course of for DPRK’s Axie Infinity heist, processing over $20.5 million in illicit proceeds.’

Beneath Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Monetary Intelligence Brian E. Nelson, defined:

At the moment, for the primary time ever, Treasury is sanctioning a digital foreign money mixer. Digital foreign money mixers that help illicit transactions pose a menace to U.S. nationwide safety pursuits. We’re taking motion in opposition to illicit monetary exercise by the DPRK and won’t permit state-sponsored thievery and its money-laundering enablers to go unanswered.

Like nearly all of blockchain mixers obtainable, Blender.io receives a number of Bitcoin transactions and mixes them collectively earlier than transmitting them to their final locations at a charge. Nevertheless, Blender doesn’t assure that the outcomes of the blending will utterly cover the originating tackle of the transaction.

The US Treasury has Up to date its OFAC SDN Listing

Moreover, the US Treasury OFAC workplace has up to date its Particular Designated Nationals and Blocked Individuals (SDN) listing to incorporate 4 extra Ethereum wallets utilized by the Lazarus Group to launder the rest of the stolen proceeds of the March 2022 Axie Infinity hack. The OFAC workplace has additional supplied a full list of sanctioned addresses on its web site.