North Korean hackers stole $643 million in cryptocurrency in the first half of 2026, a report by TRM Labs said, accounting for roughly two-thirds of all crypto funds stolen worldwide. File Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI | License Photo
SEOUL, July 3 (UPI) -- North Korean-linked hackers stole roughly $643 million in cryptocurrency during the first half of 2026, accounting for about two-thirds of all crypto funds stolen worldwide, according to a new report by San Francisco-based blockchain analysis firm TRM Labs.
Nearly 90% of North Korea's stolen proceeds -- about $577 million -- came from just two attacks on decentralized finance platforms in April, the report said.
On April 1, North Korean-linked hackers drained $285 million from Drift, a Solana-based decentralized futures exchange. Later in the month, hackers believed to be connected to North Korea's Lazarus Group stole $292 million from KelpDAO, a DeFi platform that allows users to earn yield on cryptocurrency deposits.
The report, released this week, tracked a record 207 cryptocurrency hacks during the first six months of the year. Total losses, however, fell to $972 million from $2.3 billion during the same period in 2025, largely because there were fewer massive thefts.
