North Korea on Tuesday forcefully rejected US allegations blaming the isolated state for a record-breaking $6 billion cryptocurrency theft from the Binance platform, condemning the claims as absurd rhetoric aimed at branding it a cybercriminal nation.
The denial, issued through the state-run Korean Central News Agency, came from Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The sharp pushback coincides with Pyongyang’s continued silence regarding diplomatic overtures from U.S. President Donald Trump aimed at reviving summit negotiations, with Kim warning that the ongoing hostility leaves the regime with unspecified issues to reconsider.
The public rebuke follows an announcement over the weekend by the Federal Bureau of Investigation attributing the massive virtual asset heist from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, to North Korean state-sponsored actors. Law enforcement officials identified a hacking collective known as TraderTraitor as being responsible for the attack, noting investigators had observed the group converting the stolen funds into Ethereum with expectations of further laundering.
According to the FBI, the operation could represent the largest financial heist in history. Kim Yo Jong criticized the announcement as a severe political provocation, stating that Washington was attempting to mislead international public opinion by framing the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea as the culprit behind global cybercrimes.
Cybersecurity specialists have long maintained that state-backed hackers from North Korea rank among the most prolific digital currency thieves globally, generating illicit revenue streams that help finance the nation’s nuclear and ballistic missile development. Pyongyang routinely denies any connection to cryptocurrency thefts or international cyberattacks.
Despite being one of the world’s poorest nations, North Korea has systematically channeled resources acquired through activities banned under United Nations Security Council resolutions into its strategic weapons arsenals. While Kim Yo Jong did not elaborate on what issues Pyongyang intends to review, foreign policy analysts suggest that North Korean leadership is carefully weighing its options as it stonewalls President Trump’s standing invitations to resume high-level talks.
In the wake of the security breach, Binance officials stated that the exchange has absorbed the financial impact of the massive theft, covering the vast majority of the missing user assets using corporate funds.
