Add as a preferred source on GoogleElliptic Ties 117,000 NEAR Transfer to Binance Theft Laundering
The six pools handled about $430,000 in NEAR. As of Nov. 9, about 11.8 million NEAR from the Binance theft, worth roughly $43.7 million at the time, remained unmoved.
Elliptic said North Korea-linked launderers moved about 117,000 NEAR tied to the Binance theft through at least six newly created meme tokens and exchange liquidity pools to complicate tracing.
The activity ran from Nov. 5 through Nov. 7, when operators created at least six tokens, including FUK, OLCCL, MEILI, MMLI, DABI and SINU. Each was paired with NEAR in its own liquidity pool. Elliptic put the cost to create each token at about 25 NEAR, or $90. The transferred NEAR was valued at about $430,000.
The six tokens have had no trades since Nov. 8, and creators of four tokens removed the liquidity still in their pools that afternoon. Recipient wallets then moved nearly the same amount onward, mostly into stablecoins or through cross-chain bridges.
About 11.8 million NEAR from the Binance theft remained unmoved on Nov. 9, worth roughly $43.7 million at the time. The token-and-pool route left funds traceable on-chain while adding steps that took more time to follow.
Simon Yoon
ReporterSimon Yoon reports on blockchain technology for TokenPost. Send corrections or tips to info@tokenpost.com.