Warren, Reed Press Treasury and DOJ on North Korea’s $1.5 Billion Crypto Heist
Lawmakers raise concerns as Senate Republicans attempt to advance the GENIUS Act — legislation that, as currently drafted, would dramatically expand the stablecoin market with few guardrails and inadequate national security protections.
“In the wake of the Bybit hack, it is essential that the United States redouble its efforts to prevent North Korean crypto theft.”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, and Jack Reed (D-R.I.), sent a letter to Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and Attorney General Pam Bondi requesting information on efforts to combat increasingly aggressive and frequent cyber-attacks by ransomware groups based in North Korea.
In February, the Lazarus Group, a hacker syndicate backed by the North Korean government, stole approximately $1.5 billion in digital currency from Bybit, a popular cryptocurrency exchange. In the letter, the senators warn the attack marks a dangerous escalation in North Korea’s use of crypto theft to evade sanctions and fund its weapons programs — a direct threat to U.S. national security and global stability.
“In the wake of this attack—the ‘largest crypto theft of all time’—we write to request information regarding your efforts to combat increasingly aggressive and frequent cyber-attacks by ransomware groups based in North Korea,” wrote the senators.
They continued: “North Korea relies on cryptocurrency theft to subvert U.S.-led international sanctions and to undermine the security of the United States and our Indo-Pacific allies… These stolen assets have helped keep the regime afloat and supported continued investments in its nuclear and conventional weapons programs. Reports suggest there are potentially thousands of North Korean-affiliated crypto hackers around the globe.”
The senators press the agencies on how they are responding to the evolving tactics of North Korean hackers and what tools they need to prevent future attacks. This comes as Senate Republicans attempt to advance the GENIUS Act — legislation that, as currently drafted, would dramatically expand the stablecoin market with few guardrails and inadequate national security protections. A vote on the bill could come as early as later today.
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