US gets court authority over $1.2bn in Binance hack crypto

The US Justice Department said Thursday it had court authorization to seize or restrain more than $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency stolen from Binance in a hack on or about Oct. 29, according to the department’s announcement.

The FBI told the Associated Press the US had seized more than $1.2 billion. The Justice Department’s account says that amount is part of more than $2.7 billion in stolen assets frozen through combined government and private-sector efforts.

How much was taken from Binance?

The Justice Department said members of the North Korean military, whom the FBI calls TraderTraitor, stole more than $6 billion in virtual assets from Binance. The department did not say how much of the $1.2 billion under court authority has been forfeited or returned to victims.

US agencies worked with virtual asset service providers to freeze the funds, the department said. It did not identify those providers or give a breakdown of the assets by token or platform.

Who does the FBI blame?

The Justice Department attributed the Binance theft to TraderTraitor. The FBI had previously issued a cyber alert attributing the theft to the group and urging virtual asset service providers to block transactions involving listed addresses, or funds derived from them.

What happens to the crypto now?

Tracing, freezing, seizure and forfeiture efforts remain underway, the Justice Department said. It said TraderTraitor actors continue to launder assets through cryptocurrency bridges, mixers and exchanges.

The court authorization allows the department to seize or restrain more than $1.2 billion of the frozen total; it does not establish that all those assets have been recovered for claimants. The department has not announced a final forfeiture or distribution, and the next steps in the recovery process remain unconfirmed.

Source material

• announcement — justice.gov
• Associated Press — apnews.com