Norwegian Government Recovers Significant Amount of Altcoin Following Hack
In a successful effort, the Norwegian government has managed to retrieve a substantial portion of the stolen funds from a major altcoin hack.
The government was able to freeze and return $5.7 million in funds that were linked to the infamous Ronin (RON) hack that occurred in 2022. This hack resulted in a massive loss of over $600 million, making it the largest DeFi vulnerability in history.
Ronin, an Ethereum sidechain created to support the popular play-to-win web3 game Axie Infinity (AXS) by Sky Mavis, was the target of the attack. Through a collaborative approach involving law enforcement, legal professionals, financial experts, and blockchain investigative firms like Chainalysis, the funds were successfully recovered.
The Norwegian National Agency for the Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crimes (Økokrim) played a crucial role in the asset recovery process. Sky Mavis expressed gratitude to all parties involved, particularly acknowledging Økokrim and the FBI in the USA.
Sky Mavis announced that 15% of the recovered funds would cover expenses, with the remainder being deposited into the Axie Infinity treasury. Additionally, law enforcement authorities have frozen an additional $40 million in assets, with the process of recovery expected to take some time.
The Ronin hack, attributed to North Korea’s Lazarus Group, is also linked to other high-profile attacks, such as the $100 million Harmony bridge attack in January 2023. Sky Mavis indicated that a timeline for the return of the frozen assets is not yet determined.
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