One of the largest publicly-known thefts of cryptocurrency was conducted by North Korean hackers, according to the FBI, who stole $1.5 billion worth of Ethereum from a popular crypto exchange.

Assets were stolen from Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange Bybit earlier this month, in what's believed to be the largest-ever digital heist.

Bybit has already paid more than $4 million to bounty hunters who helped trace and freeze some of the stolen funds.

The FBI confirmed that North Korea’s Lazarus Group was behind the $1.5 billion Bybit hack. And now It’s turning to crypto for help.

According to Bybit's holdings, that amounts to $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency that was stolen from Bybit and its customers, making this the largest ever cryptocurrency theft. However, as Molly White of Web3IsGoingGreat points out, the hacker can't exactly cash out $1.5 billion in Ethereum, because an amount that high would crash the value of ETH.

Bybit has launched a dashboard for its bounty program, with CEO Ben Zhou declaring "war" on North Korean hackers linked to the theft.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said on Wednesday that North Korea was responsible for the theft of approximately $1.5 billion in virtual assets from cryptocurrency exchange ByBit. The agency said it refers to this specific North Korean malicious cyber activity as "TraderTraitor.

In the early hours of February 21, 2025, the cryptocurrency world was thrust into chaos. A staggering $1.5 billion in digital assets vanished from Bybit, a Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange, in what is now the largest crypto heist in history.