Blockchain. North Korea used it to launder stolen cryptocurrency

 

 By John Malvern                November 06, 2019

North Korea, the headquarters of an emerging Blockchain-based company in Hong Kong, has used money laundering, according to a quarterly report by the UN Security Council's sanctions committee.

According to South Korea's Chosun newspaper, North Korea has used blockchain logistics company Marine China, operating on a blockchain platform, to avoid international sanctions by laundering stolen cryptocurrencies.

Blockchain and North Korea

The report claimed that a man named Julian Kim, under the pseudonym Tony Walker, was the sole owner and investor in the company and had tried to withdraw funds from banks in Singapore on several occasions.

According to Chosun, the United Nations claims that the money laundering scheme, which also includes another undisclosed person associated with the company, has distributed stolen cryptocurrencies through up to 5,000 transactions in several countries to obscure the source.

The report also said that North Korea has developed accurate "spearfishing" attacks over the past three years, and a previous UN report also said that 17 countries have been targeted by piracy experts, resulting in losses of more than $ 2 billion, a figure denied by the regime.

North Korea steals cryptocurrencies and then launders them

The report also pointed to the development of malicious code used in the transfer of stolen bitcoin to a server at Kim Il-sung University in Pyongyang.

Severe sanctions against North Korea, from the United Nations and other international bodies, have pushed the country's system into cryptocurrencies over time. Last September, a deputy reported that the country was developing its own cryptocurrency with similar bitcoin properties to avoid international sanctions.

It is worth mentioning that North Korea is currently preparing for its second conference on cryptocurrencies and emerging blockchain technology, in February 2020, as scheduled, as the conferences are a circular way for North Korea to promote tourism, and the event of digital currencies 2020 itinerary Inclusive of travel, with everything from a tour of the Joshi Idea Tower to a 2-day ski trip.