The Hundred Finance hacker, responsible for a $7.4 million crypto theft, resurfaced after a year of inactivity on May 1, moving crypto assets from Curve’s decentralized exchange. The hacker withdrew ETH and USDT worth $800,000 a year ago and converted them into Ethereum, increasing their Ether holdings by over $1 million. As a result, the hacker now holds a total of $6.48 million worth of various crypto assets in their Ethereum wallet. Hundred Finance, a project on the Optimism blockchain, suffered a security breach in 2023, losing $7.4 million in assets. The criminal inflated the exchange rate for hWBTC by donating 200 WBTC and managed to drain Hundred Finance’s lending pools through flash loans and smart contract manipulation.
In a similar incident, the attacker behind the Poloniex security breach transferred funds worth $33 million after months of dormancy. The hacker moved 501 BTC to three new wallet addresses to hide the origins of the stolen assets. Analysts believe that it might be difficult for the Hundred Finance hacker to conceal the assets’ origin or convert them to fiat without a trace. This is due to increased scrutiny and crackdown on crypto mixer services by regulators. Cybercriminals are finding it challenging to break the traceability chain that links the funds to the hacked wallet and launder them through services like Samourai Wallet or Tornado Cash.
The founders of Samourai Wallet were arrested and charged by the US Department of Justice over the alleged laundering of $100 million from an illicit market and aiding criminals in laundering $1.7 billion. Tornado Cash’s co-founders were also indicted for enabling over $1 billion in money laundering through their platform. Global regulators are tightening regulations on crypto users who hide their transaction histories. The European Parliament voted to ban crypto mixers on April 24, 2024, as part of new anti-money laundering regulations. With increased pressure on cybercriminals, it might be challenging for the Hundred Finance hacker to convert the stolen assets to fiat without leaving a trace.
Despite the challenges posed by regulatory crackdowns, the Hundred Finance hacker continues to hold various crypto assets worth millions of dollars. The movement of funds from the security breaches at Hundred Finance and Poloniex reflects the growing trend of cybercriminals trying to cover their tracks and evade detection. By transferring assets to new wallet addresses, the hackers attempt to obscure the origins of the stolen funds and make it harder for authorities to track them. However, with increased regulatory scrutiny and crackdown on crypto mixers, it remains to be seen how successful these criminals will be in laundering the stolen assets.
In conclusion, the Hundred Finance hacker has resurfaced after a year of inactivity and continues to hold millions of dollars worth of stolen crypto assets. The movement of funds from the security breaches at Hundred Finance and Poloniex highlights the challenges faced by cybercriminals in concealing their activities and laundering the stolen assets. With regulators tightening the screws on crypto users who hide their transaction histories, the hacker may find it increasingly difficult to convert the stolen assets to fiat without leaving a trace. The ongoing crackdown on crypto mixer services and the arrests of their founders indicate a shift in the regulatory landscape towards combating money laundering in the crypto industry.
