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6d ago

Crypto Thefts Top $2.17 Billion by Mid-2025 as Wallet Attacks Surge in Asia

Asia’s emergence as a hotspot for violent ‘wrench attacks’ highlights how physical coercion is fueling a surge in losses from personal crypto wallets

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - SEPTEMBER 15: People watch a TV at the Seoul Railway Station showing a file image of a North Korean missile launch, on September 15, 2021 in Seoul, South Korea. The unidentified type of missiles were fired from central inland areas of the North on Wednesday afternoon, and the South Korean and the U.S. intelligence authorities are analyzing details for additional information, the JCS said in a release. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
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Overview

  • Crypto services lost $2.17 billion through June, surpassing the $1.87 billion stolen from platforms in all of 2024, according to Chainalysis.
  • Combined losses from exchanges and individual wallets exceeded $2.8 billion in the first half of 2025, driven by higher asset values and broader adoption.
  • North Korea’s Lazarus Group carried out a $1.5 billion hack of Dubai’s Bybit in February, accounting for nearly 70 percent of service losses, with laundering investigations led by the FBI ongoing.
  • Personal wallet thefts now make up more than 23 percent of total crypto losses, with kidnappings in France and a murder-for-ransom in the Philippines signaling a rise in violent attacks.
  • Exchanges are beefing up security while analysts warn that annual crypto thefts could reach $4 billion by year-end if vulnerabilities persist.