ZachXBT Uncovers $1B Lazarus Group Laundering Network in $349,700 Sting Operation
Crypto investigator ZachXBT infiltrated a Chinese syndicate linked to North Korea's Lazarus Group by posing as a client and risking $349,700 in USDC.
Crypto investigator ZachXBT infiltrated a Chinese syndicate linked to North Korea's Lazarus Group by posing as a client and risking $349,700 in USDC. Ethereum (ETH) is trading at $2,573.64, up 0.5% since this brief published. This is an original TLT brief synthesising 6 outlets (Bitcoin World, Crypto Economy, CryptoPotato, and others), with their figures cross-checked, plus live market data, as of Wed, 07 Oct 2026 23:30:03 UTC.
- ZachXBT risked $349,700 in USDC to infiltrate a Chinese money laundering network.
- The network is accused of laundering over $1 billion for North Korea's Lazarus Group.
- Operation helped trace funds from the February 2023 Bybit hack.
- USDC market cap remains stable at $74.09B amid broader crypto downturn.
Multiple outlets report ZachXBT posed as a client and risked $349,700 in USDC to infiltrate a Chinese syndicate linked to Lazarus Group, but Crypto Economy mentions a 5% transaction loss while others don't specify.
Crypto investigator ZachXBT has reportedly traced $349,700 in stolen funds from the February 2023 Bybit hack to a Chinese money laundering network with ties to North Korea's Lazarus Group. According to multiple outlets, ZachXBT conducted an undercover operation by funding an 
Ethereum address with $349,700 in 
USDC and posing as a paying client to gain access to the network.
The operation aimed to infiltrate a syndicate accused of laundering over $1 billion in stolen funds. ZachXBT's approach involved risking a significant sum of USDC, with Crypto Economy reporting that the investigator faced a 5% transaction loss per transfer, with no guarantee of recovering the funds. This risky strategy allowed for the tracing of funds linked to the Bybit hack.
While most outlets agree on the $349,700 figure, they differ slightly in their descriptions of the operation's specifics. 
Bitcoin World, CryptoPotato, and CoinCodex focus on the infiltration and tracing of funds, while Crypto Economy emphasizes the potential losses and lack of guaranteed recovery. This discrepancy highlights the high-stakes nature of the operation.
The Lazarus Group, believed to be backed by North Korea, has been implicated in several high-profile crypto hacks. The February 2023 Bybit hack is one of the most recent incidents linked to the group. ZachXBT's operation sheds light on the sophisticated methods used by these criminal networks to launder stolen funds.
In the broader market context, the total crypto market cap stands at $2.89 trillion, with Bitcoin down 3.70% in the last 24 hours. Ethereum, the platform on which the undercover operation was conducted, is also down 5.62% in the same period, currently trading at $2560.42. The USDC stablecoin, used in the operation, remains relatively stable at $0.999862, with a market cap of $74.09 billion.
This development underscores the ongoing challenges in crypto security and the need for robust measures to combat money laundering and cybercrime. The operation's success in tracing stolen funds could provide valuable insights for future investigations. As the crypto market continues to grapple with security issues, further developments in this case and similar operations will be closely watched.
Since this brief published about 40 hours ago, Ethereum (ETH) has moved from $2,560.42 to $2,573.64 — +0.52%.
The chart plots ETH's price: grey is the move before this brief published, the vertical dashed line marks the moment it published, the horizontal dashed line is the price then, and the coloured area is the move since — from TLT's market data (daily resolution). It shows what happened after the news, not that the news caused it; many factors move prices. Not financial advice.
Over the past 24 hours ETH moved -4.6% while Bitcoin moved -2.5%. ETH has historically moved about 1.22× Bitcoin, implying roughly -3.1% today — so this is roughly what its usual link to Bitcoin would predict.
Beta computed by TLT from ~120 days of daily returns; context only, not advice.
Over the past 12 months, Ethereum (ETH) closed within 5% of today's $2,573.64 on 35 separate days. Here is what the price did afterwards on those days — a historical base rate, not a forecast:
Computed by TLT from 12 months of daily closing prices. A base rate describes the past distribution of outcomes from similar price levels — it does not predict the future and ignores the specific news in this story. Crypto is volatile and past performance is not indicative of future results. Not financial advice.
At today's peer-to-peer rate, 1 ETH ≈ ₦3.51M (about $2,573.64), down 4.6% over 24 hours. The naira itself trades about 2.8% above the official rate on the P2P market, so a Nigerian buyer's effective cost differs from the headline dollar price.
Live market data
Current prices for the assets in this story — live, source-stamped, updated every 15 minutes.
1 key figure independently matched across 3 outlets reporting this story.
TLT extracts the figures each outlet reports and flags the ones that agree. Numbers cited by only one outlet are attributed in the brief, not shown as corroborated.
Figures and sectors in this story, checked live against on-chain aggregators · October 7, 2026.
TLT reads these figures directly from on-chain aggregators (DeFiLlama, mempool.space) at build time — independent of what any outlet reported. Sector totals aggregate every protocol DeFiLlama tracks in that category. Values are live and will change.
ZachXBT Uncovers $1B Lazarus Group Laundering Network in $34 — questions & answers
How much is 1 Ethereum worth in naira today?
About ₦3.51M at the live peer-to-peer (P2P) USDT rate, which is what Nigerians typically trade at — equivalent to roughly $2,573.64. The naira price moves with both ETH's US-dollar price and the USDT/NGN rate; use our Ethereum in naira page for any amount.
Has Ethereum's price moved since this brief was published?
ETH is up 0.52% since this brief first published — trading at $2,573.64 now versus $2,560.42 at publication. TLT re-checks this figure against CoinGecko and Binance every 15 minutes.
Which outlets reported this story?
This is an original TLT brief that synthesises reporting from Bitcoin World, Crypto Economy, CryptoPotato, CoinCodex, Crypto Adventure, Decrypt, with the key figures cross-checked for agreement across them. It is not a copy of any one article — follow the source links above for the original reporting.
Original summary — not financial advice. This is an original TLT brief that summarises a development reported elsewhere and adds live market data for context; it is not the original article and reproduces no part of it. Follow the source link above for full details. Crypto is volatile and high-risk — always do your own research.