Crypto Theft by Country: Who's Targeted and How It Happens

When you hear about a crypto theft by country, a state-backed or organized cyberattack targeting digital assets, often linked to specific nations with advanced hacking units. Also known as nation-state crypto hacking, it's not just random hackers—it's coordinated, well-funded, and often tied to geopolitical goals. The biggest heists don’t happen because someone clicked a bad link. They happen because entire exchanges were infiltrated over months, insiders were bribed, or smart contracts were manipulated by teams with military-grade resources.

North Korea stands out as the most active player. In 2025, their TraderTraitor group, a cyber unit linked to the Lazarus Group, specializing in cryptocurrency heists to fund state operations stole $1.5 billion from Bybit—the largest single crypto theft ever recorded. This wasn’t an accident. It was a precision strike using stolen API keys, fake withdrawal requests, and layered money laundering through mixers. Other countries like Russia and Iran have also been tied to smaller but persistent attacks, often targeting DeFi protocols or low-liquidity tokens where funds can be siphoned quietly. Meanwhile, scams disguised as exchanges—like BITKER, a fraudulent platform that vanished with over $1.2 million in user funds, typical of exit scams in unregulated markets—show how criminal networks exploit weak oversight in places like Georgia or Nigeria, where regulation lags behind adoption.

It’s not just about who steals—it’s about where. Countries with weak crypto laws, like those without mandatory KYC or AML checks, become safe havens for laundered funds. Singapore and Turkey, on the other hand, have tightened rules to block abuse, but enforcement still lags. The real danger isn’t the hackers—it’s the systems that let them slip through. If you’re trading on any platform, ask: Is this exchange licensed? Are withdrawals monitored? Is the team public? The posts below break down real cases—from the North Korean heist that shook the industry to the fake exchanges that vanished overnight. You’ll see exactly how these thefts unfold, who’s behind them, and what steps you can take to avoid becoming the next headline.