U.S. Cracks Down: Freezes Crypto Network That Funneled Nearly $800 Million to North Korea’s Weapons Programs

WASHINGTON, March 13, 2026 – The U.S. Treasury has moved decisively to freeze a sprawling cryptocurrency network that laundered nearly $800 million to finance North Korea's illicit weapons programs, marking one of the largest enforcement actions against state-sponsored crypto crime. In a major escalation of sanctions pressure, the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) blacklisted six individuals and two entities on March 12, directly linking the 2024 fundraising scheme to Pyongyang's weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile development, in clear violation of U.S. law and United Nations sanctions.

40 countries hit, $2 Billion worth crypto stolen

In January, eleven countries led a session at the United Nations in New York built around a 140-page report on North Korea’s cyber-driven efforts to fund its weapons programs. The report found that more than 40 countries had been affected by either cryptocurrency theft, which passed $2 billion last year, or IT worker fraud.

Jonathan Fritz, the U.S. principal deputy assistant Secretary of State, said too many countries were falling short. “A North Korean IT worker can live in Laos, steal the identity of a Ukrainian online, and then use that identity to defraud a U.S. company into hiring them, often for remote jobs with salaries in the hundreds of thousands of dollars range,” he said.

U.S. officials blamed Russia and China for sheltering North Korea and helping its money flows. At least 19 Chinese banks were named in the report as being used to launder stolen funds. Around 1,500 North Korean IT workers are thought to be based in China, with another 500 across Russia, Laos, Cambodia, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Nigeria, and Tanzania.

Fritz said Argentina and Pakistan had moved to address the problem since the report came out in October. Pakistan had reportedly arrested someone the report identified for helping North Korean IT workers.

At the UN session, a South Korean representative said a cryptocurrency firm in the country had more than $30 million stolen since the report’s release.

An Upwork representative described a case where a hired worker showed up in person but had a North Korean doing the real work after hours. Tech firms including Google called for stricter hiring checks, though some admitted North Korea is now using AI to help workers change their appearance, voice, and accent during interviews.

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