Bybit's own Ben Zhou highlights a growing trend in the hacking community, where mixers for Bitcoin are becoming a favored tool, and he is encouraging bounty hunters to step up and assist in tracking these transactions.

CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange Bybit In his executive summary, Ben Zhou addressed the situation regarding hacked funds, highlighting the use of mixers like Wasabi, CryptoMixer, Railgun, and TornadoCash by the hacker involved.

The analysis indicates that the total amount of embezzled cryptocurrency approximates $1.4 billion, which includes about 500,000 ETH. Out of this amount, a striking 88.87% remains traceable, while 7.59% is classified as 'dark,' and 3.54% has been frozen.

Breaking it down further, 86.29% of the hacked cryptocurrency, equating to around 440,091 ETH (roughly valued at $1.23 billion), has been converted into 12,836 BTC. These have been allocated across 9,117 different wallets, each containing an average of 1.41 BTC. Bybit notes that the hacker has shifted to a BTC mixer, routing approximately 193 BTC through the Wasabi Mixer, which utilizes a process called CoinJoin to obscure Bitcoin transactions and bolster privacy.

After the mixer was utilized, the funds were then dispersed to multiple peer-to-peer vendors. The team at Bybit anticipates that this pattern will persist, as increasing volumes of funds get funneled through mixers. Consequently, deciphering these mixed transactions has emerged as one of their biggest hurdles.

Ben Zhou reiterated that Bybit is actively seeking community involvement in tracking these misappropriated assets. In the past month, the platform has accumulated 5,012 bounty reports, with only 63 recognized as legitimate. Bybit is pushing for more reports, particularly from bounty hunters equipped to decode the complexities of mixer transactions, as this area necessitates extra assistance.

Arkham has disclosed that the infamous Lazarus Group currently possesses 13,400 BTC.

Previously, a significant portion of the pilfered ETH was transformed into Bitcoin, primarily facilitated by a cross-chain liquidity protocol. THORChain . 

On February 21st, Bybit suffered a security breach This hack is on record as the largest ever perpetrated against a centralized exchange, executed through a targeted malware attack attributed to the Lazarus Group, a hacking collective believed to be associated with North Korea. The incident resulted in a staggering loss of over $1.5 billion worth of Ethereum.

Arkham's findings indicate that the Lazarus Group is sitting on 13,400 BTC, most of which was acquired through the Bybit breach.