China Accuses U.S. of $13B Bitcoin Theft
China has accused the U.S. government of orchestrating the theft of approximately $13 billion in bitcoin, according to a Bloomberg report published Tuesday. The Chinese cybersecurity agency claims that more than 120,000 bitcoins were stolen from the China-based LuBian mining pool in December 2020.
The incident is described as a "state-level hacking operation," with the "quiet and delayed movement" of the stolen bitcoins suggesting government involvement rather than ordinary criminal activity. The LuBian mining pool, launched in April 2020, quickly became the sixth-largest on the Bitcoin network before shutting down after the theft, according to Arkham Intelligence.
The Chinese report links the stolen bitcoin to tokens seized by the U.S. in the case against Chinese national Chen Zhi, accused of wire fraud and money laundering. Chinese authorities claim the U.S. may have used hacking techniques as early as 2020 to access the 127,000 bitcoins held by Chen Zhi, calling it a "classic 'black eats black' operation orchestrated by a state-level hacking organization."
