GoKawiilNorth Korea-linked hackers used meme coins to launder Binance heist funds, Elliptic says
Crypto research firm Elliptic reports that hackers believed tied to North Korea are minting meme coins to launder crypto stolen in a $6.3 billion hack of Binance last month. The firm identified at least six such tokens, created shortly after the heist, including one featuring an image of Elon Musk under an 'Elon 2028 President' banner. Elliptic estimates roughly $430,000 has been laundered this way so far.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
Elliptic's cofounder Tom Robinson suggests these tokens function as disposable 'containers' for moving stolen funds through liquidity pools, since their prices can be arbitrarily set by creators despite having no real buyers. This method could represent an evolving tactic for state-linked actors to obscure the trail of large-scale crypto theft, complicating efforts by exchanges and investigators to trace and recover stolen assets. There is no evidence Musk is connected to the scheme despite his likeness being used.
- Elliptic says North Korea-linked hackers are using meme coins to launder funds from the $6.3B Binance hack.
- At least six suspicious meme tokens were created right after the heist, including one using Elon Musk's image.
- About $430,000 has reportedly been laundered this way, a small fraction of the total stolen funds.
Source: futurism.com — Maggie Harrison Dupré, 2026-11-09
Published there as: “North Korea Is Allegedly Using Elon Musk and Cartoon-Themed Meme Coins to Launder the Billions in Crypto It Stole From Binance”
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