According to recent cryptocurrency data, North Korea’s alleged Bitcoin holdings—which are said to have been acquired via cyberattacks carried out by government-backed hacking units—are now greater than those owned by Tesla.
On March 23rd (local time), CoinDesk reported, referencing blockchain analytics company Arkham Intelligence, that the Lazarus Group—a cybercrime unit allegedly linked to North Korea—currently holds around 13,441 bitcoins. These assets are estimated to be worth roughly $1.14 billion, equivalent to about 1.67 trillion Korean won.
In contrast, under CEO Elon Musk, Tesla owns 11,509 bitcoins, which makes North Korea’s holdings about 16% bigger. Tesla ranks as the fourth-largest holder of bitcoins among public companies globally.
North Korea’s increase in Bitcoin holdings seems connected to the recent breach at Bybit, one of the biggest global crypto trading platforms. This incident occurred on February 21st, leading to the loss of around $1.46 billion (approximately 2.1 trillion won) worth of digital assets. It is believed that the cyberattack may have been carried out by the Lazarus Group.
Although the majority of the pilfered funds were denominated in Ethereum, it is suspected that North Korea quickly transformed a substantial part of these assets into Bitcoin following the security breach.
The report was issued shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump restated his commitment earlier in the week to position the United States as a dominant force globally and at the forefront of cryptocurrencies. As reported by CoinDesk, there has been an increasing focus on understanding potential reactions from North Korea’s cyber activities amidst these evolving geostrategic and digital monetary dynamics.
The U.S. government presently possesses 198,109 bitcoins, which are valued at over $16 billion (approximately 23 trillion won), having been confiscated during multiple money-laundering probes. It is said that Trump is considering developing a cryptocurrency reserve plan focused on these holdings.