The United States announced sanctions Friday on virtual currency mixer Blender.io, saying the service was used by a North Korean cyber hacking group to support weapons programs, the Treasury Department said. US officials said the case marks the first US sanctions on a virtual currency "mixer," which is used to conceal participants in transactions involving…The United States announced sanctions Friday on virtual currency mixer Blender.
Officials said the Lazarus Group, a North Korean-backed cyber hacking group, stole $620 million from the online game Axie Infinity, employing Blender to process over $20.5 million of the illicit funds. “Under the pressure of robust US and UN sanctions, the DPRK has resorted to illicit activities, including cyber-enabled heists from cryptocurrency exchanges and financial institutions, to generate revenue for its unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.”