Catenaa, Friday, December 26, 2025-Cryptocurrency theft reached $3.41 billion from January through early December 2025, according to blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis.
This is a slight increase from $3.38 billion in 2024.
A single $1.5 billion hack of Bybit accounted for nearly 44% of the total, while the top three breaches made up 69% of all losses from services.
Chainalysis reported a sharp rise in attacks on personal crypto wallets and private keys. Individual wallet compromises grew from 7.3% of stolen value in 2022 to 44% in 2024, involving 158,000 cases and at least 80,000 unique victims.
The total value taken from individuals declined to $713 million, suggesting attackers targeted smaller amounts across a larger number of users.
Ethereum and Tron networks showed higher victim rates per 100,000 wallets compared with Base and Solana.
Centralized services remain vulnerable, with private key breaches accounting for 88% of stolen amounts in Q1 2025.
DeFi security has improved, as shown by the September 2025 Venus Protocol incident, where rapid detection and governance action prevented permanent losses and mitigated the attack.
North Korea continued to be the largest threat, stealing at least $2.02 billion in 2025, $681 million more than in 2024, largely funding its nuclear program.
DPRK cyber actors employ infiltration tactics and structured laundering through Chinese-language services, bridges, and mixers, often over a 45-day period.
Chainalysis warned that these state-backed actors operate differently from typical cybercriminals, making early detection and prevention critical for 2026.
