The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned three individuals for helping North Korea launder stolen cryptocurrencies.
Subscribe to our Telegram channel to get daily short digests about events that shape the crypto world
In a press release Monday, OFAC said Wu Huihui, a Chinese over-the-counter, was included in the sanction list "for providing material support to the Lazarus Group." Cheng Hung Man was also included in the list "for providing material support to Wu."
The watchdog believes that Wu laundered multiple millions of dollars' worth of crypto for North Korea in 2021. Cheng being at a Hong Kong-based OTC trader helped Wu "remit payment to companies in exchange for virtual currency."
Besides the two, OFAC also sanctioned Sim Hyon Sop, a North Korean citizen, for acting on behalf of the Korea Kwangson Banking Corp (KKBC), a financial company previously sanctioned for maintaining multiple bank accounts with Bank of Dandong, which acts as a conduit for North Korea to access the US and international financial systems.
The US Department of Justice has also charged the individuals in crypto laundering conspiracies.
Access more than 50 of the world's financial markets directly from your EXANTE account – including NASDAQ, London Stock Exchange and Tokyo Stock Exchange