Joint U.S.-ROK Symposium on Protecting the Virtual Asset Industry from DPRK Exploitation and Disrupting DPRK Revenue Generation

The U.S. Department of State and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea (ROK) co-hosted a U.S.- ROK Joint Symposium: Protecting the Virtual Asset Industry from DPRK Exploitation and Disrupting DPRK Revenue Generation in New York City on August 27, 2024. The symposium is part of our ongoing efforts to curb the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) attempts to earn revenue for its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs in violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions.

The DPRK continues to support the development of its WMD and ballistic missile programs by obscuring the movement of hundreds of millions of dollars of stolen cryptocurrency through virtual asset service providers (VASPs) such as cryptocurrency exchanges, bridges, mixers and other related blockchain-enabled platforms around the world. According to the March 2024 report of the UN DPRK Sanctions Committee Panel of Experts, DPRK cyber actors stole approximately $3 billion in virtual assets between 2017 and 2023. The United States and the ROK convened this event to strengthen the capabilities of governments across the globe and the private sector to disrupt DPRK revenue generation and laundering activities involving virtual assets through enhanced collaboration and information sharing.

Participants included government officials and private sector experts from centralized VASPs, decentralized financial platforms, blockchain analysis services, venture capital firms, and other industry stakeholders, representing more than 40 countries. During the event, global industry leaders and experts from the U.S. and ROK governments delivered updates on current trends in DPRK virtual asset thefts and laundering, information on DPRK cyber threats to VASPs, and guidance on how industry and government can better work together to identify and halt DPRK virtual asset heists.