KelpDAO Says Recovery Efforts Advance After Hackers Laundered $175 Million in ETH Into BTC

KelpDAO said on April 23 that recovery discussions were progressing after hackers laundered $175 million in ETH into BTC. Related reporting described the post-exploit laundering through multiple routes and asset types, including funds moved from Ethereum to Arbitrum and into Tron-based USDT, as well as flows traced by ZachXBT through THORChain and Umbra. ZachXBT also reported that North Korea-linked TraderTraitor began laundering KelpDAO stolen funds about three hours after the Arbitrum Security Council froze 37,000 ETH worth about $71 million, with roughly 99% of the traced flow going through THORChain. THORChain’s daily volume rose to $211 million, generating about $189,000 in fees, while tracked Bitcoin-side funds reached about 442 BTC worth $33 million across more than 400 addresses. The reports present different totals for the exploit and laundering path, including nearly $290 million tied to rsETH, about $29 million cited in ZachXBT’s earlier tracing, and KelpDAO’s later reference to $175 million in ETH laundered into BTC, so those discrepancies remain part of the historical record.