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Uranium Hacker Launders $1.2M via Tornado Cash

Daniela Kirova
Daniela Kirova
Daniela Kirova
Author:
Daniela Kirova
Writer
Daniela is a writer at Bankless Times, covering the latest news on the cryptocurrency market and blockchain industry. She has over 15 years of experience as a writer, having ghostwritten for several online publications in the financial sector.
May 16th, 2023
  • The address sent 650 ether to the privacy mixer, worth $1.18 million
  • Two months ago, a linked address laundered 2,250 ether through Tornado

An address linked to the 2021 exploit of Uranium Finance, an automated market maker (AMM), used privacy mixer Tornado Cash to launder more than $1.18 million of stolen assets today. The funds were transferred in half an hour in ten transactions, Crypto.news reported.

PeckShield first picked up on the transfers

The news outlet picked up on the transfers after blockchain sleuth PeckShield tweeted about them. The security firm reported that the address had transferred 140 ether to Tornado Cash. The ether is worth around a quarter of a million dollars at the current exchange rate.

Etherscan data indicates the address sent around 650 ether to the privacy mixer, which was worth $1.18 million in total. The exploiter moved all of the assets in a series of transactions of 10 ether and 100 ether. They took place between 06:06 and 06:38 UTC today.

Address exchanged USDT for ETH

Before sending the 650 ether to the mixer, the address exchanged USDT worth around $1.2 million for 657 ether in three uneven transactions. It currently holds USDC worth around $110,000 and 7.8 ether, which it received yesterday.

A series of transfers to Tornado Cash

This is the second time this year a wallet linked to Uranium Finance has transferred stolen assets to the privacy mixer. Two months ago, an address associated with the breach reportedly laundered 2,250 ether through the mixer. It was worth $3.35 million at that time.

An as-of-yet unidentified exploiter attacked Uranium Finance in April 2021 and made away with $50 million worth of crypto. They sent 2,400 ether to Tornado Cash, leaving some funds dormant. Eventually, some of these funds started moving on-chain.

The launderer’s haven

Tornado Cash has long been a haven for money launderers. In fact, its own creator is currently facing trial on money laundering charges.

Contributors

Daniela Kirova
Writer
Daniela is a writer at Bankless Times, covering the latest news on the cryptocurrency market and blockchain industry. She has over 15 years of experience as a writer, having ghostwritten for several online publications in the financial sector.