Crypto losses have seen an unprecedented rise in the first half of 2025, according to the latest TRM Labs report.
In the first half of 2025, the crypto industry faced over $2.1 billion in losses from at least 75 hacks and exploits, exposing ongoing security vulnerabilities.
This marks a 10% increase over the previous H1 record set in 2022 and nearly matches the total crypto losses recorded throughout all of 2024.
Surge in Crypto Attacks Underscores Need for Stronger Defenses and Detection
The surge highlights a growing concentration of sophisticated cyberattacks targeting digital assets, underscoring the urgent need for improved defenses and threat detection.
As the ecosystem matures, the scale and frequency of these breaches raise serious concerns about user protection, protocol security, and the overall resilience of blockchain infrastructure.
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Bybit Hacks Remains As Biggest Hack of H1 2025
According to the report, the largest crypto hack in history dominated H1 2025. It was the $1.5 billion exploit targeting Dubai-based exchange Bybit in February, reportedly linked to North Korea Hackers.
This single event accounted for nearly 70% of all crypto losses so far this year and dramatically raised the average hack size to $30 million—double the $15 million average in H1 2024.
While the Bybit attack heavily skewed the total, the threat landscape remained active throughout the period.
Each of January, April, May, and June recorded over $100 million in stolen assets, highlighting that the risks are not isolated but widespread and persistent. The data points to increasingly sophisticated, large-scale attacks targeting major centralized platforms and critical infrastructure.
Aside from the Bybit breach, 2025 saw major hacks on several crypto exchanges. In March, Hong Kong-based CoinEx lost $72 million due to a private key compromise.
In May, Turkey’s Bitay suffered a $45 million exploit linked to a smart contract vulnerability. Poland’s Kanga Exchange also faced a $30 million front-end attack in April.
Additionally, the year has also seen crypto exchange hacks done mainly for political reasons.
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North Korea Behind 70% of H1 Crypto Thefts, Stealing $1.6B
North Korea-linked groups stole $1.6 billion in H1 2025, accounting for 70% of total crypto thefts and reinforcing their role as the top nation-state threat.
The figure, largely driven by the Bybit hack, reflects the DPRK’s growing use of crypto crimes to evade sanctions and fund strategic goals, including its nuclear weapons program—making illicit crypto activity a central element of its broader geopolitical strategy.
Global Coordination Needed to Combat Rising Crypto Threats
TRM Labs highlights that addressing the surge in crypto-related threats requires global, coordinated action.
Stronger collaboration between international law enforcement agencies, financial intelligence units, and blockchain analytics firms like TRM Labs is essential to swiftly identify, track, and recover stolen digital assets.
Equally important is real-time information sharing and unified legal action against state-sponsored cybercriminals.
As digital assets become deeply linked to national security, the sophistication and geopolitical intent behind attacks will only grow. The record-breaking thefts in H1 2025 serve as a critical wake-up call.
A unified, forward-looking defense strategy—capable of countering not just criminal exploits but also state-backed cyberwarfare—is now vital to safeguarding the global digital economy and preserving trust in blockchain infrastructure.
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