China Accuses US of 2020 Bitcoin Mining Pool Hack

China's national cybersecurity agency has accused the United States of orchestrating a state-backed hack that stole over 127,000 Bitcoin from a Chinese mining pool in 2020, with the funds later seized by U.S. authorities in a high-profile fraud case. The allegation, detailed in a technical report released Sunday by the China National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center, or CVERC, challenges the U.S. Department of Justice's account of a lawful seizure tied to Cambodian businessman Chen Zhi. The dispute, centered on assets now valued at more than $13 billion, has heightened tensions over international control of digital currencies.

The incident traces back to December 29, 2020, when hackers targeted LuBian, a prominent Chinese Bitcoin mining pool, making off with 127,272 Bitcoin then worth about $3.5 billion. Blockchain analytics firms, including Arkham Intelligence and Elliptic, have linked the stolen funds to wallets controlled by Chen Zhi, chairman of Cambodia's Prince Group. U.S. prosecutors allege Chen ran a vast network of cryptocurrency scams, including "pig-butchering" operations that defrauded victims worldwide, alongside human trafficking and forced labor schemes...