Cross-chain bridge RenBridge laundered $540M in hacking proceeds: Elliptic

cointelegraph.com:

Cross-chain bridges have been the target of more than a few hacks this year, but new data from blockchain analytics provider Elliptic alleges one has been used to launder over half a billion dollars in ill-gotten crypto assets. 

According to an Aug. 10 report, crypto bridge RenBridge has facilitated the laundering of at least $540 million in proceeds of crime since 2020 through a process known as chain hopping — converting one form of cryptocurrency into another and moving it across multiple blockchains.

Elliptic said that decentralized cross-chain bridges provide “an unregulated alternative to exchanges for transferring value between blockchains.”

For the most part, cross-chain bridges or blockchain bridges are used for legitimate purposes, enabling users to move cryptocurrencies seamlessly across blockchain networks.

Users typically deposit their tokens from one chain to the bridge protocol, which is locked into a contract, then the user is issued the equivalent of a parallel token in another chain.

However, Elliptic noted these bridges have also been used by ransomware gangs, exploiters, and hackers to launder proceeds of crime, with RenBridge accounting for at least $540 million of laundered proceeds since 2020. 

Most recently, at least $2.4 million in crypto assets stolen during the Nomad hack on Aug 2 went through the cross-chain bridge, according to the firm.

Elliptic also noted that assets from decentralized finance (DeFi) services worth at least $267.2 million have been laundered using RenBridge in the last two years, while a portion of the $80 million stolen from Liquid Global exchange last year, allegedly by North Korea, has passed through RenBridge.

The Conti ransomware group, which famously attacked the Costa