A suspected victim’s bitcoin portfolio has been targeted in a large-scale theft, with nearly 3,520 BTC (worth around $330 million at the time) moving from an unknown wallet to an unknown address. The funds were rapidly laundered through multiple exchanges before being converted into Monero (XMR), a privacy coin known for its ability to obscure transactions. This action triggered a significant price surge in XMR due to a sudden influx of demand, resulting in a 50% jump before stabilizing. Investigators are looking into the circumstances behind this theft and the motives of the perpetrators. While the identity of the victim and the theft’s details remain unclear, the case highlights the increasing use of privacy coins like Monero for laundering illicit funds. The incident underscores the ongoing challenges faced by exchanges and regulators as they struggle to combat sophisticated money laundering operations in the decentralized finance world. This heist serves as another cautionary reminder about the persistent need to secure cryptocurrency systems against cybercrime.