$5.7 Million From Ronin Hack Recovered in Norway and Returned
Sky Mavis, the developer behind Axie Infinity, has officially recovered $5.7 million stolen in the 2022 Ronin network hack.
In a major step forward following the hack of the Ronin network an Ethereum-linked sidechain used by the popular blockchain game Axie Infinity the Norwegian government has assisted in recovering millions of dollars in stolen crypto assets.
Ronin Bridge Exploited, $625 Million Stolen
The Ronin network was launched in February 2021 to support scalability and reduce costs for Axie Infinity. However, in March 2022, the Ronin Bridge was hacked, resulting in the loss of approximately 173,600 ETH and 25.5 million USDC, with the total value of the damage then reaching over $625 million, one of the largest hacks in crypto history.
Norwegian government supports the recovery of $5.7 million
According to a June 7 announcement, Sky Mavis said that Norway's National Agency for the Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crime (Økokrim) had successfully frozen and returned approximately $5.7 million in digital assets stolen in the hack.
“We would like to express our deep gratitude to everyone who assisted in the recovery process, especially Økokrim and the US FBI, for their tireless efforts to track and recover these assets for the Axie and Ronin communities,” Sky Mavis shared in an official statement.
How will the recovered funds be distributed?
Of the $5.7 million recovered:
85% will be returned directly to the Axie Infinity treasury to serve the ecosystem.
The remaining 15% will be used to cover additional costs, including:
Law enforcement agencies
Accounting teams, lawyers
Blockchain analytics firms like Chainalysis
Sky Mavis said the allocation was necessary to support the cross-border asset recovery effort, an incredibly complex legal and technical process.
Another $40 million frozen
In addition to the $5.7 million recovered, Sky Mavis revealed that an additional $40 million in assets have also been frozen by international law enforcement agencies. However, the recovery of this amount will take time, and a specific roadmap is currently unknown.
A step forward in a long journey
The recovery of some of the stolen assets marks a small but important victory in the quest to recover hundreds of millions of dollars lost to hackers. It is also a testament to the growing collaboration between blockchain developers, international law enforcement agencies, and on-chain analytics companies, aiming to bring justice and trust back to the Web3 community.
👉 See also:
[Ronin 2022 Hack: What You Need to Know]
[Sky Mavis Boosts Bridge Security After Attack]
[Chainalysis’ Role in Stolen Cryptocurrency Investigation]