A joint investigation by The New York Times and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) has uncovered that at least $28 billion in illicit funds linked to hacking, fraud, and extortion have flowed into global cryptocurrency exchanges over the past two years. Despite U.S. sanctions, Binance and OKX reportedly continued to receive suspicious funds. The investigation highlights that Cambodia's Huione Group, identified by U.S. authorities as a key node in fraud and money laundering, transferred over $400 million to Binance and $220 million to OKX within five months during 2024-2025. These transactions persisted even after U.S. Treasury sanctions against Huione. Additionally, the North Korean Lazarus hacking group allegedly funneled approximately $900 million in Ethereum to Binance accounts following the historic $1.5 billion Bybit theft.