based on materials from the site - By crypto.news
From funding ballistic missiles in North Korea to arming militants in the Gaza Strip, cryptocurrency is quietly shaping the modern battlefield. Once proclaimed as a tool for personal financial freedom, it has also become a shadow lifeline for regimes and groups seeking to circumvent sanctions and control.
The same decentralized networks that allow dissidents and war-torn countries to receive donations without intermediaries also enable the financing of nuclear weapons, drones, and other deadly equipment. HAMAS raises donations in cryptocurrency to fund its activities, while the North Korean Lazarus Group has stolen billions in digital assets, a significant portion of which is reportedly directed towards the country's nuclear program. In Ukraine and Russia, both official channels and grassroots campaigns have used Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to equip armies, highlighting how digital currencies have become not only a means of saving but also a weapon of war.
Millions of cryptocurrencies are regularly used to fund military projects.
Russia, Ukraine, and HAMAS use cryptocurrency as a tool for fundraising.
North Korean and Israeli hackers obtain cryptocurrency violently, through theft.
Perhaps the most alarming example of cryptocurrency being used to develop deadly weapons is the nuclear program of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The hacking organization Lazarus Group, which has managed to steal billions of dollars in cryptocurrency from exchanges, is reportedly supported by the Pyongyang regime.
The Lazarus Group carried out one of the largest heists in history, stealing $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency from the ByBit exchange. Twenty percent of the funds disappeared into untraceable wallets, making their return unlikely.
Tom Robinson from Elliptic explains the success due to the hackers' high qualifications, their years of experience, speed, and relentless determination. There is no official data on what portion of the cryptocurrency stolen by North Korean hackers is used to fund the country's nuclear program. However, a source close to the matter reported that about 40% of the stolen cryptocurrency funds are used for ballistic missile development.
Both Ukraine and Russia have used cryptocurrency addresses to raise donations for weapons, ammunition, and other military supplies.
In March 2022, shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the 'On Virtual Assets' law, establishing a legal framework for digital assets and regulating cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets. This allowed the country to more freely raise donations from around the world amid rising economic tensions. In June, Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada introduced a new bill allowing the National Bank to hold Bitcoin alongside gold reserves. In August 2022, then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov stated that Ukraine spent $54 million of donated cryptocurrency on military needs, including helmets, bulletproof vests, scopes, weapons, and more.
As of August 7, 2025, Arkham Intelligence displays only 0.133 BTC on Ukraine's balance. Elliptic notes that of the $78 million in donations raised by Ukraine after the escalation of the conflict, only 1% was collected in Bitcoin. These discrepancies make it difficult to determine the actual volume of Bitcoins held by Ukraine. According to another Elliptic article, Ukrainian fundraisers managed to raise tens of millions of dollars in donations in 2023.
According to a common misconception, Ukraine owns about 46,000 BTC. However, this estimate refers to the total Bitcoin assets accumulated by Ukrainian officials from 2018 to 2021. It is unlikely that they are related to Ukraine's current Bitcoin assets. Rather, this amount represents an estimate of the personal assets of Ukrainian officials prior to 2022.
Russia has also used cryptocurrency during the military conflict with Ukraine. Besides evading sanctions in international trade, Russia's use of cryptocurrency during the conflict with Ukraine includes accepting donations to fund the Russian army.
On July 29, 2022, Chainalysis published its findings on the matter. Investigators identified 54 organizations that raised $2.2 million. This money was used to purchase drones, weapons, bulletproof vests, etc. At least some organizations fundraising for the Russian army are under sanctions.
HAMAS also uses fundraising through cryptocurrency donations. HAMAS donations are classified as financing terrorism, and U.S. authorities confiscate such cryptocurrency. The demand for real-time intelligence, secure communication, and decentralized finance, driven by military actions, has not gone unnoticed by companies operating in defense technology. While governments seek to control and suppress cryptocurrency-based operations, companies like Palantir have become key partners, combining big data analytics with combat strategy.
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