Blockchain security firm Hacken recently revealed the connection between a previous hack targeting Ripple co-founder and chairman Chris Larsen's personal wallet and XRP escrow wallets. The hack occurred on January 31, resulting in Larsen losing 213 million XRP, valued at $112.5 million.
According to Hacken, the hack involved two core wallets connected to XRP escrow wallets. Due to the unique complexity of the event, the investigation initially focused on a wallet address starting with “rJNLz3A1,” which was identified as the compromised XRP wallet.
Through analysis of inbound and outbound transactions, Hacken's research indicates that most of the stolen funds were transferred to various exchange addresses, including one from the Kraken exchange, purportedly used for laundering funds.
Specifically, a wallet address starting with “rU1bPM4” had a significant transaction history with Larsen and was associated with the wallets used by the hacker. This account had a long-standing connection with XRP and, prior to the event, sent $64.6 million worth of XRP to Larsen and engaged in transactions with Kraken deposit addresses allegedly used to transfer funds from the attack.
Although Hacken did not conclude that the attack was carried out by insiders, the connection between the involved wallets and XRP escrow wallets is indeed unusual.