Kraken restricts accounts amid suspected $133 million European institution theft

Nov 3, 2026

Kraken has restricted user accounts linked to a suspected $133 million crypto theft from an unidentified Western European financial institution. Blockchain investigator ZachXBT disclosed that funds were drained starting November 1, 2026, across Kraken, Crypto.com, and OKX before being swapped into Ether and Monero. ZachXBT alleged the affected entity is concealing the breach in violation of EU disclosure regulations, allowing over $30 million to slip past law enforcement freeze nets.

Laundering of stolen funds

▪Analytics firm Bitquery reported that the attacker linked to the $133 million theft converted approximately $62.98 million in stablecoins into 27,553 Ether within roughly four hours
▪Blockchain investigator ZachXBT stated that the laundering patterns from the suspected $133 million European institution theft did not match the typical methods used by North Korea’s Lazarus Group

Responses from crypto exchanges

▪Kraken restricted accounts associated with the suspected $133 million European Union crypto theft and initiated cooperation with law enforcement to assist recovery efforts
▪Kraken stated that its internal security systems were not compromised, no customer accounts were taken over, and no ongoing risk exists for its users

Allegations of institutional cover-up

▪Blockchain investigator ZachXBT alleged on November 3, 2026, that a large financial institution in Western Europe was exploited in a $133 million theft and was actively covering up the incident
▪Under the European Union's Digital Operational Resilience Act in force since January 17, 2025, financial institutions and crypto-asset service providers must report major operational ICT incidents to regulators

ZachXBT loss disclosures

▪Blockchain investigator ZachXBT reported on November 3, 2026, that an unidentified Western European institution suffered a suspected crypto theft exceeding $133 million
▪Blockchain investigator ZachXBT increased the estimated loss in the suspected European institution theft from $106 million reported on November 2, 2026, after identifying an additional $27 million in centralized exchange withdrawals