Investing.com - Theft from cryptocurrency exchanges in the first half of 2018 was almost triple the amount in all of 2017, according to a new report.
The report by U.S. cybersecurity firm CipherTrace said $761 million in cryptocurrencies had been stolen from exchanges so far in 2018. Hackers stole $266 million in 2017.
The report says the stolen money is usually laundered, allowing the hackers to hide their identities and avoid arrest.
The report says global regulators are paying more attention to the exchange thefts and pushing for tougher rules as part of a broader crackdown on money laundering.
Hackers stole $530 million from the Japanese crypto exchange Coincheck in January.
A separate report by the U.S. Treasury put crypto theft from exchanges at $1.5 billion over the past two years.