North Korea, NFTs and a hit video game: inside a $500m cryptocurrency theft

Another high-profile hack has raised more questions about the vulnerabilities of the blockchain

Late last month, hackers made off with what was then worth more than $500m from the systems of cryptocurrency network Ronin, in what is believed to be the second-largest cryptocurrency theft on record.

Ronin was a juicy target for a hacker. The blockchain project supports the wildly popular Axie Infinity video game, which with an estimated 8 million players has drawn comparisons to action-driven collecting games like Pokemon Go.