E-Financial
Lazarus, Hacking Group Targets Cryptocurrency Space- Kaspersky
Kaspersky Lab, cybersecurity watchdogs yesterday issued a warning that the well-known hacking group known as Lazarus, which is allegedly sponsored by the North Korean government, is alive and well and still targeting the cryptocurrency industry.
According to the folks at Kaspersky Lab, the hacking group began a new operation in November 2018, using new methods to infiltrate the computer systems of businesses in the financial sector and gain access to sensitive data.
Research done by Kaspersky Lab shows the hackers customized PowerShell scripts that “communicate with malicious C2 servers and execute commands from the operator.”
The scripts, dubbed “macro-weaponized document[s],” look like WordPress files and other open-source projects. Once the malware has control over a company’s servers, it can “set sleep time (delay between C2 interactions), exit malware, collect basic host information, check malware status, show current malware configuration, update malware configuration, execute system shell command, [and] download [and] upload files.”
These weaponized documents are specifically designed to catch the attention of cryptocurrency professionals.
Kaspersky Lab believes that the hacking group is explicitly targeting Korean crypto exchanges based on the fact that the malware is delivered using a malicious “Korean Hangul Word Processor format” (HWP), which takes advantage of a known weakness in the PostScript software and is popular only among Korean users. That one of the weaponized documents was sent to a crypto exchange based in Korea is also telling.
The Lazarus group uses several methods to infect exchanges’ servers. According to Kaspersky Lab, research shows that the group is most likely “running an old vulnerable instance of Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0 on Microsoft Windows Server 2003.” The group is also suspected of purchasing servers from a hosting company that it uses to “host macOS and Windows payloads.” The cybersecurity watchdog believes the group only puts malware on rented servers and uses servers that are already infected to run C2 scripts. These servers have been found from China to the European Union.
The research done by Kaspersky Lab further shows that the group has adopted better methods to avoid detection. Lazarus is separately developing malware for “32-bit and 64-bit Windows” so it has more choices concerning the platform its wishes to infiltrate and the type of compiled code it wishes to use. Kaspersky Lab concludes that the same developers are using these methods to infect Apple products, which is why the group built the macOS malware.
The report ends with a warning to the larger crypto and tech industry:
“If you’re part of the booming cryptocurrency or technological startup industry, exercise extra caution when dealing with new third parties or installing software on your systems. It’s best to check new software with an antivirus…[a]nd never ‘Enable Content’ (macro scripting) in Microsoft Office documents received from new or untrusted sources.”
The Lazarus group is suspected of perpetrating some of the biggest hacks ever seen in the cryptocurrency industry.
The group allegedly committed the hack against Coincheck, in which approximately 500 million NEM tokens were stolen in January 2018. The group also allegedly infiltrated the Bithumb network and made off with $31.5 million worth of digital currency.
Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has called for comments from financial services industry stakeholders in the country, policy makers and the general public towards the ongoing revision of the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) Core Principles for Effective Deposit Insurance System.
The proposed revision launched by IADI in May 2025, is a significant step towards enhancing the resilience and relevance of deposit insurance frameworks in the face of an evolving global financial landscape.
Specifically, the revision is aimed at comprehensively addressing structural changes, including digital innovation, the growing role of deposit insurers in resolution, and lessons learned from the banking turmoil in March 2023, which is the most significant systemic stress event since the 2007-09 global financial crisis.
The IADI Core Principles are used by jurisdictions, including Nigeria, as a benchmark for assessing the quality of their deposit insurance systems and for identifying gaps in their deposit insurance practices and measures to address them.
The Core Principles are also used by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in the context of the Financial Sector Assessment Programme (FSAP), to assess the effectiveness of jurisdictions’ deposit insurance systems and practices.
The first set of the Core Principles was issued jointly by the IADI and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) in June 2009 while the document is subjected to periodic revision order to keep it up-to-date with evolving trends on the global financial system landscape.
As a founding and committed member of IADI, NDIC recognises the importance of the ongoing revision and hereby invites stakeholders and the general public to actively participate in the process by reviewing the document on the lin
Onafriq, Africa’s largest digital payments network, has celebrated a major milestone, connecting nearly 1 billion mobile money wallets and 500 million bank accounts across the continent.
According to a statement released by the company, Onafriq has evolved from a mobile money switch to a comprehensive omnichannel payments network, facilitating seamless transactions and financial inclusion.
The company’s network now connects 961 million registered mobile wallets and 464 million registered bank accounts, with over 2,000 cross-border payment corridors supported.
Speaking on the achievement, Dare Okoudjou, Founder and CEO of Onafriq, said, “We remain fully committed to connecting every individual and business in Africa with each other and the world.”
Okoudjou noted that the company has grown in lockstep with the continent’s digital evolution, from mobile money to bank accounts, remittances, and real-time trade.
As Onafriq embarks on its next chapter, the company aims to develop infrastructure with local relevance while maintaining the scale of its pan-African infrastructure.
A prime example is Nigeria, where Onafriq is developing a unique payments stack that combines the strength of its cross-border network with the regulatory and foreign exchange realities of one of Africa’s most dynamic economies.
The company is also exploring blockchain infrastructure and stablecoin integrations to facilitate near-instant, programmable payments, aligning with the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
“We are increasingly focused on creating infrastructure with local depth,” Okoudjou said.
With extensive experience, wide reach, and a proven execution track record, Onafriq remains dedicated to building a payment infrastructure that unlocks prosperity across borders and within local communities.
United Bank for Africa (UBA) has informed its customers that, in compliance with a new directive from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), charges for USSD banking services will no longer be deducted from bank accounts, effective June 3, 2025.
In a notice sent to customers, the bank explained that the charges would now be deducted directly from users’ mobile airtime balances, in line with the NCC’s newly introduced End-User Billing (EUB) framework.
It said the new model aimed to ensure transparency in USSD transactions and shift billing responsibility to mobile network operators.
According to UBA, each USSD session would now cost ₦6.98 per 120 seconds, saying that customers initiating transactions would receive a prompt to provide consent at the start of each session, and airtime would only be debited if the bank is available to process the request.
The bank advised customers who are not comfortable with the new billing arrangement to opt for other digital banking alternatives such as the UBA mobile app and internet banking platform, which remain fully operational and user-friendly.
UBA reaffirmed its commitment to providing secure and accessible digital services, and encouraged customers to choose the channel that best suits their banking needs.
The policy marks a significant shift in Nigeria’s digital banking ecosystem and is expected to address longstanding disputes over USSD service charges between telecom operators and financial institutions.
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