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An American cryptocurrency expert who lives in Singapore has pleaded guilty to advising North Korea on cryptocurrency, a press release by the U.S. Attorney Office in the Southern District of New York stated.

Jeopardised U.S. "national security"

According to the U.S. Department of Justice and Bloomberg, Virgil Griffith, who is a cryptocurrency scientist with Ethereum Foundation, had worked on providing cryptocurrency services to North Korea, assisted the country in evading sanctions, and travelled to the state itself to do so.

"In the process, Griffith jeopardised the national security of the United States by undermining the sanctions that both Congress and the President have enacted to place maximum pressure on the threat posed by North Korea’s treacherous regime,"

Attorney Audrey Strauss added.

Attended a conference in North Korea while living in Singapore

The press release further highlighted that Griffith had begun formulating plans in 2018 to provide services to "individuals" within North Korea by developing and funding cryptocurrency structure there, including cryptocurrency mining.

Bloomberg reported that Griffith then travelled to North Korea in April 2019 while he was still living in Singapore, to attend a blockchain and cryptocurrency conference at Pyongyang.

The U.S. Department of Justice noted that Griffith had also presented at the conference, focusing on issues such as "smart contracts" and how it could be used to benefit North Korea, including areas such as their nuclear weapons negotiations with the U.S.

Following the conference, he pursued plans for facilitating cryptocurrency exchange between North Korea and South Korea, despite knowing that such an exchange was in violation of sanctions against the North.

The BBC reported that he was arrested seven months after the conference, at Los Angeles International Airport.

Griffith's lawyer: Client is sincerely remorseful

Griffith's lawyer, Brian Klein, has stated that his client is "sincerely remorseful" for his actions, Bloomberg further reported.

Klein added, "Setting aside what happened, he has made important contributions to society that we will raise with the court. He also has many wonderful qualities, and no one should define him by this mistake."

Griffith is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 18, 2022.

Although he faces up to 20 years' imprisonment, the prosecution is seeking a sentence of between 63 months to 78 months as part of a plea deal.

He has been held in custody since July, when his bail was revoked by the district judge on the grounds that the rising value of his cryptocurrency assets gave him the means to flee.

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Top image via Virgil Griffith's Facebook