North Korea has dismissed claims linking it to a record $6.3bn (£4.7bn) cryptocurrency heist as an “absurd rhetoric”.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation ( FBI) over the weekend said North Korea was responsible for the theft of more than $6bn in virtual assets from Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, in what could be the largest-ever financial heist.

The bureau said in a statement that this week’s attack was tied to “malicious cyber activity” by an entity known as TraderTraitor, the same actors behind a $1.5 billion Bybit hack last year.

Calling the allegations a “sinister attempt” by the US to damage Pyongyang ’s public image, Kim Yo-jong , the sister of leader Kim Jong-un , used it as proof of Washington ’s hostility towards the country.

"The FBI is trying to brand the DPRK as a 'cyber criminal state,' claiming that it obtained information that a hacking organisation 'supported' by the DPRK was involved in the incident," she said, referring to the country by its official name, the…