Binance Hack: Crypto Falls as US$6.3bn Stolen

Binance, one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges, has recorded a theft of roughly US$6.3bn, according to a post on X. 

The security incident, which is thought to have originated as a result of an unsecured laptop, resulted in the theft of US$6.3bn from Binance wallets on ten blockchains. 

Stablecoin issuers such as Tether, Ripple, Circle and World Liberty Financial, backed by US President Donald Trump, froze roughly half of the stolen assets, Reuters report. 

Around US$3bn has been frozen in assets, stating also that it will cover all losses from its SAFU fund. 

According to Investing.com, Coinbase was down 5.2%, with Robinhood close behind losing 5.7%.

It also reports that Bitcoin has since fallen to a six-week low, and Binance’s native token BNB lost 6.1%. 

Who is behind the hack? 

TRM, a blockchain intelligence firm, has attributed the attack to elite North Korean hackers. 

Chainalysis notes that its investigators are observing ‘never-seen-before’ laundering patterns with the stolen Binance funds. 

It also says that it has a “high degree of confidence” that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is responsible for the hack, having observed its involvement of another hack with Bitget a month earlier. 

Suzy Pallett, President of international cybersecurity conference Black Hat, says: “The Binance incident looks set to become the biggest crypto heist in history, and what’s striking is how familiar this playbook is. 

“Billions can vanish because one person clicked the wrong thing, and with cyberattacks like these, it all starts by compromising a person, not a platform. 

“The question now is not only who executed this attack, but how money like this gets laundered and cashed out once it’s been stolen. 

“It’s a complicated process, and if we really want to understand how hackers execute attacks like these, we need to be working closely with the people who hunt these perpetrators down.”

Immediate actions 

In an update, the company noted on X that the hack is the result of multiple points of breach, as opposed to a single entry method via a laptop. 

It was described by the company as a “complex attack”. TRM notes that most of the attack happened in about 20 minutes. 

Withdrawals have been frozen by the company, however, deposits remain unaffected. 

“User funds are safe”, the company reassures its users in another update on X. 

An updated Proof of Reserves report will be published once remediation is complete following the recovery of losses. 

Proof of Reserves set out to provide transparency for users with digital assets. 

It’s a verification method demonstrating to consumers a crypto platform’s ability to maintain digital assets. 

Feike Hacquebord, Principal Threat Researcher at TrendAI, says: “This is a fast-moving investigation, and Binance is still working to establish the root cause. 

“Despite the scale of the theft, this is not a threat to global financial stability. Around half of the stolen funds have already been frozen, while the regulated banking system is well equipped to absorb a shock of this size. This is a major crisis for Binance, not a crisis for the global financial system.

“The role of automation will be an important part of the investigation. It is possible that automated, or even AI-assisted, techniques were used to move and launder funds, but we simply do not have enough evidence yet to say that definitively.”

The road to recovery 

Reporting from Sky News quotes an industry insider as saying that this hack is the “largest bank heist in human history”. 

Binance is working with the FBI and the US Secret Service, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters. 

Global law enforcement is also involved. 

The recovery of assets has begun, as Binance has reserved over US$6.24bn of funds specifically to cover the hack.

It had US$5bn in assets ready to deploy, and is currently purchasing the remaining amount through token assets 

Binance key partners: 

Tether: Share a massive operational reliance with USDT serving as the primary liquidity backbone across the exchange. Binance regularly integrates Tether across various networks and processes enormous volumes of the stablecoin, whilst occasionally shifting promotional focus toward alternative assets 

Circle: Binance solidified ties with Circle through a strategic five-year agreement and a minority equity investment to broaden the use of USDC globally. 

Ethereum: Binance functions as a core ecosystem participant by running critical validator infrastructure, facilitating bridging to its BNB Chain, and providing extensive liquidity for Ether.

Ripple: While Binance and Ripple Labs operate independently without an overarching joint venture, they collaborate routinely on commercial asset listings, cross-chain support, and ecosystem initiatives.