By Salma El-Sakka
A record-setting cyberattack on Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, has shaken the digital assets industry, with more than $6 billion moved through wallets linked to a security breach.
Scale of the Breach
Binance announced late Thursday that around $3 billion of the stolen funds had been located and frozen across several exchanges, though recoverability remains uncertain. The company said it set aside $5 billion to make affected users whole and is working with partners to purchase an additional $1.34 billion to cover the total believed stolen.
Industry Reaction
The hack echoes the collapse of FTX and renews concerns about crypto's vulnerability to criminal activity. Stablecoin operators Tether and Circle moved quickly to freeze assets implicated in the breach. Laura Clatworthy, head of digital assets at Edwin Coe, said the sector faces collective reputational harm and expects cooperation to cover losses.
Market Impact
Bitcoin fell more than 5% overnight to approximately $77,000, extending a month-long decline, while other cryptocurrencies dropped as much as 9%. The industry was already reeling from the failure of the Clarity Act in the U.S. Congress, which would have provided legal protections for crypto assets.
Investigation Ongoing
The heist unfolded in roughly 20 minutes starting around 4 p.m. ET Thursday. Binance initially cited a compromised laptop but later acknowledged additional breach points. Blockchain analysis firms noted attributes associated with North Korean actors, though Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said the attackers remain unidentified. TRM Labs estimates $2.4 billion in Bitcoin and Ethereum will never be recovered.
