Binance Resumes Withdrawals After $6.3 Billion Cyberattack; $3 Billion
in Stolen Assets Frozen
The cryptocurrency exchange saw an
immediate uptick in customer withdrawals, following the theft of $6.3 billion
in tokens that has been linked to North Korea.
·
Binance, the world's largest
cryptocurrency exchange, resumed customer withdrawals on Sunday, three days
after suspending transactions following a major cyberattack on Thursday
(29.10.2026).
·
Hackers reportedly stole $6.3 billion in digital
assets, potentially making it the biggest cryptocurrency heist to date.
·
Initial withdrawals triggered an outflow of $3.64
billion, equivalent to just 2.1% of Binance's total assets of $171
billion.
·
Following restoration of transactions, Binance
reported:
o
Withdrawals: $4.65 billion
o
Deposits: $1.01 billion
·
Binance assured customers that it would cover
all losses arising from the cyberattack.
·
The exchange, working with other cryptocurrency
firms, has managed to freeze approximately $3 billion of the stolen assets.
·
Cybersecurity analysts and the US Federal Bureau
of Investigation (FBI) have attributed the attack to North Korea.
·
Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis suggested
that artificial intelligence may have accelerated the attack, with hackers
processing thousands of transactions within a short period.
·
Binance co-founder Changpeng
Zhao thanked US agencies, including the Secret Service, for helping track and
freeze stolen funds.
·
Binance warned customers against fraudulent online
compensation offers and said it was continuing security testing of remaining
networks and assets.
Significance: The
incident highlights growing cybersecurity threats to cryptocurrency exchanges,
the vulnerability of digital assets and the importance of international
cooperation in tracking and recovering stolen funds.
Binance,
the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, said Sunday that it had begun allowing
users to withdraw money, three days after it froze assets in the wake of a cyberattack.
Withdrawals initially spiked, as the exchange saw an outflow of $3.64 billion, but
then stabilized, Binance said.
The
movement was relatively small, Binance said, representing just 2.1 percent of the
$171 billion in assets that it manages.
The
announcement was an effort to reassure Binance’s users after hackers stole $6.3
billion in digital coins on Thursday, in what appears to be the biggest crypto heist
to date. In the wake of the hack, Binance halted withdrawals.
“Our
team continues testing rigorously the remaining networks and assets,” Binance said
in a post on social media. “We know how important safe and reliable access to your
funds is and will share details of the next phase as soon as we can. Rest assured
that market conditions are stable.”
Binance
said that it would cover all losses that occurred during the hack and that it had
worked with other cryptocurrency firms to freeze about $3 billion in stolen assets.
Cybersecurity
analysts and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have attributed the hack to North
Korea, which has targeted cryptocurrency companies for years, taking advantage of
vulnerabilities in their infrastructure to steal assets. The hackers may have used
artificial intelligence technology to accelerate their attack, according to the
crypto analytics firm Chainalysis, which said that the attackers processed “thousands
of transactions in a short period.”
After
Binance began allowing users to conduct transactions again, users deposited $1.01
billion and withdrew about $4.65 billion in assets, the company said. Most of those
transactions occurred in the first few hours after trading was restored.
“Trust
isn’t earned by what you say in good times. It’s earned by what you do in hard times,”
Changpeng Zhao, a co-founder of Binance, said in a post
on X on Sunday. “Thank you for your trust!”
He
also warned Binance customers to beware online scammers making bogus offers of compensation,
and he commended the Secret Service and other U.S. agencies that have assisted Binance
since the hack. “You acted within minutes to help track and freeze stolen funds,
and the work continues,” he wrote on X.