Binance Users Pull $3.6bn After Record Crypto Hack
Customers withdrew $3.6 billion from Binance as the exchange reopened following what appears to be the largest crypto hack ever.
Binance customers withdrew a total of $3.6 billion (£2.7 billion) after the exchange reopened on Sunday, marking the biggest post‑hack outflow in its history.
Withdrawal and deposit figures
Between 06:00 and 15:30 GMT on November 1, Binance processed $4.649 billion in withdrawals.
During the same period, the platform recorded $1.01 billion in deposits.
The net result was an outflow of approximately $3.64 billion, about 2% of the exchange’s $171 billion in assets under management.
Scope of the hack
The incident impacted $6.3 billion worth of digital assets on Binance’s global centralized exchange, Binance.com. The U.S. platform reported no effect.
Major organisations, including the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), have accused North Korea of responsibility. The FBI released a list of cryptocurrency wallet addresses tied to the North Korean cybercrime group known as TraderTraitor or the Lazarus Group.
Binance’s response
Binance says it has reserved more than $6.3 billion to address the fallout.
The exchange claims to have covered around 95% of the stolen assets, though the remaining amount may take longer to source.
Binance has repeatedly stated it will cover all losses linked to the attack.
Withdrawals of over two dozen major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, have resumed, with additional services to be restored in phases after security checks.
Possible cause
Early investigations suggest the breach may have begun with a compromised laptop belonging to an engineer, allowing hackers to execute unauthorized transactions.
The FBI’s list of wallet addresses has prompted industry partners to block transactions involving those accounts, and Binance urged cryptocurrency issuers to freeze affected assets.
Overall, the hack represents what is believed to be the largest crypto breach to date, prompting a swift recovery effort by Binance and heightened scrutiny from law‑enforcement agencies.
