Binance loses $6 billion in largest crypto theft on record
Suspected North Korean hackers stole the funds through an engineer's laptop, and roughly half has been frozen so far.
By Justin Brooks ·
The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, lost $6 billion in a suspected hack that appears to be the biggest digital heist in history. The theft forced the platform to pause withdrawals, creating a scramble to recover the stolen assets before they moved too far.
Binance stated late Thursday that the breach began when an attacker accessed a service container via an engineer’s laptop. This access allowed the intruders to submit unauthorized withdrawal transactions. The exchange said it is using its own funds and an emergency reserve to cover the losses, asserting that user funds remain safe.
Multiple blockchain intelligence firms attribute the attack to a North Korean hacking unit. TRM Labs said the attack patterns match previous North Korea-linked heists, while Pangolin Intelligence cited on-chain activity correlations with known incidents. Chainalysis also reported high confidence that North Korea was responsible, noting the funds are moving across multiple blockchains including bitcoin and ethereum.
A coalition of cryptocurrency firms has already frozen about $3 billion of the stolen money. Richard Tend, co-CEO of Binance, said the attack was a complex process rather than a single action. He added that the investigation has not found evidence of a wallet private key leak or attributed the hack to a specific individual.
US law enforcement is actively engaged in the investigation. The FBI said it is working with public and private partners to determine the scope of the activity. A US Secret Service spokesperson said investigators are working around the clock with partners, including Circle, to trace and recover the funds. The agency is also coordinating with the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
This incident follows a 2024 breach of Bybit, where North Korean hackers allegedly stole $1.5 billion. North Korea’s hacking teams serve as a primary revenue source for the regime, according to US and South Korean officials. Changpeng Zhao, Binance’s co-founder, said on X that he expects user funds to be fully covered, countering suggestions otherwise.
Bitcoin and ether prices dropped sharply after the news broke but recovered some ground by midday Friday in Hong Kong, trading 2 to 3 percent lower. Binance expects to resume withdrawal services by Sunday morning after completing security checks.
Source: WSVN
