Binance Hit by Massive Crypto Theft as Investigators Trace Frozen Funds
Crypto thieves took $6.3 billion from Binance in what some are calling the biggest financial raid ever seen. On Thursday, the exchange was hit by a massive digital theft that shocked the crypto world and drew swift attention from investigators.
About $3 billion of the $6.3 billion in holdings had apparently been traced and locked on multiple exchanges, though it was still unclear whether those assets could be returned, NBC News reported. Binance also said customer withdrawals were expected to restart by Sunday, while deposits were said to be unchanged and operating as usual.
Binance co-CEO Richard Teng stated on Friday that early findings suggest more than one hacker may have taken part in what he described as a complicated attack. He also said the intruder used a self-destruct feature, which made the trail harder to follow and the inquiry more difficult.
Teng added that customer assets were secure. NBC News said the exchange’s corporate funds, rather than client balances, were the ones impacted by the theft.
The North Korean-linked hacking crew TraderTraitor is reportedly being considered a possible source of the attack on the crypto exchange, according to The New York Post. The report said criminals moved the digital money out of Binance wallets in about 20 minutes, beginning at 4:30 p.m. ET Thursday, after breaking into an engineer’s laptop.
The US Secret Service is assisting with efforts to track the stolen crypto assets. The incident shook cryptocurrency markets and related stocks, with Bitcoin and Ether both falling on Friday.
- Roughly $3 billion was reportedly traced and frozen across several exchanges.
- Binance said withdrawals should return by Sunday.
- Deposits were said to remain unaffected.
- Investigators suspect a coordinated attack involving more than one person.
The security breach sent ripples through the wider market and raised new concerns about exchange protection. Trading in major crypto assets and linked shares became more volatile as the news spread.
