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Binance Reports $6.3 Billion Hack, Likely Linked to North Korea
· Confirmed
In Short: Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, reported Thursday that approximately $6.3 billion was impacted in an apparent hack, making it the largest cryptocurrency theft on record.
Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, reported Thursday that approximately $6.3 billion was impacted in an apparent hack, making it the largest cryptocurrency theft on record.
The hack moved about $6.36 billion out of Binance wallets on ten blockchains, according to the company.
A U.S.-based blockchain intelligence firm, TRM, said a North Korean cyber unit was likely behind the attack, attributing it to TraderTraitor, North Korea’s elite hacking unit.
Another blockchain analysis firm, Chainalysis, also believes the Binance hack was likely done by TraderTraitor.
Binance has worked with blockchain partners to freeze affected assets, with roughly $3 billion frozen so far.
The company said it had suspended all deposits and withdrawals and was working closely with law enforcement partners to trace and freeze additional assets.
Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao said the exchange would cover all hacking losses, expressing confidence that user funds would be safe.
An initial investigation suggested the incident may have involved a compromised laptop belonging to a DevOps engineer, leading to unauthorized transactions.
The attack exploited a vulnerability in the BSC Token Hub, a cross-chain bridge connecting two BNB blockchain networks, and withdrew around 2 million BNB tokens worth approximately $586 million.
Binance has promised to cover all losses and is sharing regular updates on its social media channels as it uncovers more information about the hack.
Sean Foley, an expert in crypto markets at Macquarie University in Sydney, told Al Jazeera that a blow to confidence in Binance risks dampening prices of crypto assets.
When North Korea steals at this scale, the money funds weapons proliferation and other destabilizing activity, making this a global security issue, not just a crypto theft.
What this adds
The hack is the largest in the history of cryptocurrency exchanges, surpassing the $1.5 billion hack on Bybit in February 2025.
Binance's BNB token declined by more than 8% over the previous 24 hours following the announcement of the hack.
The incident highlights the ongoing threat posed by North Korean hacking units to the global cryptocurrency ecosystem.
What's confirmed
- The world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange reported Thursday that approximately $6.3 billion was impacted in an apparent hack.
- The hack moved about $6.36 billion out of Binance wallets on 10 blockchains, it says, making it the largest cryptocurrency theft on record.
- "An attacker moved approximately USD 6.36 billion out of Binance wallets on ten blockchains, most of it in about 20 minutes," the firm said.
- The company has worked with blockchain partners to freeze affected assets, with roughly $3 billion frozen.
- A U.S.-based blockchain intelligence firm says a North Korean unit was likely behind the hack that impacted more than $6 billion on Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange.
- Blockchain analysts said a North Korean hacking unit was likely behind the theft of more than $6 billion from Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange.
- Zhao, who founded the Binance platform in 2017, said "as a shareholder, I expect all user funds will be fully covered."
- The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange said it was working with law enforcement agencies, token issuers and blockchain intelligence firms to trace and freeze additional assets.
- Binance said the effort included $27 million in stablecoins and around $2 million in World Liberty tokens.
- TRM attributes the attack to TraderTraitor, North Korea’s elite hacking unit.
- Another blockchain analysis firm, Chainalysis, also believes the Binance hack was likely done by TraderTraitor.
- About $US3 billion ($A4.3 billion) had been located so far, it said, giving no update on the status of the remaining $US3.3 billion ($A4.7 billion) as Binance co-founder Yi He said the company would cover "all hacking losses".
What's still developing
- Binance is investigating a suspected hack after wallets linked to it on the Ethereum, Bitcoin, and TRON networks saw outflows of around $5.7 billion, according to The Kobeissi Letter.
- Blockchain tracker Arkham Intelligence shows about $5.8 billion held across wallets linked to the attacker, though this is not a confirmed loss figure.
- Cybercriminals stole $2.87bn in crypto assets in nearly 150 hacking incidents in 2025, according to the 2026 Crypto Crime Report produced by TRM.
- Binance-linked BNB declined by more than 8% over the previous 24 hours.
- However, Binance has not confirmed the identity of the attackers, and investigations are still underway.
- By Audrey Simons | Published: 10/30/2026, 2:59:36 PM EDT Binance logo and hacker code in an illustration taken on Oct. 30, 2026.
- “We are working nonstop to resolve this,” Binance's co-CEO Richard Teng said Friday in a video posted to X.
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