Hackers stole about $6.3 billion from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, in what analysts call the largest crypto hack in history. The Binance $6.3bn hack hit wallets on multiple blockchains, with the exchange saying roughly half the affected assets—about $3 billion—have been frozen with partners so far. Co-founder Yi He said Binance would cover “all hacking losses,” while deposits were described as unaffected and withdrawals were expected to resume within 48 hours.
How the theft unfolded
US blockchain analysis firm TRM Labs said attackers targeted Binance wallets across 10 blockchains and moved most of the funds in about 20 minutes. Binance said an initial investigation suggested the breach may have begun with a hacked laptop belonging to one of its engineers, allowing an attacker into a system and enabling unauthorised withdrawals. “The incident stems from multiple factors,” the exchange said, adding that its security team was tracing the attack path through the compromised computer.
Stablecoin issuers and other firms moved quickly to lock stolen funds. Tether said it froze nearly $1.57 billion linked to the incident, Circle froze more than $800 million, and Ripple froze roughly $200 million, according to Yi He. World Liberty Financial said it worked with custodian BitGo to freeze stolen funds; Yi said about $27 million in stablecoins and some $2 million in World Liberty tokens had been frozen.
Who is blamed—and what Binance says
TRM Labs and Chainalysis attributed the raid to a North Korean hacking unit known as TraderTraitor, saying they made that judgment with high confidence. TRM said several features matched earlier heists linked to North Korea, including a 2025 hack of exchange Bybit that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation had attributed to Pyongyang. That Bybit theft, put at about $1.5 billion, had been the previous high-water mark. Binance did not directly answer questions about North Korea links but said it was working with law enforcement “to confirm the identity of these criminals and bring them to justice.” North Korea’s mission in Geneva and its embassy in China did not immediately comment when asked.
The Binance $6.3bn hack concerns the global Binance.com platform. The smaller Binance.US service for American residents said it was not affected, and Coinbase said it was likewise unaffected. Former Binance chief Changpeng Zhao, now a major shareholder rather than the day-to-day boss, said the activity looked like a hack and that he expected user funds to be covered. Binance, which reported about 335 million registered users and roughly $162.8 billion in assets under custody in its 2025 annual report, also pointed to its secure asset fund—a bitcoin reserve meant to protect users after security breaches—and stated that “user funds remain safe.”
Markets react, and what comes next
In Asian trading on Friday, bitcoin fell more than 3% to a six-week low of $76,368 and ether more than 3% to a two-month low of $2,178. BNB, used to pay fees on Binance, was down about 5% over 24 hours at $709.70, according to market data aggregator CoinGecko. Shares in Coinbase Global slid 4.8% and those of bitcoin buyer Strategy nearly 6% in extended US trading. Industry voices framed the episode as a test of trust in large centralised exchanges; Ari Redbord of TRM Labs called it a “watershed moment,” noting that the attacker still holds a large sum and that recovery work is far from over.
Binance has also been active in Pakistan, where it received a no-objection certificate last year to begin a registration process. For users watching the exchange from here, the near-term questions are when withdrawals reopen and how quickly frozen funds are recovered. The exchange says it is working with partners and law enforcement while it locks down systems.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- 2025: Attackers stole about $1.5 billion from Bybit in what was then the largest known crypto heist; US authorities linked that raid to North Korea.
- September (recent period cited by researchers): Bitget said roughly $350 million in crypto was stolen from its platform.
- Last year (industry tally): TRM Labs researchers said attackers took $2.9 billion across nearly 150 crypto attacks.
- Thursday: Binance confirmed about $6.3 billion in assets were hit, said roughly half had been frozen, and pledged to cover losses.
- Friday: Asian crypto markets sold off, with bitcoin, ether and BNB posting sharp losses after the news.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Binance se roughly $6.3 billion ka crypto chori ho gaya hai—ab tak ki sab se bari crypto hack. Company kehti hai ke lagbhag aadha paisa freeze ho chuka hai aur user losses company khud cover karegi. Withdrawals thori der ke liye band hain, lekin 48 hours ke andar wapas khulne ki umeed hai. Pakistan mein jo log Binance use karte hain, unhen abhi intezar karna hoga jab tak system secure na ho jaye.
