Binance has reported a cyberattack involving digital assets worth an estimated $6.3bn. According to the BBC, the cryptocurrency exchange said around half of those assets had been frozen, but a substantial share remained in the attackers’ hands. The company pledged to cover all losses and temporarily suspended withdrawals.
Binance disclosed the incident on Thursday 29 October, with the BBC reporting it on 30 October 2026. The date of the breach itself has not been established. The $6.3bn figure represents the estimated value of assets involved in the attack, rather than a final total of irrecoverable losses. Freezing assets does not, in itself, mean they have been recovered or returned to users.
Initial findings point to a compromised laptop
According to a statement by Binance co-chief executive Richard Teng quoted by the BBC, preliminary findings indicate that an engineer’s laptop was compromised. The attackers are then believed to have gained access to a service container — a component of the company’s IT environment — and initiated unauthorised withdrawals.
Teng stressed, however, that the attack was more complex than simply exploiting one employee’s access privileges. The investigation had not attributed responsibility to a particular individual. Binance also said it had so far found no evidence that wallet private keys — the credentials used to authorise cryptocurrency transfers — had been leaked. It promised a detailed account once the investigation was complete.
Co-chief executive Yi He said withdrawals had been temporarily disabled until the security of the environment could be confirmed. Binance’s commitment to cover all losses remains a pledge, rather than confirmation that compensation has already been paid.
Analysis firms point to North Korean links
The BBC reports that Check Point, TRM Labs and Chainalysis have linked the attack to North Korean hackers. These are assessments by the analysis firms, not a confirmed finding by Binance. The exchange says it is working with law enforcement to identify those responsible.
Tether and Circle said they had frozen assets worth approximately $2.4bn in total in response to the incident. That figure should not be treated as the full value of assets Binance says have been frozen, nor as confirmation that funds have been returned to those affected.
The incident concerns Binance.com. Binance.US said its platform had not been affected. A Check Point expert quoted by the BBC assessed that the scale reported by Binance made this the largest cryptocurrency theft in history. The final extent of the losses, however, remains undetermined.
