The Binance cryptocurrency exchange, as the largest exchange in the world, has temporarily halted its deposit and withdrawal activities due to a suspected cyber attack. Blockchain analysts believe that a North Korean hacking unit played a role in this theft, which amounts to over $6 billion.
Details of the Cyber Attack
Binance announced that it has blocked approximately $3 billion of assets affected by this attack and has halted deposit and withdrawal activities for security investigations. The company TRM, which specializes in blockchain intelligence, attributed the attack to the hacking unit TraderTraitor and stated that this unit is likely responsible for the major theft.
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In a report published by TRM, it was stated that the attackers withdrew approximately $6.36 billion from Binance wallets within 20 minutes. This incident is recognized as the largest cryptocurrency theft in history.
Consequences and Reactions
Experts believe that North Korea uses cryptocurrency theft and other illegal cyber activities to obtain foreign currency and finance its nuclear programs. In response to this attack, Binance announced that it is working closely with regulatory authorities to identify and apprehend the hackers. The company also emphasized that it will cover all losses resulting from the attack.
Yi He, one of the founders of Binance, stated that users can be assured that their assets are completely safe. The company has reported that initial investigations revealed that a software infrastructure engineer was attacked, leading to unauthorized access to internal services and permitted withdrawals. Binance also emphasized that no evidence of private key leaks from wallets has been found.
The impact of this news on the cryptocurrency market has also been noticeable, with Bitcoin's price dropping by 3.2% to below $79,000 on Thursday. Additionally, Tether has blocked approximately $1.6 billion of its USDT, and Circle has blocked $800 million of USDC.
Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, who established the platform in 2017, stated that as a stakeholder, he expects all user assets to be fully covered. He recently resigned as CEO after admitting to failing to prevent money laundering on his platform and was pardoned in 2025 by former U.S. President Donald Trump.
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