Binance withdrawals resume after $6.3 billion hack

Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, resumed withdrawal services on Sunday following a $6.3 billion theft that occurred on Thursday night. The company had suspended withdrawals while it investigated the breach and repaired its platform.

In the nine and a half hours after access reopened, users pulled out a net total of $3.64 billion, which equals 2.1 percent of the assets held on the exchange prior to the hack. Binance reported processing $4.65 billion in withdrawals against $1.01 billion in deposits during that period.

The exchange is restoring services in stages to ensure stability. It initially allowed withdrawals for Ethereum, USDT, and USDC tokens on the Ethereum blockchain, as well as specific assets on the BNB Smart Chain. By later Sunday, access expanded to include Dogecoin and Solana on their respective networks.

Binance stated it is prioritizing tokens based on user demand from the previous week. The company warned that high traffic volumes could cause temporary delays and longer processing times for users attempting to move their funds.

The FBI attributed the theft to TraderTraitor, a hacker group linked to North Korea. Agents said they expected the stolen funds to be converted and further laundered. This group was also blamed for a $1.5 billion theft from Bybit last year.

Binance announced it will reimburse customers whose assets were stolen. The company has assembled a fund covering 95 percent of the stolen amount, paid from its own revenues and an emergency reserve. It is currently purchasing the remaining 5 percent in the open market, noting that those specific tokens are less liquid and harder to source at scale.

Initial investigations identified a compromised engineer’s laptop as a point of entry, though the company later found additional breaches. Richard Teng, co-chief executive of Binance, said the firm is rebuilding its infrastructure and conducting a full security review. The company is collaborating with law enforcement and blockchain analytics firms and plans to publish a detailed report on its findings.