Binance reported a security breach with an estimated $6.3 billion impact, potentially the largest cryptocurrency heist on record. Its preliminary investigation pointed to an engineer’s compromised laptop as a possible entry point, enabling unauthorized withdrawals. The exchange said customer funds remained safe, suspended deposits and withdrawals while it secured its wallet systems, and promised to cover hacking losses. Binance and industry partners had frozen about $3 billion, but the status of the other $3.3 billion was unclear. Tether, Circle, Ripple, and other firms also froze assets linked to the incident, including nearly $1.57 billion frozen by Tether and more than $800 million by Circle.
The breach sent crypto prices and related shares lower: Bitcoin and ether each fell more than 3%, Binance’s BNB token dropped 5%, and Coinbase shares declined. Analysts warned that the scale of the incident could weaken investor confidence in centralized exchanges by highlighting security, solvency, liquidity, and counterparty risks. Binance, which reported 335 million registered users and $162.8 billion in assets under custody in 2025, maintains a bitcoin reserve intended to protect users after security breaches. The event adds to a wave of crypto thefts, including $2.9 billion stolen across nearly 150 attacks last year and a reported $350 million theft from Bitget in September. Binance.US and Coinbase said they were unaffected.
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