Hackers Steal $6.3bn From Binance, Details Emerge on How It Happened
- Binance said hackers accessed about $6.3bn in digital assets after breaching an engineer's compromised laptop
- The world's largest cryptocurrency exchange suspended deposits and withdrawals as it worked to contain the fallout
- Blockchain intelligence firm TRM linked the attack with high confidence to a North Korean state-sponsored hacking group
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Legit.ng journalist Dave Ibemere has over a decade of experience in business journalism, with in-depth knowledge of the Nigerian economy, stocks, and general market trends.
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has disclosed a major security breach in which hackers reportedly stole about $6.3bn in digital assets, in what could rank as the largest theft of its kind in history.
The exchange, the world's biggest by assets under management, announced on Thursday, October 29 that it had suspended deposits and withdrawals while working to contain the damage.
Source: Getty Images
Binance said about $3bn of the stolen funds had already been frozen and that it would cover all remaining losses. The company assured customers that their holdings were safe.
Preliminary findings from Binance's investigation pointed to a compromised laptop belonging to one of its engineers as the entry point for the attack. Hackers are believed to have exploited access to the device to carry out unauthorised transactions.
Binance founder and major shareholder Changpeng Zhao had separately confirmed that the exchange appeared to have suffered a cyberattack.
Binance told Al Jazeera that its security teams were working to resolve the incident and identify those responsible. The exchange said it was cooperating with law enforcement agencies and planned to release a full technical report once its investigation was complete.
North Korean hackers blamed for attack
Blockchain intelligence firm TRM assessed with high confidence that the breach was carried out by TraderTraitor, a North Korean state-sponsored hacking unit linked to the wider Lazarus Group.
TRM's global head of policy, Ari Redbord, described the incident as unprecedented and warned that proceeds from the theft could be used to fund North Korea's weapons programmes.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, he said the scale of the attack raised global security concerns beyond the cryptocurrency sector.
The incident also affected digital asset markets, with Bitcoin falling by roughly 5% to below $77,000 following reports of the breach.
Source: Getty Images
How the Binance theft compares
The reported theft surpasses the previous record set in 2025, when North Korean-linked hackers stole about $1.5bn from cryptocurrency exchange Bybit.
According to TRM's 2026 Crypto Crime Report, cybercriminals stole approximately $2.87bn across nearly 150 hacking incidents in 2025.
Binance, founded by Zhao in 2017, holds approximately $155bn in assets under management, according to CoinMarketCap.
The company said it would publish a detailed technical report after its investigation concludes.
Man arraigned over alleged N700m stolen from microfinance bank
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday, September 4, 2026, brought Osaretin Osagiede before the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja, charging him with unauthorised access to computer material and receiving stolen property totalling N700 million.
The Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the EFCC filed three counts against Osagiede, alleging that he hacked into the systems of Best Start Microfinance Bank and received N700 million belonging to the institution.
Source: Legit.ng
