Finance1 min read

Binance sees outflows stabilising as exchange returns online after $6.3 billion heist

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Platform administrators have funded 95% of the missing tokens, with the remaining balance delayed due to the limited liquidity of certain stolen assets. Client withdrawals are currently restricted to a phased rollout of 15 cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, ether, and major stablecoins. In the wake of the breach, the combined market capitalization of USDT and USDC dropped by roughly $1.2 billion amid broader market volatility. Meanwhile, the FBI identified the North Korean state-sponsored unit TraderTraitor as the perpetrator behind the rapid late-Thursday attack.

Key points

  • Binance covered the vast majority of client losses with corporate reserves to prevent ins…: Binance covered the vast majority of client losses with corporate reserves to prevent insolvency and restore market functionality.
  • Federal investigators attributed the multi-billion-dollar intrusion to the North Korean s…: Federal investigators attributed the multi-billion-dollar intrusion to the North Korean state-sponsored hacking collective known as TraderTraitor.
  • Platform withdrawals remain strictly managed through a phased token rollout while analyst…: Platform withdrawals remain strictly managed through a phased token rollout while analysts evaluate overall institutional and retail confidence.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

The exchange moved to reassure crypto investors and said withdrawals were stabilising after an initial spike and deposit volumes had remained "substantial". It said it had now covered 95% of the assets stolen in the heist.

After hitting a six-week low on Friday, bitcoin prices recovered slightly through the weekend to trade above $78,000 on Monday. Ether hit a two-month low on Friday and also recovered a little to $2,287.

"(That) puts the withdrawals in the range of a precautionary reaction rather than any sort of capital flight," said Ari Redbord, global head of policy at TRM Labs.

The Binance theft, which analysts say could be the biggest financial robbery ever, adds to a string of recent crypto thefts. Attackers stole $2.9 billion worth of cryptocurrency across nearly 150 incidents last year, according to researchers at TRM Labs.

Withdrawal levels are an early test of whether customers still trust Binance with their money after the attack.

Stablecoin market capitalisations tend to fall when money is leaving cryptocurrencies and they have dropped since Friday. The combined capitalisation of the two largest…

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