Finance1 min read

Crypto firm Binance covers 90% of losses after $6.3bn hack

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The historic breach originated through an engineer's compromised laptop alongside several other breach points, with the perpetrators deploying self-destruct mechanisms to hide their operations. Blockchain analytics specialists currently suspect North Korea's state-backed Lazarus Group orchestrated the intrusion, an allegation the country consistently denies. Global investigators and the US Secret Service have already managed to freeze roughly $3bn of the stolen digital assets. Binance has fully restored coverage for ten widely traded tokens and promised that no customer balances will suffer losses.

Key points

  • The exchange plans to ensure users suffer no losses by absorbing the entire financial sho…: The exchange plans to ensure users suffer no losses by absorbing the entire financial shortfall internally.
  • Sourcing the remaining 10% of stolen cryptocurrencies in the required quantities may take…: Sourcing the remaining 10% of stolen cryptocurrencies in the required quantities may take the platform additional time.
  • US federal agents and blockchain experts are actively investigating potential links betwe…: US federal agents and blockchain experts are actively investigating potential links between the sophisticated intrusion and North Korea's Lazarus Group.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

- Published

Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, says it has covered 90% of the $6.3bn (£4.7bn) assets stolen in a hack on Thursday.

The remaining 10% may take longer to source in the required amounts, the company added.

Binance has consistently pledged to cover 100% of the losses from what is suspected to be crypto's biggest hack on record and said it has set aside more than $6.34bn in company funds to do so.

"Binance will absorb the financial impact of these stolen funds, not our users," the company said in a statement on Saturday.

It said it had replenished the assets using various funds and its own corporate treasury.

All holdings of the cryptocurrencies bitcoin, ethereum and Tether are covered, along with seven other widely-traded crypto assets, the company said.

The company said its next goal is resuming withdrawal services for users, saying it remained on track to reopen withdrawals on Sunday 1 November and would provide a further update once details were confirmed.

The hack is believed to be the largest in history, eclipsing the record of…

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