Finance1 min read

Why bitcoin held up better after the record Binance hack

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The leading cryptocurrency dropped roughly 4% to $77,065, proving far more durable than its historical post-exploit average loss of 8.3%. Confidence was bolstered by Binance's pledge to reimburse affected customers alongside its dedicated $1.2 billion Secure Asset Fund for Users. Meanwhile, stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle managed to freeze about $3 billion worth of the stolen capital. Stability was further reinforced because long-term holders control most supply, with just 6% sitting in exchange-traded funds.

Key points

  • Investors recognized the incident as a centralized exchange security breach rather than a…: Investors recognized the incident as a centralized exchange security breach rather than a structural flaw in the bitcoin protocol.
  • Binance maintained institutional confidence through quick reimbursement assurances and a…: Binance maintained institutional confidence through quick reimbursement assurances and a dedicated $1.2 billion emergency reserve fund.
  • Minimal ETF market penetration has left the broader token supply largely anchored with st…: Minimal ETF market penetration has left the broader token supply largely anchored with steadfast long-term holders.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

Binance has suffered the biggest hack in crypto history, but that's done little to shake confidence in bitcoin, according to market analysts and researchers.

On Thursday, the world's largest exchange by daily trading volume said that roughly $6.3 billion were affected in an exploit. Security firm TRM Labs linked the security incident to North Korea.

The hack sparked a slight sell-off in bitcoin. On Friday, the cryptocurrency traded at $77,065 around 1:34 p.m. ET, down about 4% on the day.

By comparison, the token has fallen 8.3% on average in the first 24 hours following past crypto exchange exploits, according to data from institutional crypto platform Anchorage Digital.

The digital asset has remained relatively resilient because the hack on Binance had nothing to do with the security of the bitcoin network itself, according to Sam Callahan, director of bitcoin strategy and research at crypto treasury firm OranjeBTC.

"Investors recognize an important distinction: Bitcoin itself was not hacked," Callahan told CNBC. "This was a security breach at a centralized exchange, not a failure of the Bitcoin network."

Binance hack isn't first…

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