Binance Confirms Major Security Breach with $6.3 Billion Estimated Impact, $3 Billion Frozen

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance disclosed Thursday a significant security incident carrying an estimated total impact of approximately $6.3 billion, revealing that $3 billion in assets have already been frozen as the platform temporarily halted deposits and withdrawals. The company pledged to cover all customer losses arising from the event.

In a statement, a Binance spokesperson confirmed the exchange was working around the clock to resolve the situation and had suspended transactions as a precautionary measure.

“User funds remain safe. As a precaution, all deposits and withdrawals are temporarily suspended while our security teams conduct checks, secure wallet infrastructure, and trace affected assets, with the close support of our law enforcement and industry partners,” the spokesperson said.

The exchange also committed to absorbing any financial fallout. “Users will not bear the financial impact of this incident. Binance will cover all losses,” the representative added.

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance said a major security incident had an estimated total impact of approximately $6.3 billion, with $3 billion frozen as the company investigates. (Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images / Getty Images)

According to a post on X, Binance’s preliminary investigation indicates the breach may have originated from a compromised laptop belonging to a DevOps engineer, potentially granting an attacker access to a service container and the ability to submit unauthorized withdrawal transactions. The exchange emphasized it found no evidence that wallet private keys were compromised.

Binance founder and majority shareholder Changpeng Zhao characterized the event as an apparent cyberattack, though the company has not officially labeled it a hack.

“User funds are safe! It does look like a hack on Binance,” Zhao wrote on X.

Zhao, who no longer manages daily operations, thanked stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle for rapidly freezing affected assets. At the time of his post, he noted Tether had frozen approximately $971 million and Circle roughly $823 million. Tether later reported freezing nearly $1.57 billion, while Circle froze more than $800 million, according to Reuters.

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao said a major security incident at the cryptocurrency exchange appeared to be a hack, as the company estimated the potential impact at $6.3 billion. (Reuters/Tyrone Siu / Reuters)

Crypto firm Ripple also froze approximately $200 million in potentially affected funds and stated it was coordinating with relevant parties, per Reuters.

Binance co-founder Yi He addressed the incident on X, confirming the temporary withdrawal suspension while security teams worked to secure the platform.

“User funds are safe. Binance will cover all hacking losses. Deposits and withdrawals are temporarily suspended while our team conducts security checks, freezes funds, and works with law enforcement,” she wrote.

The exchange said it would cover losses through its Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) and corporate funds, promising to publish an updated Proof of Reserves once the incident is resolved.

Following the announcement, Bitcoin slid roughly 2% to a six-week low of $77,646 in early Asian trading Friday, according to Reuters. Ether dropped approximately 2% to a two-month low of $2,238.76, while BNB declined more than 8% over 24 hours to $694, according to CoinGecko data cited by Reuters.

Binance temporarily suspended deposits and withdrawals following a security incident that founder Changpeng Zhao said appeared to be a hack. (Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images / Getty Images)

Reuters contributed to this report.

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