Binance reports $6.3 billion loss in suspected hack

Cryptocurrency exchanges face constant threats from digital intruders, but few incidents match the scale of the breach reported by Binance on Thursday. The company stated that a potential security issue has impacted approximately $6.3 billion in assets, marking one of the largest financial hits in the history of digital currency trading.

Binance identified the cause as a compromised laptop belonging to a DevOps engineer. According to the company, this breach allowed an attacker to access a specific service container and submit unauthorized withdrawal transactions. Binance noted that it has not found evidence that any wallet private keys were leaked during the incident.

The exchange worked with blockchain partners to freeze affected assets immediately. By late Thursday, roughly $3 billion of the stolen funds had been frozen on-chain. Binance suspended all deposits and withdrawals to conduct security checks and coordinate with law enforcement agencies to trace the remaining assets.

Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, addressed the incident on social media. Although he stepped down as CEO in 2023, Zhao described the event as looking like a hack on the platform. He assured followers that user funds are safe and stated that he expects all user funds will be fully covered as a shareholder.

Major stablecoin providers reacted quickly to the news. Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle, said the company froze more than $800 million in currency associated with the incident in coordination with law enforcement. Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, confirmed that his company froze more than $1.5 billion in related currency.

Market prices reflected the uncertainty surrounding the breach. Bitcoin dropped 3.2 percent on Thursday evening, falling to a level below $79,000. Traders watched closely as Binance promised to release more technical details once its investigation is complete and the facts are fully verified.

Binance was founded in 2017 by Zhao, who pleaded guilty to a felony in 2023 for failing to prevent money laundering on the platform. He was sentenced to prison for violating the Bank Secrecy Act, becoming the first person sentenced to prison time under that law. President Donald Trump granted Zhao a pardon in 2025, and he was released from prison last year.

The company said its security teams are working around the clock to resolve the issue. A Binance spokesperson stated that the teams are reviewing all relevant information with urgency and will provide updates through official channels as soon as verified information is available.