Binance Security Breach | Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has frozen around $3 billion in digital assets while investigating a potential security breach that could rank among the largest crypto thefts in history.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange said it was working with law enforcement agencies, token issuers and blockchain intelligence firms to trace and freeze additional assets. However, Binance has not confirmed the total value of any stolen funds or disclosed the exact cause of the incident.
Binance co-founder Yi He said the company would cover losses resulting from a hack. Former chief executive Changpeng Zhao also said the incident appeared to involve a hack and expressed confidence that users’ funds would be covered.
The exchange said its security teams were reviewing the incident and temporarily suspended withdrawals on multiple networks. It also halted trading on its Binance Alpha platform as a precaution. Binance maintained that customer funds remained safe.
Binance Security Breach | Tether, Circle Freeze Billions as Crypto Prices Fall
Stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle froze substantial assets linked to the suspected incident. Tether reported freezing nearly $1.57 billion, while Circle froze more than $800 million. Ripple also froze approximately $200 million, according to Yi He.
World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency company linked to US President Donald Trump’s family, said it worked with custodian BitGo to freeze additional funds. Binance said the effort included $27 million in stablecoins and around $2 million in World Liberty tokens.
The reports unsettled cryptocurrency markets during Asian trading on Friday. Bitcoin fell to a six-week low of $77,646, while Ether dropped to a two-month low of $2,238.76. Binance-linked BNB declined by more than 8% over the previous 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data cited by Reuters.
Blockchain analytics firms reported suspicious transfers worth billions of dollars. However, estimates of the potential losses varied, and the exact amount stolen had not been independently confirmed.
Binance operates a Secure Asset Fund for Users, a reserve intended to protect customers in certain security incidents. The company said it would provide further updates as its investigation progressed.
The incident adds to a series of major cryptocurrency security breaches. Last year, attackers stole billions of dollars in digital assets across numerous incidents, according to blockchain security researchers.
Binance.US, a separate exchange, said it was unaffected by the incident. Coinbase also said it was monitoring developments and had not been affected.
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