Binance Reports $6.3 Billion Hack, Freezes $3 Billion in Crypto Assets

Highlights:

• Binance reported a $6.3 billion security breach that may have started through a compromised employee laptop.
• Binance and its blockchain partners have frozen about $3 billion, and the exchange has promised to cover losses.
• Binance paused withdrawals for security checks but expects to restore them within 48 hours as deposits continue.

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has reported a major security breach affecting an estimated $6.3 billion in digital assets. The company said it has frozen around $3 billion with help from blockchain partners. Binance has also temporarily suspended withdrawals while it investigates the attack and strengthens its security systems.

In an October 30 post on X, Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said the exchange would cover all losses using its Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) and company funds. Binance also confirmed the estimated impact in an official security update.

I want to speak to you directly about what happened.

Bottom line – your money is safe, and we're covering every loss.

Our initial investigation suggests this security incident may have started with a compromised DevOps engineer's laptop. That gave an attacker access to a…

— Richard Teng (@_RichardTeng) October 30, 2026

Binance Links $6.3 Billion Security Breach to Compromised Laptop

According to Teng, Binance’s initial investigation suggests the attack may have started with a DevOps engineer’s compromised laptop. The attacker allegedly used the device to access an internal service container and submit unauthorized cryptocurrency withdrawals.

However, Teng stressed that the attack involved several steps rather than the misuse of a single employee’s permissions. Investigators have not identified who was responsible or confirmed the full attack method. He also addressed concerns that the attackers had obtained Binance’s wallet private keys. These keys are confidential credentials used to control cryptocurrency wallets and authorize transactions.

“So far, we have found no evidence of any wallet private key leak,” Teng said. Binance has revoked the affected address authorizations to prevent further unauthorized activity. Its security team is examining the compromised computer and tracing how the attacker reached the withdrawal system. The company plans to publish a detailed technical report once it completes the investigation and verifies the findings.

Tether, Circle and Other Partners Freeze Billions in Stolen Crypto

Binance has worked with stablecoin issuers, blockchain networks and security firms to stop the attacker from moving stolen assets. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino confirmed the company froze more than $1.567 billion in USDT linked to the incident. Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire also reported freezing over $800 million in USDC.

Tether froze more than 1.567B USDT related to a potential Binance exchange hack.

Protecting the industry and our partners is our main priority.

Stay safe everyone.

— Paolo Ardoino 🤖 (@paoloardoino) October 29, 2026

Other companies joined the recovery effort. World Liberty Financial-linked USD1 issuer representatives reported freezing $27 million in affected USD1 tokens. The Arbitrum Security Council also intervened to secure approximately $30.5 million in assets connected to the attack.

Thanks to @worldlibertyfi team for the $27m USD1 frozen and 48m (~$2m) WLFI frozen .

Safety first: withdrawals are currently disabled until the environment is confirmed to be secure. We appreciate the understanding and support of all our users.

User funds are SAFU.

— Yi He (@heyibinance) October 29, 2026

Ripple executive Jack McDonald said the company was monitoring the attacker’s RLUSD holdings and taking steps to freeze affected funds. These freezes prevent the affected assets from being transferred, but they do not necessarily mean Binance has recovered the money.

Binance confirmed that the verified frozen amount had reached approximately $3 billion. The company continues working with law enforcement, token issuers and blockchain intelligence firms to trace the remaining assets.

Binance Withdrawals Remain Suspended as Exchange Targets 48-Hour Recovery

Binance initially suspended deposits and withdrawals as a precaution after discovering the security issue. It also temporarily halted Binance Alpha trading services while its teams conducted checks. However, in a later October 30 service update, the exchange confirmed that deposits were operating normally again. Withdrawals remained suspended while engineers worked on the withdrawal service and related wallet addresses.

Binance said it expected to restore withdrawals within 48 hours, although the timeline depends on completing the security work. Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) also reassured customers that their funds were safe. In a separate X post, he said the exchange would cover user losses, although he no longer manages Binance’s daily operations.

User funds are SAFU!

Yet, this pregnant lady 👇 pulled an all nighter, along side hundreds of Binancians.

Many industry friends and even competitors (including some previously-not-so-friendly ones) provided very much needed help. 🙏

It hurts, but we will survive. 💪 https://t.co/vQtSx4OcPy

— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) October 30, 2026

Co-CEO Yi He thanked industry partners for helping contain the incident. She said Binance would enable withdrawals once it completes its security checks. Binance has also promised to publish an updated Proof of Reserves after completing the security improvements. The report will provide updated information about the cryptocurrency assets the exchange holds.

So far, the company hasn’t confirmed the identity of the attacker. An investigation into the incident is ongoing, and Binance has advised users to check for official security updates and not click on suspicious links or messages.