Binance: $6.3bn crypto theft, analysts point to North Korea

Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, has been hit by a hack in which assets worth about $6.3bn were taken. Experts quoted in the media say it is the largest theft of its kind in the industry's history. The exchange is trying to recover the funds.

What is known about the attack

The attack took place on 29 October 2026. US analytics firm TRM Labs said on Friday 30 October that the attackers took over Binance wallets across 10 blockchain networks and moved most of the funds in about 20 minutes. According to TRM Labs, the elite North Korean group TraderTraitor is behind it. The firm describes its assessment as made "with high confidence". Chainalysis reached the same conclusion. North Korea has long denied involvement in cyber-attacks.

Binance said preliminary findings point to a compromised laptop belonging to a DevOps engineer, which allowed the attacker to submit unauthorised withdrawals. The exchange said it had found no evidence that any private wallet keys were leaked. It promised to publish a detailed technical analysis once the investigation is complete.

Recovering the funds

Together with industry partners, Binance has frozen assets worth about $3bn on the network. Stablecoin issuers have also joined the effort. Polsat News notes that the exchange has not said what happened to the remaining roughly $3.3bn. According to the exchange, withdrawals have been temporarily suspended and it expects them to resume within 48 hours. Binance says it will cover all losses and that users' funds are safe. It plans to publish an updated proof of reserves after remediation work is finished.

Record and market reaction

AFP recalls that the previous record dates from February 2025, when $1.5bn was taken from the Bybit exchange and the attack was attributed to hackers linked to Pyongyang. According to Binance's annual report for 2025, the exchange held assets worth about $162.8bn. After news of the attack, the price of bitcoin fell below $77,000, according to the portal money.pl, citing Bloomberg.

What this means for you

The available sources do not suggest that the attack directly affected specific users in the UK or Poland. People who hold cryptocurrency on exchanges should follow announcements from their platform. Binance users should check the exchange's official statements on when withdrawals will resume. Any information on the effects on customers will be added as soon as it becomes available.