Cryptocurrency exchange Binance reported Thursday that a major security incident resulted in an estimated total impact of approximately $6.3 billion, prompting the platform to temporarily suspend deposits and withdrawals while pledging to absorb all customer losses.
In an official statement, a Binance spokesperson confirmed the breach and outlined the exchange’s ongoing response. “Binance has confirmed a security incident and our teams are working around the clock to resolve it,” the spokesperson said. “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 exchange assured clients that it would absorb any financial shortfall stemming from the breach. “Users will not bear the financial impact of this incident,” the spokesperson stated, adding that the platform intends to cover liabilities using its Secure Asset Fund for Users alongside corporate reserves. Binance also promised to release an updated Proof of Reserves audit once the situation is fully resolved.
Preliminary investigative findings shared by the platform on social media suggest the breach may have originated from a compromised laptop utilized by a DevOps engineer. This vulnerability allegedly granted an unauthorized actor access to a service container, enabling the submission of illicit withdrawal transactions. However, Binance emphasized that its investigation has yielded no indication that underlying wallet private keys were compromised.
Changpeng Zhao, the founder and majority shareholder who no longer manages daily operations at the exchange, characterized the event as a cyberattack on social media. “User funds are safe! It does look like a hack on Binance,” Zhao wrote on X. He also praised the swift intervention of stablecoin issuers and digital asset firms in intercepting compromised capital.
Industry partners moved quickly to secure funds tied to the breach. Initial estimates from Zhao indicated that Tether had frozen roughly $971 million and Circle approximately $823 million. Subsequent figures released by Tether placed its total frozen assets related to the incident at nearly $1.57 billion, while Circle confirmed it had locked down more than $800 million. Additionally, crypto firm Ripple froze roughly $200 million in potentially affected funds while coordinating with stakeholders.
Binance co-founder Yi He also issued public remarks addressing the suspension of platform withdrawals and reiterating commitments to user reimbursement.
The security event sent immediate ripples through the broader digital asset market. Bitcoin dropped roughly 2% during early Asian trading sessions on Friday, sliding to a six-week low of $77,646. Ether experienced a similar decline of approximately 2%, touching a two-month low of $2,238.76. Meanwhile, BNB, the utility token originally launched as Binance Coin, fell by more than 8% over a 24-hour window to $694, according to market data.
