Ethereum · Decrypt
Crypto suffered the largest hack in its history
Compiled by KHAO Editorial — aggregated from 2 sources. See llms.txt for citation guidance.
★ Tier-1 Source
On Thursday, attackers drained roughly $6.4 billion from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, in a breach that dwarfs every theft before it and has triggered a cross-border law-enforcement investigation, a scramble by stablecoin issuers to freeze funds, and a tense wait for millions of users.
Key facts
- Bitcoin fell to about $76,400 on Friday, down roughly 4%, and more than $1.3 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated
- Blockchain analytics firms Chainalysis and TRM Labs put the total at around $6.4 billion, more than four times the previous record, February 2025’s $1.5 billion Bybit heist
- The exchange has set aside more than $6.34 billion, about $5 billion of it already held in the exact tokens stolen, including BTC, ETH, BNB, USDC, and USDT, and is buying the rest on the open market
- But a large sum remains beyond reach: the attacker still controls more than 420,000 ETH and 18,270 BTC, plus other tokens, worth over $3 billion that no issuer can freeze, and has kept shuffling
Summary
Attackers stole roughly $6.4 billion from Binance on Thursday in the largest crypto hack ever, more than four times the previous record. Binance says it will cover all losses with company funds and its emergency reserve, having set aside more than $6.34 billion. The theft began at about 4:05 p.m. Blockchain analytics firms Chainalysis and TRM Labs put the total at around $6.4 billion, more than four times the previous record, February 2025’s $1.5 billion Bybit heist.