Cryptocurrency exchange Binance said Thursday it was investigating a potential security issue after unusually large transfers from its wallets prompted speculation, including from its co-founder, that the platform may have been hacked.1,5
The transfers, seen Thursday afternoon, were estimated by analysts and traders who follow crypto markets at $1.7 billion to $5.7 billion, with upwards of $5.7 billion seen drained from wallets. In response, stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle froze funds linked to the incident, a step that would limit customer losses if a hack is confirmed.1,5
Tether Chief Executive Paolo Ardoino said the company had frozen more than $1.567 billion related to a potential Binance exchange hack, while Circle Chief Executive Jeremy Allaire said his company had frozen more than 800M USDC associated with the incident. CNBC put the total frozen at $2.54 billion; the New York Post said firms had frozen over $2 billion, while Binance co-founder Changpeng "CZ" Zhao put the figure at more than $1 billion in cryptocurrencies.1,2,4,5
Zhao, who is no longer an executive at the company, said on X that the exchange appears to have been hacked, although a company spokesperson said Binance was still investigating the matter. Binance has yet to confirm who may be behind the attack and the total value of the currencies suspected hackers made off with.5
"Our teams are aware of reports of a potential security issue and are actively investigating. Rest assured that user funds are completely safe," a spokesperson for Binance said in a statement. "Our security teams are reviewing all relevant information with urgency," the spokesperson said, urging users to "remain cautious of scams." Zhao also said user funds are safe. Binance limited withdrawals as it investigated.1,5
"Circle is closely tracking reports of a potential exploit involving Binance. In coordination with law enforcement, we have frozen more than 800M USDC associated with the incident and will continue supporting the investigation," Allaire wrote, using the shorthand for the company's United States Dollar Coin, whose value is pegged to the dollar. He said Circle was coordinating with law enforcement on the matter and would continue supporting the investigation.1
Binance is the world's largest cryptocurrency trading platform by volume, with hundreds of thousands of users who buy, sell and store billions of dollars worth of digital currencies on the exchange. Unlike traditional bank deposits, money kept in accounts with companies like Binance is not insured by the government against losses, potentially leaving any refunds up to the discretion of individual exchanges.1,3
"This is unprecedented," said Kevin March, a co-founder of JPEG Trading, a cryptocurrency trading firm that closely tracked the hack to monitor market conditions. Binance's size makes it more insulated, March said. "If this happened to any other business in crypto other than Binance, it would've been catastrophic." He said the exchange is capable of covering potential losses through its insurance and balance sheet, although broad reverberations in crypto markets and prices remain possible.5
If estimates hold up, the suspected Binance hack would be the biggest crypto attack in history. In 2025, North Korea-linked hackers stole about $1.5 billion worth of crypto from the Bybit exchange. The suspected hack comes after a wave of high-profile cyberattacks and data breaches during so-called "Black October," when a series of hacks and AI-discovered bugs triggered fears of a global crisis.5
Crypto is a relatively common hacking target, but massive attacks can leave smaller exchanges vulnerable to collapse due to the potential for panicked withdrawals. Reports of a breach came just hours after Polymarket confirmed it was facing a cyberattack, prompting the decentralized predictions market operator to pause trading for an hour after an attacker made off with at least $2.7 million in user funds.5
Researchers at Hudson Rock tied the Polymarket incident to a breach involving third-party website monitoring tool DebugBear, which said earlier Thursday it was responding to its own security incident. Binance has yet to confirm who may be behind the attack and the total value of the currencies suspected hackers made off with.5
