At approximately 4:20 p.m. on Thursday, Binance detected unusual transactions signaling a massive crypto heist. Over $6 billion in digital assets were drained from the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange in what became the largest theft in crypto history. Executives convened an emergency war room via internal messaging and a 100-person conference call, with co-CEO He Yi working through the night from Abu Dhabi while pregnant.
Founder Changpeng Zhao live-updated his 12.9 million X followers, using prayer emojis and asserting that 'user funds are SAFU.' Binance halted withdrawals and promised to cover losses. The attack, attributed to North Korean hackers, triggered industry-wide alerts and law enforcement inquiries. The incident follows Binance’s 2023 $4.3 billion anti-money-laundering settlement and Zhao’s recent pardon by President Trump.
The breach occurred on October 29, just months after Binance partnered with World Liberty Financial to re-enter the U.S. market.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing