Binance recorded $3.64 billion in net outflows on Sunday, its first day of restored withdrawals since a $6.3 billion hack the FBI has pinned on North Korea.
By the numbers: Binance processed $4.65 billion in withdrawals against $1.01 billion in deposits between 6am and 3:30pm UTC on November 1. The net outflow equals 2.1% of the $171 billion in assets listed in its October 28 proof of reserves.
The backstory: Attackers drained roughly $6.3 billion from the exchange on or about October 29, the biggest crypto theft ever recorded. Binance froze withdrawals while it investigated, then reopened them in phases, clearing all 15 networks and assets in the first tranche by 12:36pm UTC.
- The FBI attributed the theft to TraderTraitor, a North Korea affiliated group that analysts place inside the Lazarus Group, and urged firms to block transactions traced to its wallets.
What they're saying: "Trust isn't earned by what you say in good times. It's earned by what you do in hard times," founder Changpeng Zhao wrote on X, adding that "98% choose to stay!" He said most of the outflow landed in the first couple of hours.
- Co-chief executive Richard Teng called the breach a complex attack involving a compromised laptop and software built to erase traces of its own activity.
Zoom in: Binance says it has now replaced about 95% of the stolen amount, up from 90% a day earlier, drawing on a $1 billion secure asset fund, a bitcoin reserve, part of its futures insurance fund and its corporate treasury. The last 5% sits in thinner tokens that take longer to buy back in size.
Why it matters: One exchange swallowing a $6.3 billion loss rather than passing it to customers is the stress test crypto custody has never faced at this scale, and bitcoin fell almost 5% when the hack surfaced.
What's next: Testing continues on the networks and assets still frozen, and Teng says the company is committed to covering the balance of the stolen tokens.
