Binance hack bites India's largest crypto exchange as it curbs futures trading

On October 30, 2023, Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, announced a security breach that resulted in an estimated $6.3 billion loss, marking the biggest crypto heist ever. The exchange stated that they had collaborated with partners to freeze the affected assets, with approximately $3 billion recovered. However, the status of the remaining $3.3 billion remains unclear.

Binance co-founder Yi He affirmed that the company would bear all hacking losses. The cryptocurrency industry has experienced several thefts, raising concerns about the safety of customer funds and prompting investors to reconsider the risks associated with digital assets.

Since Bitcoin's inception in 2008, the industry has faced numerous heists. Here are some of the most significant ones:

In February 2025, the cryptocurrency exchange Bybit suffered a theft of digital tokens worth $1.5 billion. The crypto was taken from a cold wallet, a $1.5 billion digital wallet typically stored offline and considered secure.

In March 2022, the Ronin Network, a blockchain-based platform facilitating crypto transfers, was targeted. Hackers stole roughly $540 million, including 173,600 ether tokens and 25.5 million USD Coin tokens. The attack occurred through a compromised cold wallet.

In February 2022, the DeFi platform Wormhole fell victim to a hack, resulting in $320 million loss. The theft involved 120,000 digital tokens connected to Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency. The hackers successfully bypassed the platform's security measures, leading to the disappearance of the stolen funds.

In August 2021, the decentralized finance platform Poly Network experienced a breach, losing $610 million worth of digital tokens. The hackers managed to steal 120,000 tokens from a peer-to-peer lending platform, bypassing traditional financial gatekeepers.

In January 2018, the Tokyo-based exchange Coincheck was attacked, resulting in a $530 million loss. The cybercriminals targeted one of Coincheck's hot wallets, which stores online digital wallets, draining the funds. South Korea's intelligence agency later suggested that a North Korean hacking group might have been behind the attack.

Between 2011 and 2014, the Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox filed for bankruptcy, losing close to $500 million in one of the earliest and most infamous cryptocurrency hacks. The hack involved 24,000 bitcoins and most high-profile customers losing access to their funds.