Binance Replenishes 90% of Stolen $6.3B, Pledges They'll Cover It All, Reopen Sunday

Binance has restored 90% of the $6.3 billion stolen in its recent hack, according to a statement from co-CEO Richard Teng on X. The remaining 10% of stolen funds are less liquid, which may take longer to replace, the exchange said in a post on X. Binance has set aside around $6.34 billion internally to cover the losses, drawn from various funds, including its Secure Asset Fund for Users and other reserves.

The FBI attributes the hack to a North Korea-sponsored group called TraderTraitor, who converted the stolen assets into Ethereum and are expected to launder the assets further. Binance initially suspected a compromised employee's laptop, but later revealed the attack was more sophisticated than that. The incident involved about 100 top executives working late to contain the breach, with the news spreading rapidly on the blockchain.

North Korea has a history of targeting crypto companies to fund its nuclear program, and the attackers employed innovative laundering techniques. In response, Tether and Circle froze over $2 billion in seized coins, but $2.4 billion remains beyond issuers' reach. President Trump expressed some concern about the breach, stating that Binance seems to have it under control for now.