The FBI has confirmed that North Korean hackers were behind the theft of about $6.3 billion from Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange. It is being called the biggest crypto heist in history.
What happened
On Thursday, $6.3 billion in bitcoin and other digital currency was stolen from Binance. The theft took place within a matter of minutes. After the hack, the exchange stopped customers from withdrawing their funds, and crypto prices fell on Friday.
What the FBI said
On Saturday, the FBI tied the attack to an entity known as TraderTraitor, the same actors behind last year's $1.5 billion Bybit hack.
- North Korean actors were converting the stolen assets mainly into Ethereum.
- The FBI expects TraderTraitor to try converting the assets through DeFi and instant swap services.
- It asked virtual asset service providers to block related transactions, and gave them addresses to watch for.
Why experts suspected North Korea
The speed and sophistication of the attack pointed to TraderTraitor, a North Korean military hacking unit, before the FBI confirmed it. Ari Redbord of TRM Labs called it "the largest bank robbery in human history."
How Binance is responding
- Binance and its partners have frozen about $3 billion of the stolen cryptocurrencies.
- The company says it has replaced 90% of the stolen amount with its own money, and set aside about $6.34 billion.
- It says the company, not its users, will absorb the loss.
- Withdrawals were on track to reopen on Sunday.
A note of caution
President Trump told reporters on Saturday that investigators weren't yet certain North Korea was involved, though he said it could still be confirmed. That sits uneasily with the FBI's own statement, so watch for further official clarification.
Sources
