Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has confirmed a massive security breach involving approximately $6.3 billion in digital assets, making it the largest cryptocurrency hack ever recorded.
The company announced that roughly $3 billion in affected funds had already been frozen with assistance from blockchain partners. Binance also assured customers that all losses would be covered through its Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) and corporate reserves.
Binance Confirms Record $6.3 Billion Crypto Hack
The unprecedented attack surpasses the previous record set by the February 2025 Bybit hack, which resulted in approximately $1.5 billion in stolen cryptocurrency.
According to blockchain intelligence company TRM Labs, the Binance incident is approximately four times larger, raising fresh concerns about security vulnerabilities across the cryptocurrency industry.
Binance has pledged to compensate affected users and is cooperating with blockchain security firms and other industry partners to identify suspicious transactions and prevent further losses.
Suspicious Ethereum Transactions Raise Initial Alarm
The first warning signs emerged when blockchain researcher Spreek identified unusual activity involving an Ethereum wallet associated with Binance.
In a post on X, Spreek reported that digital assets had been transferred to a newly created wallet through a smart contract transaction allegedly funded using Tornado Cash, a cryptocurrency privacy protocol.
Further investigation suggested that wallets associated with the suspicious transfers had started exchanging Tether’s USDT stablecoin through decentralized trading platforms.
Blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence subsequently identified several wallets labeled “binance-hacker-1029,” containing approximately $5.84 billion in digital assets.
However, that amount represented the wallets’ observed holdings rather than a verified calculation of the total funds stolen.
Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao acknowledged that the activity appeared consistent with a cyberattack. He also disclosed that stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle had taken steps to freeze substantial amounts of cryptocurrency.
Zhao expressed confidence that affected customers would receive full compensation.
Tether and Circle Freeze More Than $2.36 Billion
Major stablecoin providers moved quickly to restrict access to digital assets connected to the Binance security breach.
Blockchain security company Blockaid reported that its initial investigation had detected approximately $3.3 billion in suspicious transactions involving Binance-related wallets.
These transactions reportedly occurred across several blockchain networks, including Ethereum, Arbitrum and Avalanche.
Following the discovery, Tether and Circle announced that they had collectively frozen more than $2.36 billion in stablecoins believed to be associated with the attack.
Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire confirmed that the company had blocked more than $800 million in USDC in cooperation with law enforcement authorities.
Shortly afterward, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino announced that his company had frozen over $1.567 billion in USDT connected to the suspected theft.
Both companies emphasized their commitment to protecting cryptocurrency users, supporting investigators and preventing stolen funds from moving through the digital asset ecosystem.
Binance Promises Full Compensation as Investigation Continues
Despite the extraordinary scale of the breach, Binance has maintained that customers will not be responsible for the financial damage.
The exchange plans to use its SAFU emergency protection fund alongside its own financial resources to reimburse any confirmed losses.
Meanwhile, investigators and blockchain security specialists continue tracking transactions linked to the attack, with approximately $3 billion in affected assets reported frozen.
The incident highlights the importance of stronger security controls, rapid blockchain monitoring and cooperation between cryptocurrency exchanges and stablecoin issuers.
Polymarket Also Reports Separate Security Incident
The Binance breach occurred just hours after prediction market platform Polymarket temporarily suspended trading because of a security compromise involving an external service provider.
Polymarket stated that the vulnerability had been addressed and promised to compensate users affected by the disruption.
According to the company, its systems were operating normally again by 7:05 p.m. UTC on Thursday.
Although the two incidents were reported close together, no confirmed connection between the Binance attack and Polymarket’s security issue has been established.
The events nevertheless underscore the continuing cybersecurity challenges facing cryptocurrency exchanges, decentralized financial platforms and the broader digital asset industry.
