Jakarta, ThedailyID — Hackers have stolen more than US$6 billion in cryptocurrency from Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, in what is being described as the biggest cryptocurrency theft in history. The breach occurred on Thursday, October 29, 2026, raising fresh concerns over security in the global digital asset industry.
According to initial findings from Binance, the attackers gained access through an engineer’s laptop before exploiting the compromised credentials to submit unauthorized withdrawal transactions. Blockchain analytics firms suspect the attack was carried out by a North Korean hacking unit, although the attribution has not been independently confirmed.
By Thursday evening in the United States, cryptocurrency companies had reportedly frozen approximately US$3 billion of the stolen assets.
Binance said it would cover the losses using corporate funds and its emergency asset reserve, assuring customers that their funds remained safe. The exchange also temporarily suspended deposits and withdrawals, revoked authorization for affected addresses and began working with law enforcement agencies to trace the stolen assets.
“This is the biggest hack in history,” Aravind Srinivasan of GSR told Reuters.
The scale of the theft significantly exceeds the previous record involving Bybit, which lost approximately US$1.5 billion in a February 2025 cyberattack also attributed to North Korean hackers.
The incident triggered selling pressure across cryptocurrency markets, pushing Bitcoin and Ether prices lower. By Friday afternoon, October 30, in Hong Kong, both assets were trading approximately 2% to 3% lower.
However, North Korea’s alleged involvement remains an unconfirmed assessment by blockchain investigation firms. Pyongyang has previously denied accusations of conducting cyberattacks.
