Hackers steal $6.3 billion from Binance in suspected North Korean heist

Hackers stole $6.3 billion from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, in an event analysts describe as potentially the biggest crypto heist ever. The exchange immediately stopped withdrawals and promised to use company funds to cover the losses, stating that customer money remained safe. While it expects to resume withdrawals within 48 hours, stablecoin issuers like Tether and World Liberty Financial froze roughly half of the stolen assets. Approximately $3 billion has been recovered so far, though the remaining $3.3 billion remains unaccounted for. Most of the theft occurred in about 20 minutes starting late Thursday. US firms TRM Labs and Chainalysis, along with British company Elliptic, are highly confident North Korea is responsible for the attack. North Korea has routinely denied such accusations, and its missions in Geneva and China did not respond to inquiries. Binance co-chief executive Richard Teng noted that the investigation has not yet identified a specific individual. The breach may have started with a hacked laptop belonging to an engineer, though the company later found additional entry points. Crypto prices dropped following the news, with Bitcoin falling to a six-week low before stabilizing. Experts warn that devices lacking security solutions are prime targets, urging users to install protective measures on both personal and corporate equipment.