Binance customers withdraw $4.6 billion after crypto heist

Binance customers withdrew more than $4.6 billion from the cryptocurrency exchange after it suffered what security experts said was the largest digital coin theft ever.

In a post on social media, Binance said customers also deposited just over $1 billion after the company allowed people to resume transactions on Sunday for Bitcoin, Ethereum and other cryptocurrencies, resulting in a net outflow of $3.64 billion. 

Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange with more than 300 million users, said the value of crypto holdings being withdrawn represents just 2.1% of its $171 billion in total assets.

"Our top priority right now is to ensure the environment is secure, after which users can withdraw their funds, and Binance can resume operations," Binance cofounder Yi He said in an X post early Monday.

Binance did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The fund withdrawals came after cybercriminals, whom the FBI linked to North Korea, stole $6.3 billion in digital currency from Binance. Roughly $3 billion of the stolen assets were frozen, according to Binance. Freezing crypto funds allows certain issuers to block the transfer of their tokens anywhere in the world.

The hacker group believed to be responsible for the attack, known as "TraderTraitor," was converting most of the stolen assets into Ethereum in a move to hide their tracks, the FBI said Saturday. TraderTraitor was also responsible for a February 2025 attack on another crypto exchange, Bybit, that resulted in a $1.5 billion loss, according to the FBI.

Following the Binance attack, the FBI encouraged private-sector entities "to block transactions with or derived from addresses TraderTraitor actors are using to launder these stolen assets."

Binance has promised to cover the full losses using company funds. By early Sunday morning, it said it had covered around 95% of the impacted amount.