Binance pauses withdrawals amid suspected theft from crypto wallets
Original title: Binance pauses withdrawals as hackers suspected of stealing billions in crypto
Circle froze about $800 million and Tether about $1.56 billion; watcher estimates of billions stolen are unconfirmed.
Binance told TechCrunch it is investigating a security incident and has temporarily suspended withdrawals on multiple networks after users reported funds draining from wallets. The company said user funds are completely safe. Crypto watchers say at least $2 billion left hot wallets, with some estimates near $5.7 billion, figures Binance has not confirmed. Founder Changpeng Zhao said on X the company was likely hacked and that he expects funds to be fully covered.
Unconfirmed: The amount stolen, whether theft is ongoing, and who is responsible are unconfirmed.
- Spokesperson Ross O’Leary called the withdrawal pause a precaution after a security incident.
- Zhao, no longer chief executive but the largest shareholder, gave no basis for full coverage.
- Binance did not say it had received any message from the hackers.
- Separately, Polymarket paused withdrawals after a DebugBear compromise and about $2 million stolen.
Impact: Crypto reported drained from Binance hot wallets
- 1.Do not trust unofficial links, messages, or requests for account information.
- Victims
- BinancePolymarket
From the original article
2 min read at techcrunch.com
Some estimates say hackers stole billions in crypto from Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, during a cyberattack on Thursday.
By Zack Whittaker · techcrunch.com
A short excerpt; the article and its images belong to the publisher. Summary, key facts and assessment above are AI-written from the article and can be wrong.