In brief – Attackers stole roughly $6.4 billion from Binance on Thursday in the largest crypto hack ever, more than four times the previous record. – Binance says it will cover all losses with company funds and its emergency reserve, having set aside more than $6.34 billion. -…
re’s how it happened and what’s being done about it. Crypto just suffered the largest hack in its history
On Thursday, attackers drained roughly $6.4 billion from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, in a breach that dwarfs every theft before it and has triggered a cross-border law-enforcement investigation, a scramble by stablecoin issuers to freeze funds, and a tense wait for millions of users. Here’s what’s known about the Binance hack so far. What happened The theft began at about 4:05 p.m.
ET on Thursday, after U.S. markets had closed, when attackers moved funds out of Binance hot wallets across roughly 10 blockchains, most of it within about 20 minutes. Blockchain analytics firms Chainalysis and TRM Labs put the total at around $6.4 billion, more than four times the previous record, February 2025’s $1.5 billion Bybit heist. Crucially, the attack targeted Binance’s own infrastructure, not the blockchains themselves.