Reports of a Binance hack spread late on Thursday, October 29, 2026, and bitcoin fell below $79,000 as on-chain trackers watched billions of dollars leave hot wallets at the world’s largest crypto exchange. Chainalysis estimates $5.912 billion was taken, which would make it the biggest crypto theft on record if confirmed. Binance has pledged to cover all losses and has suspended deposits and withdrawals while it investigates.
Key Takeaways
- Chainalysis estimates $5.912 billion was stolen. Blockaid is investigating about $3.3 billion in suspicious outflows. Binance hasn’t published a figure.
- Tether, Circle and Ripple froze funds. Binance put the verified frozen total at $3 billion.
- Binance said at 00:13 UTC on October 30 that it will cover all losses and paused all deposits and withdrawals.
- Bitcoin traded at $76,777 at 02:13 UTC on October 30, down 3.88% in 24 hours, per CoinGecko.
What happened in the Binance hack
Blockchain researcher Spreek flagged about $3.55 billion moving into an unlabeled wallet. Blockaid said it was examining roughly $3.3 billion in suspicious outflows from Binance hot wallets on Ethereum, Arbitrum and Avalanche, as The Block reported. Coinbase senior director Conor Grogan put the total at up to $5.8 billion.
Binance’s own messaging shifted fast. According to a FinanceFeeds review of the X edit history, founder Changpeng Zhao posted at 21:15 UTC that “it does look like a hack on Binance.” At 21:16 UTC the exchange said it had “not confirmed any impact to user funds,” and by 21:29 UTC its statement read “User funds are completely safe.”
Co-founder Yi He said security teams were reviewing all relevant information “with urgency” and warned users not to trust unofficial links or requests for account details. At 00:13 UTC on October 30, Binance posted that it “will cover all losses,” halted deposits and withdrawals, and said it was working with law enforcement. See also our earlier Binance hack coverage.
Why the Binance hack figures don’t match
The numbers measure different things. BleepingComputer noted that Arkham Intelligence tracked 55 addresses labeled “binance-hacker-1029” holding about $5.78 billion, but that’s the value across all tracked wallets, not a confirmed theft amount.
| Source | Estimate | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Blockaid | ~$3.3 billion | Suspicious hot wallet outflows |
| Spreek | ~$3.55 billion | Transfers to one unlabeled wallet |
| Arkham Intelligence | ~$5.78 billion | Holdings across 55 tagged addresses |
| Chainalysis | $5.912 billion | Value stolen at time of theft |
Arkham’s breakdown included about $1.77 billion in USDT, $1.44 billion in BTC, $876 million in ETH and $823 million in USDC. One estimate cited by Bitcoin Magazine puts the realized loss near 0.7% of Binance customer assets.
Freezes, the SAFU fund and the suspected cause
If the totals hold, this breach would dwarf the February 2025 Bybit hack of roughly $1.5 billion. Cointelegraph said Chainalysis’ estimate is about four times that figure.
Stablecoin issuers moved quickly. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said the company froze more than 1.567 billion USDT, adding that “protecting the industry and our partners is our main priority.” Circle froze about $823 million in USDC, and Yi He thanked Ripple for freezing about $200 million. Cointelegraph’s live blog reported that Binance raised its verified frozen total to $3 billion from an earlier $2.54 billion. Investinglive said more than $2.37 billion of that earlier figure came from Tether and Circle. Aave froze lending markets so the attacker couldn’t borrow against the funds.
How Binance pays is still open. Its SAFU emergency fund, created in 2018, holds about $1 billion in bitcoin and covered 7,000 BTC lost in a 2019 hack. That is less than the smallest outflow figure reported so far, and none of the reports reviewed explain how Binance will fund its pledge or how frozen assets will factor in.
On the cause, Coinpedia, citing Blockaid, reported that the attacker targeted the “Binance 14” and “Binance 16” hot wallets and sent funds to a new address funded through Tornado Cash. Coinpedia also suggested a North Korean hot-wallet key compromise similar to a recent Bitget attack. That attribution is speculation and hasn’t been confirmed by Binance or law enforcement.
Market reaction
Bitcoin was already soft. Fortune data showed it at $80,036.60 at 8:45 a.m. ET on October 29, down from $110,044.16 a year earlier. After 4 p.m. ET, as hack rumors spread, it slid to $78,177.37, according to Bitcoin Magazine. Selling continued into the evening. For more background, see our earlier bitcoin price report.
| Asset | Price (02:13 UTC, Oct 30) | 24h change | 7d change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin (BTC) | $76,777 | -3.88% | -5.84% |
| Ethereum (ETH) | $2,197.01 | -4.62% | -8.49% |
| BNB | $705.75 | -5.49% | -4.13% |
| XRP | $1.21 | -6.60% | -8.07% |
| Solana (SOL) | $94.11 | -5.40% | -9.84% |
Data from CoinGecko. Bitcoin’s 24-hour range ran from $81,840 to $76,591, and volume reached about $47.2 billion. BNB kept falling after Binance’s pledge, Investinglive noted. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index read 30 (“Fear”) on October 30.
What to watch next
The key items are Binance’s promised post-mortem, a confirmed loss figure and a date for reopening withdrawals. Watch whether frozen balances grow. A paused exchange means customers can’t move assets, a reminder that coins held on any platform carry custody risk. Our piece on exchange proof of reserves covers related disclosures.
Scams are the other risk. Yi He told users to stay cautious of scams and to ignore unofficial links, messages or requests for account information. Price moves from here remain uncertain, and none of this is investment advice.
FAQ
How much was stolen in the Binance hack?
No figure is confirmed. Chainalysis estimates $5.912 billion, Blockaid is investigating about $3.3 billion in suspicious outflows, and Binance hasn’t published a number.
Are Binance user funds safe?
Binance says it will cover all losses, but that is a pledge: it hasn’t given a loss figure or a reopening date, and deposits and withdrawals were suspended as of October 30, 2026. Binance.US and Bybit said they weren’t affected.
Why did bitcoin fall after the hack?
Bitcoin slid as reports of the suspected hack spread, according to Bitcoin Magazine, in a market that was already weaker than a month earlier. It went from about $80,000 on the morning of October 29 to $76,777 in roughly 13.5 hours.
Sources
- Bitcoin Price Slides Below $79,000 as Binance Loses $5.8 Billion in Massive Hack (Bitcoin Magazine)
- Binance probes potential $5.8 billion crypto-theft hack (www.bleepingcomputer.com)
- Live Updates: Binance hit by largest crypto hack in history (cointelegraph.com)
- Binance investigating hack as suspicious outflows reach up to $5.8 billion (www.theblock.co)
- Binance Hack: Statement Edited Twice to Say Funds Are Safe (financefeeds.com)
- Binance Will Cover All Hack Losses, Suspends All Deposits and Withdrawals (financefeeds.com)
- Binance halts deposits and withdrawals, pledges to cover all losses from suspected hack (investinglive.com)
- Binance Hack: CZ Says Exchange Appears Hacked, Assures User Funds Are Safe (www.cryptotimes.io)
- Binance $5.8 Billion Hack Triggers Crypto Market Crash. What Really Happened? (coinpedia.org)
- Current price of Bitcoin for October 29, 2026 (fortune.com)
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile; always do your own research before investing.
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