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Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by daily trading volume. News of the hacking attack, which is thought to be the biggest-ever crypto heist, caused the prices of most major cryptocurrencies to fall sharply on Friday.
The company has offered reassurances that it will cover the losses from the attack, saying it has used company funds to buy tokens to replenish 90% of what was stolen.
Binance suspended user withdrawals after the attack but said they would resume in phases, the first of which began on Sunday.
Between 0600 GMT (0700 CET) and 1530 GMT (1630 CET), the platform said it had processed $4.65 billion (€4.17bn) in withdrawals and $1.01 billion (€905m) in deposits.
The net outflow of $3.64 billion (€3.26bn) amounted to about 2.1% of the total assets managed by the company.
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation accused North Korea of being behind the hack in a statement on Saturday, confirming earlier suspicions from private investigators and analysts that a Pyongyang-affiliated group called TraderTraitor was responsible.
TraderTraitor is the same group blamed for a $1.5 billion (€1.34bn) theft from the Bybit platform in February last year.
“The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is releasing information advising the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) was responsible for the theft of more than $6 billion (€5.38bn) in virtual assets from cryptocurrency exchange Binance, on or about October 29, 2026,” the statement said.
The FBI added that it had observed “TraderTraitor actors” converting stolen assets into Ethereum and expected those assets to be laundered further through decentralised finance platforms and instant swap services.
It said it was urging private sector entities “to block transactions with or derived from addresses TraderTraitor actors are using to launder these stolen assets.”
US President Donald Trump cast doubt on North Korea’s involvement in the hack.
“I’m not concerned. We’re learning about it. We don’t know if it’s North Korea,” Trump told reporters at his residence in Florida late on Saturday.
The president often reflects with pride on the summits he held with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his first term.
‘Commitment’ to cover losses
Binance said on Saturday that it had set aside more than $6.34 billion (€5.68bn) in company funds to cover losses resulting from the hack.
“Our commitment remains the same: Binance will fully cover the financial impact of the funds stolen in this incident,” the company said on X.
It said it had used company funds to buy tokens to replenish 90% of the stolen assets, while the remaining 10% of tokens were “less liquid, which means they may take longer to source in the required amounts.”
The attack on Binance came as many observers expressed concerns that the ever-expanding capabilities of artificial intelligence models could compromise cryptography and IT security protocols.
Bitcoin plunged nearly 5% following news of the hack, while Ethereum dropped nearly 6% and BNB, Binance’s native cryptocurrency, tumbled nearly 10%.
The sheer scale of the hack has put a spotlight on North Korea’s capacity to find illicit means of acquiring funds, despite facing extensive international sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes.
TraderTraitor is believed to be part of the Lazarus Group, which gained notoriety in 2014 when it was accused of hacking into Sony Pictures in retaliation for “The Interview”, a film that mocked North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Additional sources • AFP