# Hackers take about $6.3 billion USD from Binance in the biggest crypto theft yet

> Binance says a compromised engineer's laptop let attackers drain about $8.8 billion CAD. It promises to cover losses. Binance left Canada in 2023.

- Published: 2026-10-30T12:03:00.000Z
- By: The Circuit Staff
- Type: News
- Topics: Security, Fintech
- URL: https://thecircuit.ca/posts/2026-10-30-binance-hack-6-billion/

Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, says attackers took about $6.3 billion USD (about $8.8 billion CAD) from its wallets, in what [Reuters, via BNN Bloomberg](https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/markets/crypto/2026/10/30/worlds-biggest-crypto-heist-hackers-steal-us63-billion-from-binance/), calls the largest crypto heist on record. Most of it went in about 20 minutes, starting late Thursday.

## What Binance says happened

In its [security incident update](https://www.binance.com/en/support/announcement/detail/c5a8729a97ac486d963784d96c5642d7), Binance says its first look points to a compromised laptop belonging to a DevOps engineer. That gave the attacker access to a "service container" and let them submit withdrawals the company hadn't authorized. Binance says it has found no sign that any wallet's private keys leaked, and it promises a full technical post-mortem.

The company says:

- about $3 billion USD (about $4.2 billion CAD) has been frozen on-chain with help from blockchain partners
- it will cover all losses from its SAFU reserve and its own funds, and "user funds are safe"
- withdrawals are paused while security checks finish; deposits still work

Reuters reports that Binance expects withdrawals to resume within 48 hours. Tether froze nearly $1.57 billion USD of the stolen funds and Circle more than $800 million USD.

## Who's behind it

Blockchain analysts at TRM Labs and Chainalysis told Reuters they're highly confident North Korea is responsible. The previous record, the roughly $1.5-billion USD theft from Bybit in February 2025, was attributed to the North Korea-linked Lazarus group, [ABC News notes](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-30/largest-cryptocurrency-hack-billions-stolen-binance/107327732). The theft knocked bitcoin to a six-week low of $76,368 USD, Reuters reports. Coinbase said it wasn't affected.

## The Canadian angle

Binance hasn't operated in Canada for two years. It [ceased all operations in Canada on Sept. 25, 2023](https://fintrac-canafe.canada.ca/pen/amps/pen-2024-05-09-eng), and FINTRAC later fined it $6,002,000 for failing to register and failing to report 5,902 large crypto transactions. Binance has appealed that penalty in Federal Court.

So most Canadians with crypto shouldn't have money on Binance. But anyone who still holds a Binance account, or uses a service built on it, is waiting on the withdrawal freeze like everyone else.

**Why it matters:** The breach began with one employee's laptop, not a flaw in the blockchain. Binance's advice applies to everyone: get updates only from official channels. A record hack in the headlines is exactly when fake "recovery" emails and support accounts show up.