Science & Tech · Cybersecurity · 30 mins ago
Crypto firms freeze funds amid possible Binance security breach
Circle and Tether froze billions of dollars in crypto that may be tied to a potential security breach involving Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by daily trading volume.
Binance said it was investigating reports of a security issue and that user funds were safe.
Circle said it froze more than $800 million in USD Coin, while Tether said it froze more than $1.5 billion in its USDT stablecoin.
Binance co-founder Yi He said Ripple helped stop the movement of $200 million in funds linked to the possible attack.
The exchange has not confirmed that it was hacked, and the frozen funds may be only part of what was taken.
Arkham Intelligence linked nearly $6 billion in digital assets to 55 wallet addresses associated with the possible exploit.
Crypto prices fell as the news spread, with bitcoin dropping below $80,000, while Binance said it would share updates after verifying information.
Binance said it was investigating a potential security issue after large cryptocurrency transfers from wallets linked to the exchange raised concerns about a possible hack.
The exchange had not confirmed a breach or that any funds were stolen, and said user funds were safe.
Blockchain-based estimates of the assets involved varied, with some reports putting the value at up to about $5.8 billion.
Stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle froze funds linked to the activity, though reports gave differing totals.
Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said the incident looked like a hack and expected user funds to be fully covered.
- Who
- Binance is investigating; Tether and Circle froze funds linked to the activity.
- What
- Large transfers from Binance-linked wallets prompted concerns about a possible security breach. Binance had not confirmed a hack or losses.
- When
- October 29, 2026.
- Where
- From wallets linked to Binance, with reported transfers across Ethereum, Bitcoin and Tron.
- Why
- The transfers appeared suspicious and raised concerns that Binance wallets may have been compromised; investigators had not established whether they were authorized.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Blockchain records showed a large Ethereum transfer from a Binance-linked hot wallet to a newly created address.
Circle froze approximately $823 million in USDC, according to Interesting Engineering.
Binance said it was investigating reports of a potential security issue, while Tether and Circle reported freezing funds linked to the activity.
- Binance investigation
- The exchange had not confirmed a breach or losses
- Reported asset movements
- Estimates reached about $5.8 billion
- Circle freeze
- Approximately $823 million in USDC, according to Interesting Engineering
- Tether freeze
- More than $1.567 billion in USDT, according to BleepingComputer
- Bitcoin price
- Fell 3.2% to under $79,000 Thursday evening, according to AP
16 sources
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What people are saying
Rest assured that user funds are completely safe
does look like a hack on Binance
in coordination with law enforcement
a potential Binance exchange hack
Posts on X
Our teams are aware of reports of a potential security issue and are actively investigating. User funds are completely safe. Our security teams are reviewing all relevant information with urgency, and we will provide updates through official Binance channels as soon as we have
Circle is closely tracking reports of a potential exploit involving Binance. In coordination with law enforcement, we have frozen more than 800M USDC associated with the incident and will continue supporting the investigation.
Tether froze more than 1.567B USDT related to a potential Binance exchange hack. Protecting the industry and our partners is our main priority. Stay safe everyone.