Binance has begun restoring its withdrawal services after a $6.3bn theft that has been described as the biggest crypto heist in history. US dollar withdrawals are now available, following the restoration of euro, yen and some other fiat currency withdrawals.
The exchange initially froze withdrawals while investigating the breach, then began a phased reopening on Sunday. By Sunday afternoon, it had processed $4.6bn in withdrawals and $1bn in deposits, producing a net outflow of about $3.6bn. The outflow represented 2.1% of Binance’s $171bn in assets under management, according to figures included in the company’s latest proof-of-reserves snapshot.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, known as CZ, warned that scammers were targeting customers attempting to withdraw their funds. Fake screenshots circulating online reportedly offered $150 in compensation for suspended withdrawals. Binance said the screenshots had been digitally altered and that the information was false, urging users to rely on its official channels.
The breach has also affected broader crypto-market sentiment. Nick Forster, chief executive of crypto platform Derive.xyz, said US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded $643m in net outflows on Friday, their first trading session after the hack. BlackRock’s IBIT recorded $233.7m in outflows, Fidelity’s FBTC lost $201m, ARKB saw $129.5m leave, while GBTC and BITB recorded outflows of $53.3m and $25.7m respectively. No fund registered a net inflow.
Options trading on Derive.xyz also shifted towards protection against further declines. Put options accounted for 68% of Bitcoin options premiums during the first 12 hours after the hack, compared with 43% during the previous five days. Daily Bitcoin options volume rose to about $55m, from $34m the day before.
Derive’s market also reduced the probability assigned to Bitcoin reaching $100,000 by the end of the year, from 6% to 3.5%. Before the hack, options had priced a 75% chance of Bitcoin finishing above $80,000 at Friday’s expiry; it instead settled at $77,786.
Financial regulators are reviewing the cybersecurity measures used by crypto exchanges. South Korea’s financial regulator held an emergency meeting with local platforms and ordered measures including continuous transaction monitoring, systems to detect and report unauthorised access attempts, greater use of cold wallets and increased reserve deposits.
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission is also expected to issue further guidance to the crypto industry during the final two months of the year, according to comments reported by Reuters.
Separately, rival trading platform Chainalysis said it had been targeted in a cyberattack but found no evidence of unauthorised access to investigation content, authentication credentials or session tokens. The company said the incident was unrelated to the recent Binance theft.
Sources: The Guardian Business.