🔴 DEVELOPING STORY · CRYPTO SECURITY
Binance Hack Tracker: How Much Was Stolen?
Billions of dollars in crypto drained from Binance hot wallets on Thursday, October 29, 2026 — in what may become the largest crypto theft in history. This page tracks every reported figure: how much left, how much is frozen, and how much is still missing.
Last updated: October 29, 2026, ~11:45 PM UTC · Figures below are press and on-chain reports — Binance has not yet published a final confirmed loss.
REPORTED STOLEN (TOP ESTIMATE)
$5.7B+
Value of the attacker's wallet, per Arkham data reported by CoinDesk. On-chain tallies put total outflows at ~$5.57B.
FROZEN BY ISSUERS
$2.54B
Verified frozen total, per Binance: Tether froze $1.57B+ in USDT and Circle ~$823M in USDC before the attacker could move them.
STILL MISSING (NOT FROZEN)
~$3B
Roughly the top outflow estimate minus the frozen stablecoins. Bitcoin and ether can't be frozen by anyone — that part is entirely in the attacker's hands.
USER FUNDS
“Safe”
CZ: “User funds are safe! It does look like a hack on Binance… as a shareholder, I expect all user funds will be fully covered.” Withdrawals are paused on several networks.
How much was stolen? Every estimate, by source
There is no official total yet — Binance says it is still investigating. Reported figures differ because some count only the Ethereum hot wallets, while others add Bitcoin and Tron wallets, and some may include wallets not yet tied to the attacker (crypto journalist Molly White has cautioned the $5B+ tallies could overcount). Here is the full range:
| Source | Figure | What it counts |
|---|---|---|
| Wall Street Journal | At least $1.7B | The conservative floor reported in the first hours. |
| Blockchain Reporter / CoinLab | ~$2.5B | Ethereum hot-wallet outflows: ~167,464 ETH plus ~$1.6B USDT and 60+ other tokens. |
| Taylor Monahan (on-chain researcher) | $2B – $5.5B | Estimated range as wallet tracing developed. |
| Decrypt (on-chain tally) | $5.57B | All three networks: $3.51B on Ethereum, $1.44B in bitcoin (18,270 BTC), $630M on Tron. |
| Arkham via CoinDesk | $5.7B+ | Current value sitting in the attacker's wallet: ~$1.5B BTC, ~$900M ETH, ~$1.4B USDT + USDC. |
| Binance (official) | Not confirmed | “Our teams are aware of reports of a potential security issue and are actively investigating.” No loss figure published yet. |
What was taken: the reported breakdown
One widely circulated on-chain tally (via CoinScreamer) breaks the ~$5.61B down by asset. Treat it as preliminary — it has not been independently verified or confirmed by Binance:
| Asset | Reported amount | Can it be frozen? |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin (BTC) | $1.45B | No |
| Tether (USDT) | $1.57B | Yes — issuer froze $1.57B+ |
| Ether (ETH) | $875M | No |
| USD Coin (USDC) | $823M | Yes — issuer froze ~$823M |
| Tron (TRX) | $234M | No |
| Ripple USD (RLUSD) | $88.5M | Issuer-dependent |
| Wrapped Beacon ETH (WBETH) | $75M | No |
| Tether Gold (XAUT) | $50M | Issuer-dependent |
| Other cryptocurrencies | $447.5M | Mixed |
Timeline of the attack (UTC, Oct 29)
- Oct 28–29 — The address that later triggers the drain is funded through the Tornado Cash mixer: three deposits of about 0.1 ETH. The receiving wallet is created just hours before the attack.
- 20:24 — A single transaction empties the “Binance 14” hot wallet: 167,464 ETH (~$388M), about 1.615 billion USDT and 63 other tokens move to the fresh address. On-chain researcher Spreek flags it within minutes: “It COULD be routine wallet maintenance, but it looks extremely sus.”
- 20:24 (+24 seconds) — A second wallet, “Binance 16”, sends another 28,005 ETH to the same address. A third hot wallet sends out $823M in USDC. The main Ethereum wave is over by ~23:04 Cyprus time.
- ~20:40 — The receiving address forwards about $450M (195,460 ETH) onward to another fresh address. Roughly $700M in USDT is moved and swapped before Tether's blacklist takes effect; non-freezable tokens like UNI and PEPE are sold on decentralized exchanges.
- Evening — Binance pauses withdrawals on several networks “following a security incident as a precautionary measure” (spokesperson Ross O'Leary). Binance.US says it is unaffected.
- Evening — CZ posts: “User funds are safe! It does look like a hack on Binance.” Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino says Tether has frozen over $1.567B in USDT; Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire says Circle froze over $800M in USDC.
- ~23:20 — Binance clarifies the verified frozen total: $2.54 billion — “This figure may continue to increase as our teams work closely with law enforcement.”
How did the hacker do it?
Investigators describe the hallmarks of a hot-wallet key compromise rather than a software bug in Binance's exchange itself:
- A Tornado Cash-funded trigger. The initiating address was funded only through the crypto mixing service — three small deposits of ~0.1 ETH on Oct 28 and 29 — a pattern designed to hide where the operator came from.
- EIP-7702 delegation. The attacker used an Ethereum feature that lets an ordinary wallet temporarily run smart-contract code, helping automate the drain across dozens of tokens in one transaction.
- Speed before the freeze. Within 15 minutes, ~$450M had already been forwarded to a second fresh address. About $700M of USDT escaped before Tether's blacklist landed; the rest of the stablecoins were frozen in place.
- DeFi leverage on stolen funds. The exploiter even used stolen USDT as collateral on lending protocol Aave to borrow 20,000 wrapped ETH (~$44M) — one reason Aave's token dropped ~8%.
- Who is behind it? Unknown so far. No group has been named by Binance or law enforcement yet.
Is user money safe?
Binance's spokesperson told Gizmodo: “Rest assured that user funds are completely safe,” and warned users to beware of scams and unofficial links while the investigation runs.
CZ, who no longer runs Binance day-to-day but remains its founder and largest shareholder, went further: “I don't manage Binance (.com) anymore, but as a shareholder, I expect all user funds will be fully covered.” No reimbursement plan or timeline has been published yet — that is one of the key things investors are waiting for.
Market impact
- Bitcoin fell below $79,000 (to ~$78,800, about −3%).
- Ethereum dropped ~4% to about $2,261.
- BNB slid from ~$739 to a low near $692 before recovering to ~$704 (−6.7%).
- Liquidations: ~$628M in leveraged positions were wiped out within one hour, mostly longs — $344.8M of it on Binance itself.
- Monero (XMR), a privacy coin, rose ~6% as traders speculated about laundering demand.
The largest crypto hack in history?
If the multi-billion-dollar tallies are confirmed, this dwarfs every previous crypto theft:
| Incident | When | Stolen |
|---|---|---|
| Binance (this incident) | Oct 2026 | $1.7B – $5.7B reported |
| Bybit | Feb 2025 | $1.5B (attributed by the FBI to North Korea) |
| Bitget (via a third-party product) | Sep 2026 | ~$388M |
| Polymarket (via a third-party provider) | Oct 29, 2026 — the same day | Under $3M |
For scale: security firm Hacken counted $1.18B lost across ALL crypto hacks in Q3 2026. This single incident may be several times that.
What investors and leaders are watching next
- Binance's official loss figure and whether a reimbursement plan (for example from its insurance/SAFU-style reserves) is announced.
- Withdrawals reopening — the clearest signal that Binance considers the breach contained.
- The attacker's next moves — any large ETH sales or mixing activity could pressure prices further; the frozen stablecoins can't move, but ~$3B in crypto can.
- Attribution — whether investigators link the theft to a known group, as with Bybit and North Korea.
- Regulatory reaction — a theft of this scale at the world's largest exchange will draw lawmaker and regulator attention in the US, EU and Asia.
Quick answers
How much was stolen from Binance?
Reports range from at least $1.7B (WSJ) to $5.7B+ in the attacker's wallet (Arkham). A full on-chain tally across Ethereum, Bitcoin and Tron puts outflows at ~$5.57B. Binance has not confirmed a final figure.
How much is frozen?
$2.54B verified frozen, per Binance — over $1.567B in USDT (Tether) and ~$823M in USDC (Circle). Frozen stablecoins stay in the hacker's wallet but cannot be spent or moved.
How much is still missing?
Roughly $3B by the top estimates — mostly bitcoin and ether, which no issuer can freeze.
Are user funds safe?
Binance and CZ both say yes, and CZ expects users to be fully covered. Withdrawals were paused on several networks as a precaution; Binance.US says it is unaffected.
Who hacked Binance?
Not yet known. The trail shows a Tornado Cash-funded address, a fresh receiving wallet, and EIP-7702 automation — but no attribution has been made public.
Sources
- CoinDesk — Binance loses $5.7 billion in largest crypto hack to date
- Decrypt — Binance Drained of $5.5 Billion in Suspected Hack
- TechCrunch — Binance pauses withdrawals as hackers suspected of stealing billions
- Gizmodo — Binance Likely Lost at Least $1.7 Billion in Largest Crypto Hack Ever, Says Founder
- CoinLab — Binance hacked: about $2.5B drained from hot wallets
- CryptoNews — Binance Hot Wallet Hack: CZ Confirms, Says User Funds Safe
This is a developing story tracked by ShortlyOnline from public reporting. Figures are estimates from the sources above and may change as Binance and investigators publish verified numbers. Nothing here is financial advice.