Cryptocurrency prices crash as Binance probes $6B hack
What's the story
Cryptocurrency prices have taken a hit after Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, flagged a possible security breach. Binance stopped trading on Thursday after hackers allegedly linked to North Korea stole more than $6 billion, the largest crypto hack in history. The development has sent Bitcoin crashing to a six-week low of $77,646 and Ether crashing to a two-month low of $2,238.76.
Security measures
Assets worth $3B frozen so far
As per Binance, the "estimated total impact is around $6.3 billion, and the company said it has worked with blockchain partners to freeze affected assets, with approximately $3 billion frozen on-chain so far."
The company said it will "cover all losses using funds from its SAFU fund and the company, and that user funds are safe."
Binance's Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) is a reserve fully funded in Bitcoin to safeguard user assets in case of security breaches.
Industry response
Tether, Circle, and Ripple have also frozen funds
In light of the incident, Tether has frozen nearly $1.57 billion in assets linked to the incident, while Circle has frozen over $800 million.
Crypto firm Ripple also froze about $200 million in funds.
The suspected hacker's wallets have been identified by blockchain tracker Arkham, holding some $5.9 billion in digital assets.