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FBI says North Korea's "TraderTraitor" is behind over $6 billion crypto theft from Binance

Blockchain2 min read

The US FBI says North Korean hackers stole more than $6 billion in crypto from the exchange Binance. The FBI calls the group behind the attack "TraderTraitor."

What happened

The FBI announced on October 31 (US time) that North Korea was behind a theft of over $6 billion worth of crypto from Binance, one of the world's largest crypto exchanges. Binance said it lost about $6.3 billion and paused deposits and withdrawals. The theft happened around October 29. Two blockchain analysis firms, TRM Labs and Chainalysis, had also said that TraderTraitor was involved.

Key numbers and facts

  • Stolen amount: more than $6 billion (about 1 trillion yen), and Binance reported about $6.3 billion in losses.
  • Date of theft: around October 29, 2026.
  • The hackers mainly turned the stolen assets into Ethereum (ETH).
  • In February 2025, the FBI also linked the hacking of crypto exchange Bybit, which lost about $1.5 billion, to TraderTraitor.

Some background

Crypto is digital money that runs on a blockchain, a shared record of transactions. A crypto exchange is a company where people buy, sell, and store digital coins. The FBI says the hackers now plan to hide where the money came from. This is called money laundering, which means moving money through many steps so it is hard to trace. They may use DeFi (decentralized finance, money services that run without a central bank or company) and fast swap services.

What the FBI asked for

  • Companies that run crypto services should block transactions with the addresses the hackers use to launder money.
  • The FBI published many Ethereum addresses and one Solana address linked to the stolen funds.
  • People with information can contact a local FBI office or the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).

Why it matters

This is one of the largest crypto thefts ever reported. It shows that North Korean hacking groups are still a big threat to crypto companies. For Binance users in Japan, Binance Japan says its customers' assets are kept safe in cold wallets, which are offline storage. Those assets are separate from the hacked wallet, so no damage was found there. Withdrawals were paused as a precaution, with a restart expected within 48 hours.

Glossary

Binance
A large global crypto exchange where people buy, sell, and store digital coins.
TraderTraitor
The name the FBI uses for a North Korean hacking group that attacks crypto companies.
TRM Labs
A blockchain analysis company that tracks crypto transactions to find suspicious activity.
Chainalysis
A blockchain analysis company that studies crypto transactions to help catch crime.
DeFi
Decentralized finance: money services that run on blockchains without a central bank or company.

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