KR — 전자신문

North Korea-Linked Hackers Steal Crypto Worth About 8 Trillion Won; Bitcoin Holdings Surpass Tesla's

BlockchainNovember 2, 20261 min read

A North Korea-linked hacking group stole a huge amount of crypto from the exchange Binance. The stolen bitcoin alone is now worth more than what Tesla and the government of El Salvador hold.

What happened

A hack on Binance on the 29th of last month led to the theft of 18,270 bitcoin. The U.S. FBI said on the 31st that North Korean hacking group 'TraderTraitor' was behind it. Binance says it has recovered or frozen about 3 billion dollars of the stolen money.

Key numbers

Stolen bitcoin: 18,270 coins, worth about 1.4 billion dollars (about 1.87 trillion won) at 78,500 dollars each
Tesla holds 11,509 bitcoin, so the stolen amount is about 59% more
El Salvador's government holds about 7,820 bitcoin, so the stolen amount is about 2.3 times more
North Korea's goods exports last year were 468.59 million dollars, so the bitcoin is worth about 3 times that
Total stolen, including ether and stablecoins, is about 6.3 billion dollars (about 8.4 trillion won), the largest single hack in crypto history

Some background

Crypto is digital money that runs on a shared record called a blockchain. Exchanges like Binance let people buy and sell it. In February last year, a North Korea-linked group stole about 1.5 billion dollars from the exchange Bybit. This new theft is more than four times bigger.

Why it matters

This is one of the biggest crypto thefts ever, and it shows how much money North Korea may be gaining through hacks. The stolen funds are still moving, so it is hard to know where the money will end up. Investors and exchanges will likely look harder at security.

What to watch

How much of the stolen money Binance can recover or freeze
Whether Binance covers customer losses with its own funds
Results of the investigation into how the hackers got in and whether other entry routes exist
Where the stolen ether and other coins are moved next

Glossary

Binance: A large crypto exchange where people buy, sell, and trade digital money.
TraderTraitor: The name of the North Korea-linked hacking group that the FBI blamed for the attack.

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

The US FBI announced on October 31 (local time) that the theft of more than $6 billion in cryptocurrency from exchange Binance was carried out by North Korea, which it calls "TraderTraitor." Binance had reported losses of about $6.3 billion and paused deposits and withdrawals, and blockchain analytics firms TRM Labs and Chainalysis had also linked TraderTraitor to the attack. The FBI is urging private firms to block transactions with addresses used for laundering the funds.

BlockchainThe VergeNov 1

Binance CEO says 90 percent of stolen assets have been ‘replenished’

After hackers stole $6.3 billion from Binance customers in a record-breaking crypto heist, CEO says 90 percent of the funds have been replaced and the company plans to cover the remaining 10 percent, which consists of "less liquid" tokens that may take longer to acquire. Binance is covering the losses directly, and withdrawals remain paused but are on track to reopen on Sunday, 2026-11-01.

BlockchainVnExpressOct 31

Hacker 'tested for 36 hours, withdrew $6.3 billion from Binance wallets in 20 minutes'

Hackers reportedly ran test transactions at least 36 hours before attacking Binance, draining funds from multiple wallets within about 20 minutes. According to TRM Labs, the attackers breached Binance's signing infrastructure, which approves transactions, allowing them to issue withdrawal orders from affected wallets. Binance confirmed the attack affected about $6.3 billion, and it says it will fully cover the losses through its SAFU fund and company reserves.

BlockchainZDNet KoreaOct 31

Card Industry Moves Into Stablecoin Payments, but Foreign Issuers' Asset-Freeze Power Is a Variable

Korean card companies are expanding stablecoin-based payment services, and foreign issuers' authority to freeze assets is emerging as a new issue to review. After a hack on Binance reportedly drained more than $5.7 billion in crypto assets, including stablecoins issued by Tether and Circle, issuers froze related assets, showing they can control transfers independently of exchanges. Financial industry sources said safeguards such as asset freezing and related control systems need review before full-scale adoption.