Crypto exchange Binance: FBI blames North Korea for hack on crypto exchange

afp According to the US Federal Police FBI, what is probably the largest theft of cryptocurrencies in history is attributed to North Korea. North Korean hackers stole more than $6 billion in an attack on the world's largest crypto exchange Binance, the authority said on Saturday evening. The FBI blamed the hacking group TraderTraitor for the attack.

As the US Federal Police further explained, investigators observed how the perpetrators exchanged the loot primarily for Ether (ETH), the cryptocurrency of the Ethereum network. The assets are then likely to be further obscured via decentralized financial services and rapid cryptocurrency exchange platforms.

The FBI published a list of around 500 addresses in the Ethereum network that TraderTraitor has discovered is being used for money laundering. It called on crypto exchanges and other industry service providers to block transactions with these addresses or assets derived from them.

Binance announced the hacker attack on Thursday. According to the world's largest crypto exchange by trading volume, assets worth the equivalent of 5.6 billion euros were affected. Binance said on Saturday that it had already used its own resources to replace 90 percent of the stolen crypto assets.

“Our commitment remains unchanged: Binance will fully assume the financial consequences of the assets stolen in this incident,” the company said on the online service X. It has allocated more than $6.34 billion to cover the losses. More time will be needed for the remaining ten percent because these digital assets are less readily available.

After the attack, Binance initially suspended withdrawals. According to the company, they should probably be possible again on Sunday. Previously, Binance said partners had frozen around $3 billion in crypto assets to curb the theft. According to its own information, the platform has 335 million users.

Binance had spoken of a “complex attack” with multiple gateways. According to previous company information, the attack could have occurred via an IT employee's laptop. There is currently no evidence of the theft of private keys for crypto accounts.

The analysis firm TRM Labs had already suspected TraderTraitor before the FBI statement. US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Washington was examining North Korea's involvement. TraderTraitor is attributed to the Lazarus hacker network, which is associated with North Korean secret services.

Lazarus became known in 2014 for the alleged attack on the film studio Sony Pictures. TraderTraitor is also blamed for the theft of $1.5 billion from cryptocurrency exchange Bybit in February 2025. North Korea is under extensive international sanctions because of its nuclear and missile programs.

According to a 2020 US Army report, the North Korean cyber warfare unit “Office 121” has around 6,000 employees, some of whom operate from abroad. After the Binance attack became known, Bitcoin lost almost 5 percent, Ether almost 6 percent and the Binance currency BNB almost 10 percent.

North Korea said it tested warheads containing cluster munitions for tactical ballistic missiles on Saturday. The test was intended to test the operational capability and effectiveness of the warheads, the state news agency KCNA reported on Sunday. According to the North Korean missile administration, the weapon can completely destroy a target area of ​​12 to 13 hectares.

According to KCNA, the head of the missile administration announced that the armed forces should be able to select and use different types of weapons depending on the mission and target this year. Photos published by KCNA showed the launch of a projectile from a mobile launcher and multiple impacts on an island. Leader Kim Jong Un was not present at the attempt. In April he had already accompanied a test of cluster munition warheads on a ballistic missile.

Only on Thursday, according to South Korean information, North Korea fired around a dozen short-range ballistic missiles towards the East Sea. Tensions on the heavily fortified border had previously increased: three South Korean soldiers were injured in an explosion. Seoul suspects North Korean landmines, Pyongyang rejects this.