Bitcoin holds above $77,000 as FBI joins hunt for $6.3 billion Binance hackers - Yahoo Finance Australia
Bitcoin fell below $77,000 for the first time in over a month on Saturday as U.S. agencies joined the investigation into the record $6.3 billion Binance hack.
The attack, which occurred on Friday, rattled digital asset markets and triggered declines in cryptocurrency-linked stocks.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is coordinating with partners to assess the scope of the incident, while the U.S. Secret Service is working with the private sector to recover stolen funds.
The Justice Department said it was aware of reports about the attack but declined to comment on investigations.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was coordinating with partners to assess the scope of the incident and determine appropriate investigative steps.
North Korean hackers suspected
Blockchain intelligence firms TRM Labs, Chainalysis, and Elliptic have pointed to North Korea as being behind the heist. Chainalysis described it as the largest incident in crypto history.
The stolen assets included Bitcoin, Ether, and stablecoins USDT and USDC. Chainalysis also identified previously unseen laundering patterns involving thousands of transactions.
Investigators linked the activity to North Korean hacking group Tradertraitor, while attackers converted $325 million in stablecoins into $285 million in Ether.
Chainalysis described it as the largest incident in crypto history.
Binance responds and ETFs see outflows
Binance has outlined plans to restore withdrawals in phases following security checks and said it reserved more than $6.34 billion in company funds to cover losses.
The exchange plans to publish proof-of-reserves data by Monday, November 2.
Investor positioning weakened sharply on Friday, with U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recording $643.33 million in net outflows.
The withdrawals snapped four consecutive sessions of inflows between October 26 and October 29, which had attracted about $440.73 million.
Theodora Lee Joseph, an analyst at Finimize, highlighted the irony that recovering stolen crypto assets increasingly depends on centralized intervention, despite Bitcoin being designed to operate without a central issuer.
Stablecoin freezes and Bitcoin's investment appeal
Tether and Circle have frozen $2.4 billion in stolen tokens to assist investigators, while Bitcoin has no central issuer capable of freezing transactions, making stolen coins harder to recover.
Joseph also argued that Bitcoin's broader weakness reflects challenges to its investment appeal. Down around 10% this year and nearly 40% from its 2025 peak, the cryptocurrency has struggled with higher interest rates and inconsistent ETF demand.
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