- Binance CEO CZ verified and disclosed an incident involving $12.5 million in stolen crypto funds.
- Binance successfully froze $11.8 million of stolen assets and disclosed the process on social media.
- Users expressed concerns about their own crypto losses amidst news of the incident.
Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) recently recounted an incident on social media platform X where the crypto exchange immobilized stolen funds. CZ verified the authenticity of the event and explained that individuals associated with a Binance client were forcibly deprived of their cryptocurrency holdings while on a business trip in Montenegro. He underscored that these individuals were compelled to empty their crypto wallets, resulting in a collective loss of approximately $12.5 million.
Zhao provided further insight into how Binance conducted an examination of the cryptocurrency transactions on the blockchain and initiated contact with its partners to halt the wallet containing the pilfered assets. He disclosed that all the stolen funds were in the form of tether (USDT) and had been moved to a Tron wallet. According to CZ, Binance succeeded in freezing around $11.8 million, equivalent to 94.4% of the $12.5 million that had been taken.
When questioned on X regarding the comparative merits of cryptocurrencies versus fiat currencies held in traditional banks, CZ responded by saying:
“It’s a balance, and there is no perfect balance point. If you use XMR, then there isn’t much anyone can do (or to help you with), as far as I know. Bitcoin can be traced, but not frozen, until you send it to a CEX [centralized exchange]. The key point is, you have the choice.”
Changpeng zhao, binance ceo
On Saturday, Binance Customer Support outlined the established protocol on social media platform X for dealing with stolen funds that are sent to the exchange. They explained, “Depending on the information provided, Binance may grant a temporary courtesy freeze of any allegedly stolen assets … To keep the stolen assets frozen, you must provide a police report within 7 days after contacting Binance Support. Binance may extend the freeze period for you if you need more time to obtain a police report (on a case-by-case basis),” the post provided further clarification on this process.
However, many users are taking this news as an opportunity to highlight their losses as a result of hacks. One such user noted, “How come nobody helped me, when my little 7K got stolen. Not much but it took me 4 years to accumulate.”
Back in October of 2022, hackers reportedly siphoned off 2 million BNB tokens from the network on October 6, an equivalent of approximately $570 million at the prevailing market prices. Binance co-founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao disclosed that the exploit had occurred through a cross-chain bridge, the BSC Token Hub, leading to the unauthorized creation of additional BNB tokens.
