Nov 1 (Reuters) – Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, resumed bitcoin, ether and some stablecoin withdrawals on Sunday and said others would follow in phases, after it covered 95% of the $6.3 billion in tokens stolen from its platform.
The heist, which the FBI has tied to North Korea and analysts believe may be the biggest financial robbery ever, adds to a string of recent crypto thefts. Last year, attackers stole $2.9 billion worth of cryptocurrency across nearly 150 attacks, according to researchers at TRM Labs.
Binance, which was founded in China, said the first phase of withdrawals would cover 15 crypto assets including bitcoin, ether, XRP and dogecoin. Bitcoin withdrawals resumed shortly after 0600 GMT, while ether, BNB and some USDT and USDC stablecoin withdrawals were also restored.
Binance said it had covered $6 billion of stolen cryptocurrencies by using company money to buy replacement tokens. The remaining 5% of stolen tokens consist of assets that are less liquid and may take longer to source in the required amounts, according to the exchange.