Today in crypto: Soon after the $6.3 billion hack of Binance, some political and administration figures began offering their opinions with a US election approaching on Nov. 3 and voting already having begun in many locations. Coinbase led a selloff in crypto-linked stocks following Binances record-breaking $6.3 billion hack, and Binance said it had set aside more than $6.34 billion to cover losses from the attack.
Binance hack sparks pre-election political clashes
Soon after the $6.3 billion hack of Binance, the biggest in crypto history, some political and administration figures began offering their opinions with a US election approaching on Nov. 3 and voting already having begun in many locations.
President Donald Trump was asked at a news conference on Friday about the hack of Binance. “We don‘t know. We’re looking at that, the hack with Binance. They‘re saying they’re going to get it back, they‘re saying they’re guaranteeing it,” he replied.
The crypto exchange said in a post on X late Friday that it would cover any losses. “We want to be clear about our commitment: Binance will absorb the financial impact of these stolen funds, not our users.” It added that about $3 billion of the stolen funds had already been frozen in various locations. On Saturday, Binance said it had already covered 90% of the impacted amount of the hacked loss.
It was not clear whether there was any immediate political advantage to be gained from the hack, which was widely attributed to a North Korean group, but Republican and Democratic sides began staking out positions almost immediately.
Coinbase leads crypto stock selloff following $6.3 billion Binance hack
Shares of publicly traded cryptocurrency companies fell sharply Friday, with Coinbase dropping more than 13% a day after reporting a decline in third-quarter revenue, as the industry dealt with Binances $6.3 billion hack.
Other crypto-linked stocks also declined, with stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Group (CRCL) falling more than 9% and Bitcoin treasury company Strategy (MSTR) dropping about 8%, according to Yahoo Finance data at the time of writing.
The selloff also hit Bitcoin mining and data center operator IREN (IREN), whose shares fell more than 10%, and blockchain-based financial services company Figure Technology Solutions (FIGR), which dropped about 9%.
The declines followed Thursdays disclosure of the Binance breach. The exchange confirmed Friday that hackers stole about $6.3 billion in the largest cryptocurrency theft on record.
Binance says it holds $5 billion in matching tokens to cover hack losses
Binance said Friday that it had set aside more than $6.34 billion in company funds to cover losses from its hack, with $5 billion already in held in the same tokens stolen.
“The $5 billion is held in the exact token assets that are required. These assets are in Binance custody,” a Binance spokesperson told Cointelegraph.
Binance did not disclose when it acquired the assets.
The spokesperson declined to disclose the wallet addresses, citing security reasons, but said that the holdings would appear in the exchanges next proof-of-reserves report, which shows the assets it holds to back customer balances.
Binance said it provides weekly reports on its company funds to the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA), the financial regulator of Abu Dhabi Global Market in the United Arab Emirates. The exchange said the requirement predated the hack.