Crypto · $BTC/USD
Bitcoin Holds Near $77,000 as Binance Keeps Withdrawals Paused and Promises Reserve Proof by Monday
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About $3 billion of the $6.3 billion stolen has been frozen, while blockchain analysts tie the theft to a North Korean hacking unit.
By Noris Ortiz ·
Bitcoin traded just above $77,000 in early Saturday trading as the crypto market waited for Binance to restore customer withdrawals following the record theft from the exchange late Thursday [1]. Binance said it would bring withdrawals back in phases once security checks are complete and would publish updated proof-of-reserves results on Monday, November 2 [1][2].
As of 1:34 a.m. ET on Saturday, bitcoin was down 1.71% at $77,175.40, according to Investing.com [1]. Ether was little changed at $2,240.54, while XRP fell 0.96% to $1.2450, Solana slipped 1.98% to $96.08 and BNB, the token tied to Binance, lost 1.91% to $702.57 [1]. Analysts at Compass Point see the $75,000 to $77,000 range as key support, and a sustained move below it could threaten the market's recent recovery, Investing.com reported [1].
The new details this weekend centered on the scale of the theft and the recovery effort. Binance has said roughly $6.3 billion in cryptocurrencies was taken, and about $3 billion had been frozen onchain as of Saturday morning in Asia, much of it through stablecoin issuers such as Tether and Circle, CoinDesk reported [2]. The haul included 18,270 bitcoin, worth about $1.4 billion at $78,500 per coin, which is more than the 11,509 bitcoin Tesla reported holding and roughly 2.3 times the reserve held by El Salvador, according to CoinDesk [2]. The coins left a Binance hot wallet at about 4:20 p.m. ET on Thursday and were split across 19 addresses, none of which had been spent as of early Friday [2].
Binance has set aside more than $6.34 billion of its own resources to cover customer losses, including about $5 billion already held in the affected tokens, and is buying the remainder on public markets and through over-the-counter trades [3]. Deposits have stayed open while withdrawals are paused [3]. A Binance spokesperson told CoinDesk, "We will weather this storm" [3].
Investigators are focused on North Korea. Blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs attributed the attack with high confidence to TraderTraitor, a state-sponsored North Korean group that the FBI blamed for the $1.5 billion Bybit theft in February 2025, CoinDesk reported [2]. Binance itself has not named the attacker [2]. The exchange first pointed to a compromised engineer's laptop, then said on Friday that investigators had found additional points of breach, while adding that it had seen no evidence that wallet private keys leaked [2]. Chainalysis also identified laundering patterns involving thousands of transactions, which suggested the use of automated systems, and the attackers converted about $325 million in stablecoins into roughly $285 million in ether, apparently to get ahead of issuer freezes, according to Investing.com [1].
Some Wall Street analysts have played down the long-term damage. Analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald, TD Cowen and Compass Point said the breach does not necessarily threaten bitcoin's underlying technology or the market's broader recovery, Investing.com reported [1]. Legal experts cautioned, however, that freezing tokens does not automatically establish ownership or guarantee that funds will be returned [1].
Separately, stablecoin issuer Tether reported third-quarter operating profit of $1.5 billion and reserves of $191.5 billion, nearly $8 billion more than its liabilities, according to Investing.com [1].
What to watch next: the timing and scope of Binance's phased withdrawal restart, whether customer outflows pick up once withdrawals reopen, Monday's proof-of-reserves publication, and whether more of the stolen funds are frozen or begin to move.
Sources:
[1] Investing.com (via Yahoo Finance), "Bitcoin holds above $77,000 as Binance hack recovery takes shape", October 31, 2026. https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/bitcoin-holds-above-77-000-061610983.html
[2] CoinDesk, "Bitcoin stolen from Binance tops Tesla's holdings and is over twice El Salvador's reserve", October 31, 2026. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2026/10/31/bitcoin-stolen-from-binance-tops-tesla-s-holdings-and-is-over-twice-el-salvador-s-reserve
[3] CoinDesk, "Binance arranges $6.34 billion to cover losses from biggest crypto hack ever", October 30, 2026. https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/10/30/binance-arranges-usd6-34-billion-to-cover-losses-from-record-crypto-hack
This article was produced with AI assistance. It is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice. StockVolt and its authors may hold positions in securities mentioned.