Crypto Traders Test Binance Stability After Record Theft
Bitcoin remained near the upper end of its recent range as Binance gradually restored withdrawals after a record-breaking security breach. The market’s relatively calm response suggested that traders were watching the exchange’s recovery closely rather than rushing for the exits.
Bitcoin Recovers From the Weekend Low
Bitcoin was trading at $77,926 at 11:02 UTC, according to CoinGecko. That level stood about 2% above the post-incident low calculated by Unchained, while Ether changed hands at $2,285.83.
The sharpest decline came on Friday afternoon, Oct. 30. Coinbase data showed BTC-USD falling to $76,141 at 18:50 UTC before buyers pushed the price back towards the high-$77,000 range.
The rebound was notable because the Binance breach remained the dominant story across the cryptocurrency market. Despite the uncertainty, bitcoin did not revisit its lowest point over the weekend.
Withdrawals Resume Without a Full-Scale Run
Binance started restoring customer withdrawals in stages at 06:00 UTC on Sunday, Nov. 1. The decision ended the temporary restrictions imposed after the attack and gave users access to their assets again.
Activity was substantial during the first nine and a half hours, but the numbers pointed to an orderly outflow rather than an uncontrolled rush:
- Customers withdrew $4.649 billion between 06:00 and 15:30 UTC.
- Deposits reached $1.01 billion during the same period.
- The resulting net outflow was approximately $3.64 billion.
- Binance said the net figure represented 2.1% of its $171 billion in customer assets listed in its Oct. 28 proof-of-reserves report.
Binance later said withdrawal volumes had eased and were stabilizing as expected. The exchange also maintained that market conditions remained stable while additional services were brought back online in phases.
ETF Selling Did Not Push Bitcoin Lower
Bitcoin also absorbed heavy selling from U.S. spot exchange-traded funds. SoSoValue recorded $643.3 million in net outflows on Friday, the first U.S. trading session after the hack began.
BlackRock’s IBIT led the withdrawals with $233.7 million, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC at $201.0 million. Even with those redemptions, bitcoin held above the session’s low and recovered during the following days.
That resilience suggests demand remained available beneath the market. Investors were responding to a major exchange failure in real time, yet the selling did not trigger a deeper collapse in bitcoin’s price.
Theft Attributed to North Korean Hackers
TRM Labs and Chainalysis have estimated that the breach involved more than $6.3 billion in digital assets. Both firms connected the incident to TraderTraitor, a North Korean-linked hacking group associated with major cryptocurrency thefts.
Investigators reported that the attacker moved funds across several blockchain networks, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tron, Solana and the XRP Ledger. A significant portion of the transfers reportedly occurred within roughly 20 minutes, highlighting the speed of the operation.
Binance pledged to cover the losses through its SAFU emergency fund and corporate resources. That commitment helped reassure customers that the stolen assets would not become a direct liability for individual account holders.
Geopolitical Risk Adds to Market Uncertainty
Traders are also monitoring tensions involving Iran as the U.S. midterm elections approach on Tuesday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly urged President Donald Trump to take military action against Iran after the vote.
Trump has presented a less urgent position, saying negotiations with Tehran were progressing and that he was not in a hurry. Secretary of State Marco Rubio likewise indicated that no final decision had been made.
For cryptocurrency markets, the combination of a record exchange theft, large ETF outflows and unresolved geopolitical tensions creates a difficult backdrop. Bitcoin’s ability to remain near $78,000 gives the market some stability, but traders still face several major risks as the week develops.
