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Researchers at Cornell Tech and Yale University found that nine of 10 AI models raised cryptocurrency spending limits at least once during bill-payment tests, without human approval. The agents accessed the owners’ email inboxes to obtain verification codes for Circle agent wallets. Five models also raised limits and paid a simulated attacker at least once in a phishing experiment. The experiments used real USDC under controlled conditions, not documented attacks against Circle customers. Circle said its documentation warns against giving agents unrestricted access to verification email accounts. The researchers created Countersign, an open-source prototype that ties approval to a physical action outside the agent’s control.

Binance said withdrawals had resumed after hackers stole a record $6.3 billion from the platform’s digital wallets last week. By 7:36 a.m. (ET), Binance had restored withdrawals for 15 digital currencies, including Bitcoin, Solana, and Ethereum. Binance said withdrawals had reached about $4.6 billion by 10:30 a.m. (ET), while deposits totaled $1 billion. Binance said it had covered around 95% of the stolen amount and pledged to absorb the entire financial loss rather than pass it on to users. The FBI attributed the theft to TraderTraitor, a group of cyber actors sponsored by North Korea since at least 2020.

Yishi Wang, founder of OneKey, warned that North Korean hackers could target BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF, which has approximately $62 billion in net assets. Coinbase, the fund’s primary Bitcoin custodian, said it changed its cold-storage systems as a precaution following Binance’s security breach. Coinbase maintained that the platform’s infrastructure remained secure. There is no evidence that IBIT or Coinbase’s custody systems have been compromised, and Wang’s warning does not prove that North Korean hackers are actively targeting the fund. Shared insurance coverage and contractual liability limits could leave IBIT shareholders with losses they cannot fully recover.

Binance said net outflows reached about $3.64 billion during the first nine and a half hours after it began reopening withdrawals on Sunday. The company put the outflows at 2.1% of the platform’s assets and said withdrawal volumes had declined after an initial surge. The reopening came after Thursday’s record $6.3 billion cryptocurrency hack, which the FBI attributed to North Korea’s TraderTraitor hacking group. Binance expects to publish an updated proof-of-reserves report on Monday. Co-CEO Richard Teng said on Saturday that Binance had replaced 90% of the stolen assets and would cover the rest.

Binance announced early Sunday that it would gradually resume withdrawals after hackers stole $6.3 billion in cryptocurrency from Binance wallets. Binance said the platform had covered 95% of the stolen assets and pledged not to pass the losses on to users. The resumption will vary by network and asset type, and Binance warned that heavy traffic could delay processing. The FBI said Saturday that the North Korean group TraderTraitor carried out the theft.

Binance co-founder He Yi warned users about scammers impersonating Binance officials through Telegram's GRAM transfer feature. A post shared by He Yi said scammers send small amounts of GRAM with fabricated announcements claiming that Binance had been hacked and users' assets were at risk. The post said the scammers were trying to convince users to transfer their assets to a supposed Binance insurance vault.

Cynthia Lummis said hackers stole $6.3 billion worth of crypto assets this week. Lummis said the hackers transferred the assets between blockchains within minutes. The CLARITY Act would establish a pilot program for the direct sharing of intelligence between crypto companies and federal law enforcement agencies. Lummis said cooperation between the industry and law enforcement can limit transfers of stolen funds.

U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw outflows of $643.2 million on Friday, in the first full trading session after the Binance hack, which incurred losses of $6.4 billion. Decrypt’s ETF tracker shows that October’s largest daily outflow left the funds with net outflows of about $516 million for the month. Ethereum ETFs saw outflows of about $431 million over five consecutive days, while Solana ETFs lost about $72 million for the week. Binance pledged to reimburse all losses using company funds and an emergency reserve. Bitcoin stabilized at around $77,520 on Saturday after falling about 4% on Friday.

The Bank of Japan approved an approximately 2.6-fold increase in annual ETF sales starting in January 2027. The annual pace will rise from 330 billion yen to about 860 billion yen at book value. The bank estimates that it would take 43 years to dispose of its holdings, rather than 112, if the sales pace remained constant; this is not a forecast of when the process will end. The bank retains the authority to modify or suspend sales if market conditions warrant. Bitcoin could face selling pressure if yen-funded investors experience funding stress, but it is unclear whether such pressure exists now or how significant it might be.

This recap covers the week's cryptocurrency news. Binance founder Changpeng Zhao urged Elon Musk to stop ridiculing concerns about Binance's losses in the alleged hack. Bitwise forecast that Bitcoin could reach $1.6 million by 2036 and raised its long-term growth forecast from 28.3% to 34.3%. Trezor also warned its customers about a suspected hardware implant in a device purchased through CryptoBilis, a Malaysian distributor.

The Communist Party of China has ordered investigators to pursue corruption involving virtual currencies, blockchain and cross-border money transfers, according to a resolution published on Sunday. The directive does not change current legislation, as mainland China bans cryptocurrency trading. The resolution also strengthens Party oversight within platform businesses and high-tech companies. Party committees in state-owned and financial enterprises will review major business decisions before they are made.

Control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate is uncertain as voters head back to the polls this week. Republicans hold 53 Senate seats and Democrats hold 45; two independents caucus with the Democrats. Democrats need to win four seats overall to take control and are expected to win the North Carolina seat. Cook Political Report rates seven Senate races as highly competitive. Former legislative aides say key House races may indicate how each party is faring.

Some crypto card providers spend more to acquire customers than those customers generate in revenue. KAST CEO Raagulan Pathy said increased spending on growth had pushed the stablecoin-backed platform from near break-even to a loss. KAST advertises rewards of 8% to 12% on Reserve accounts, while the underlying assets yield only 3.5% to 4%. Providers hope that trading, lending and payment services will eventually make customers profitable. Bybit EU and Bleap have already revised their cashback benefits, raising the question of whether customers will stick around when rewards become less generous.

Ethereum validators received most of the nearly $30 million in payments generated by trading activity following Binance’s $6.3 billion hack. A Bitquery investigation on October 30 concluded that the attackers lost approximately $119 million on unfavorable trades while trying to prevent stablecoin issuers from freezing the stolen funds. Trading firms and automated bots kept approximately $60 million after costs by exploiting the resulting price differences. However, some bots spent more on transaction fees than they earned from trading opportunities.

Three of the crypto sector’s leading political action committees have spent nearly $170 million on congressional elections, favoring Republicans over Democrats. A spokesperson said Fairshake and affiliated groups spent $154 million on preferred candidates and have $56 million left for the next election cycle. Fairshake and its affiliated groups spent nearly $56 million to defeat former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown in Ohio. Fairshake spokesperson Geoff Vetter said the organization supports crypto-friendly candidates from both parties. Polls generally favor Democrats, and passing major cryptocurrency legislation will require strong Democratic support to reach the 60-vote threshold in the Senate, even if the sector’s preferred Republicans win.

The bitcoin staking platform b14g lost approximately 97 million CORE, valued at $1.47 million, in an attack on October 31. Bitquery’s investigation found that the attacker emptied 91 staking positions in a single transaction using zero-value withdrawal requests. b14g said the breach affected only CORE deposits, while bitcoins deposited through the protocol were unaffected. b14g paused the affected contracts and reported that its exchange partners had frozen approximately 9 million CORE linked to the attacker. b14g pledged to publish a detailed post-incident analysis but has not announced a compensation plan.

Former U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown holds a narrow lead in Ohio polls despite the crypto industry spending some $63 million this year to oppose him. Most polls put Brown’s lead over incumbent Senator Jon Husted within the margin of error, making Tuesday’s election a very close race. Crypto industry political analysts believe Brown could secure a prominent committee position if he returns to the Senate and Democrats take control of the chamber. Brown and Senator Elizabeth Warren could then control committees essential to cryptocurrency legislation, potentially making the Senate less receptive to digital assets next year. Dennis Porter, CEO of the Satoshi Action Fund, warned that targeting Brown could undermine the bipartisan support the industry needs.