Today in crypto, Binance's $6.3 billion security incident has left unanswered questions about how the exchange managed its hot wallets and limited the amount attackers could access; exchanges sought to reassure their customers about their cold-storage reserves after the Binance hack, and #Bitcoin plunged below $76,000 as U.S. stocks erased gains made after the midterm elections.
The $6.3 billion Binance hack raises questions about hot wallet security measures
The $6.3 billion Binance security incident has left unanswered questions about how the exchange managed its hot wallets and limited the amount attackers could access.
Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said on October 30 that the attack affected the exchange’s own hot wallet. Most customer assets were held in offline cold storage and transferred to hot wallets only when users requested withdrawals.
Wallet balances offer only a partial picture of an exchange’s exposure to an attack. Public blockchain records can show the movement of funds, but cannot establish the internal controls governing those transfers, CertiK analyst Jonathan Riss told #Cointelegraph.
In its initial report on Tuesday, #Binance said the attackers accessed an internal wallet-signing service to transfer funds outside its normal withdrawal process. Binance said some technical details would remain confidential to prevent further attacks.
Selected market data was provided by ICE Data Services.
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Nov. 6, 2026, 09:33 GMT-43 min read
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Today in crypto, the $6.3 billion Binance security incident has left unanswered questions about how the exchange managed its hot wallets and limited the amount attackers could access; exchanges sought to reassure customers about their cold storage reserves after the Binance hack, and Bitcoin plunged below $76,000 as US stocks erased their gains following the midterm elections.
The $6.3 billion Binance hack raises questions about hot wallet security measures
The $6.3 billion Binance security incident has left unanswered questions about how the exchange managed its hot wallets and limited the amount attackers could access.
Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said on October 30 that the attack affected the exchange’s own hot wallet. Most customer assets were held in offline cold storage and transferred to hot wallets only when users requested withdrawals.
Wallet balances offer only a partial picture of an exchange’s exposure to an attack. Public blockchain records can show the movement of funds, but cannot establish the internal controls governing those transfers, CertiK analyst Jonathan Riss told Cointelegraph.
In its initial report on Tuesday, Binance said the attackers accessed an internal wallet-signing service to transfer funds outside its normal withdrawal process. Binance said some technical details would remain confidential to prevent further attacks.
Crypto exchanges tout cold storage ratios after Binance attack
Crypto exchanges were quick to reassure users after last week’s attack on Binance’s hot wallet infrastructure, with several companies revealing this week how they divide assets between cold storage and internet-connected hot wallets. #BinanceSquare
Crypto exchange Gate launched a “Proof of Security” (PoSEC) framework on Thursday, reporting that 88.26% of its total assets were in cold storage and 11.74% in hot wallets. It claims its cold storage could cover 104.58% of customer assets even if its hot wallets were completely drained.
“By publicly disclosing the distribution of assets between the platform’s cold storage and hot wallets, PoSEC provides visibility into asset storage structures and their ability to cover potential losses in extreme scenarios,” Gate said. It noted that the data is still undergoing an independent review by an external audit firm.
Malicious actors attacked Binance’s hot wallet infrastructure last week and stole approximately $6.36 billion, most of it in about 20 minutes, according to TRM Labs. Binance CEO Richard Teng said the “vast majority” of user assets are held in cold wallets, but the company has not provided an exact proportion.
Bitcoin plunges 6% to 7-week lows as US stocks erase election gains
Bitcoin (BTC) fell below $76,000 on Thursday as risk assets abruptly reversed their post-midterm election rally in the United States. After posting rapid gains following the Democratic victory in the US House and Senate, stocks came under heavy selling pressure on Thursday as traders exited the technology sector.
Crypto markets liquidated nearly $500 million in positions during the first hour of the US trading session, according to CoinGlass data, with total 24-hour liquidations nearing $850 million.
In his latest analysis, crypto trader Rekt Capital noted that Bitcoin was repeating its May behavior, when a period of range-bound movement around $80,000 was followed by a downside breakout and new macro lows of $57,000 in late June.