Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, has committed over $6.34 billion of company funds to cover losses following a reported security breach affecting its systems. The incident and Binance’s response have dominated recent developments in the digital asset market, alongside significant outflows from US spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs and a separate cyberattack at blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis.
October 31 market snapshot
Data from CoinGecko on October 31 at 13:13 UTC showed Bitcoin trading at $77,451, registering a 0.28% gain over the previous 24 hours. Ethereum climbed 0.82% to $2,245.82, and BNB rose 0.72% to $704.82. Meanwhile, Solana declined 0.81% to $95.70, and XRP advanced 0.24% to $1.25 within the same period.
| Asset | Price in USD | 24-hour change |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin | $77,451 | +0.28% |
| Ethereum | $2,245.82 | +0.82% |
| BNB | $704.82 | +0.72% |
| XRP | $1.25 | +0.24% |
| Solana | $95.70 | -0.81% |
Despite modest daily gains, Bitcoin remained 3.78% lower over seven days. On the same date, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index measured 30, signaling a market sentiment of “Fear.”
Binance outlines restitution plan after breach
Chief Executive Richard Teng stated that Binance has allocated $6.34 billion to cover losses from the breach, which affected the exchange’s own hot wallet. According to Teng, $5 billion is already held in the impacted tokens, while the remaining funds are being acquired through market and over-the-counter purchases. Teng also clarified that the hack targeted the company’s internal wallet, not customer funds.
Binance emphasized that user assets remain safe and that it expects to provide a full proof of reserves by Monday, November 2, following targeted withdrawal restoration by Sunday, November 1.
Binance temporarily suspended deposits and withdrawals but maintained that user assets are not at risk. Richard Teng described specifics of the breach, pointing to an exploited EIP-7702 delegation and a self-destruct process that removed attacker access.
Various reports produced differing estimates for assets frozen after the breach. Bitcoin Magazine cited around $3 billion, while TRM placed the figure at $2.7 billion. It is not confirmed how much of these frozen holdings are now under Binance’s control or accessible for withdrawal.
Mini dictionary: EIP-7702, or Ethereum Improvement Proposal 7702, introduces new delegation and approval mechanisms for smart contracts. In this case, attackers used a delegated transaction method to bypass normal approval flows and move assets without standard authorization.
Binance confirmed the incident did not compromise customer assets and said it is working to resume full platform functionality as soon as possible.
Major outflows hit US Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs
SoSoValue reported that US spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $643.33 million in net outflows on October 30, ending four consecutive days of inflows. BlackRock’s IBIT was responsible for roughly $234 million of these exits. Ethereum ETFs experienced $156 million in withdrawals, marking a fifth straight day of outflows.
| ETF Product | Net Outflow (Oct 30) |
|---|---|
| Bitcoin ETFs (total) | $643.33 million |
| BlackRock IBIT | $234 million |
| Ethereum ETFs (total) | $156 million |
Bitcoin ETFs still controlled $98.14 billion in assets, with the daily Bitcoin outflow representing approximately 0.7% of that figure. The reasons for the withdrawals remain debated among market analysts, with no consensus on the direct impact of the Binance breach.
Chainalysis confirms separate attack using AI-based techniques
Blockchain analytics company Chainalysis reported to clients that an external actor accessed its systems using so-called “offensive agentic techniques.” Stolen data included user IDs, names, email addresses, and job role labels. The firm stated there is no evidence that passwords, session tokens, or sensitive case files were accessed and found no link to the Binance incident.
Mini dictionary: Chainalysis is a blockchain data platform specializing in cryptocurrency transaction monitoring, compliance, and investigative tools for businesses, regulators, and law enforcement.
Security analysts observed that combining names and job roles in stolen data could help target high-value individuals. However, Chainalysis has not confirmed how much of the breach was carried out autonomously by artificial intelligence systems.
Additional developments
Donald Trump, in response to questions about the Binance hack, described digital currencies as “a little bit dangerous.” Political debates over the incident have continued, according to industry reports. Separately, analysts remain divided over whether the breach exposes specific weaknesses in Bitcoin itself or predominantly highlights the challenges facing centralized crypto exchanges.
