Crypto giant Binance freezes $2.5bn of assets over suspected hack
The firm said transactions are suspended while it conducts security checks and will "cover all losses".
Crypto giant Binance freezes $2.5bn of assets over suspected hack
Cryptocurrency giant Binance said on Thursday that it has frozen digital assets worth more than $2.5bn (£1.87bn) to stop them from being stolen while it investigates a security issue.
In a series of online alerts, the company said all deposits and withdrawals are temporarily suspended while its teams carry out security checks, and that the firm will "cover all losses".
"It does look like a hack on Binance," said Binance's former boss Changpeng Zhao, who remains a majority shareholder of the firm.
Zhao added that two other crypto platforms, Tether and Circle, have also frozen around $1.7bn in stolen assets.
Circle chief executive Jeremy Allaire said the firm is "closely tracking reports of a potential exploit involving Binance" and that his company has frozen more than $800m in assets linked to the incident.
Circle is the issuer and co-creator of the USDC, one of the world's largest US dollar-backed cryptocurrencies.
Binance said the amount of funds frozen could keep rising as its teams work closely with law enforcement and other partners to trace and seize additional assets.
"We are working around the clock and will share a full post-mortem once the investigation is complete. Please rely only on official Binance channels for updates," it said, adding that users' funds are safe.
Binance is the world's largest crypto exchange by daily trading volumes.