Binance's crisis response: Pregnant co-CEO's 3 am calls and $3.6 billion in withdrawals
Binance resumed customer withdrawals after a $6.3 billion cyberattack attributed by the FBI to North Korea, recording $3.6 billion in net outflows as it moved to replace the stolen assets. The attack on October 29 triggered a temporary suspension of withdrawals, with Co-CEO Yi He coordinating the response from Abu Dhabi while seven months pregnant. Binance committed to covering all losses using corporate treasury, emergency reserves, and insurance funds, replenishing its SAFU reserve to $1 billion. The FBI linked the theft to North Korea's "TraderTraitor" operation, though President Trump expressed uncertainty. Industry experts praised Binance's rapid response, but the incident highlighted cybersecurity vulnerabilities across crypto platforms, with Bitcoin trading around $78,000, roughly 5% below pre-attack levels.