Crypto exchanges tighten security after Binance's $6.3 billion breach
Rival cryptocurrency platforms are strengthening their defences after a major security breach at Binance, which affected an estimated $6.3 billion in digital assets.
Binance suspended deposits and withdrawals temporarily after an attack that affected an estimated $6.3 billion (Dh23.1 billion) in digital assets. A preliminary investigation suggests the attack may have started through a compromised engineer's laptop. Coinbase said it had made precautionary changes to how it stores cryptocurrency keys offline, while Kraken said it was monitoring industry-wide security incidents to learn lessons for its own operations. OKX chief executive Star Xu called for a real-time alert system that would let companies share information as soon as an attack is detected, helping exchanges freeze suspected stolen funds. Stablecoin issuer Tether said it had frozen nearly $1.57 billion linked to the incident, and Circle reported freezing $800 million. Binance said it had frozen about $3 billion with help from blockchain partners, noting that the figures may overlap. Frozen assets have not necessarily been recovered. Binance said it would cover losses from company resources and its Secure Asset Fund for Users, and had set aside more than $6.34 billion. Abu Dhabi's Financial Services Regulatory Authority said it was monitoring the incident and engaging with the exchange.