Binance investigates wallet outflows as crypto prices slide below 79000 dollars

Binance is investigating a potential security breach after unusual cryptocurrency transfers moved billions of dollars from exchange-linked wallets on October 29. TronWeekly and Bitcoin Magazine reported that estimated outflows from the wallets range from 5.3 billion to 5.8 billion dollars. The suspicious transactions caused cryptocurrency markets to drop, pushing Bitcoin below 79,000 dollars. [1][3][4]

In response to the suspicious transfers, stablecoin issuers Tether and Circle froze billions of dollars in digital assets connected to the incident. Bitcoin Magazine, TronWeekly, and Decrypt reported that frozen funds total between 1.8 billion and 2.4 billion dollars. The Defiant separately reported that Tether confirmed it froze more than 1.567 billion USDT across linked addresses. [1][3][5][6][9]

On-chain investigations indicate technical vulnerabilities contributed to the movement of funds. The Defiant reported that delegated code on a wallet named Binance 14 allowed it to move its own assets and execute ownership over another wallet. Records do not clarify how those wallet permissions were originally established. [7]

As FTMQ Crypto reported earlier, Tether froze 1.567 billion dollars in USDT and Circle froze approximately 823 million dollars in USDC following the on-chain drain across three blockchains. Binance stated that it is conducting security checks and has paused withdrawals while it investigates, adding that it has not confirmed any impact on user funds. [1][5][14]