Binance hack fears: $2B+ leaves hot wallets to Tornado Cash funded address, Tether freezes $971M

29 Oct 2026

29 Oct 2026, 22:08 UTC+01:00

Exchanges TradeReviewed News Desk

Binance hot wallets sent more than $2 billion in Ether and other tokens to a newly created address on Thursday evening, setting off fears of the largest exchange hack on record. On-chain data shows the transfer was triggered by a wallet funded only through the Tornado Cash mixer, according to BeInCrypto. Binance had not confirmed a hack or explained the transfer at the time of writing.

UPDATE (October 29, 22:30 CET): Binance says it is investigating a potential security incident and that the impact on user funds is not yet confirmed. Founder Changpeng Zhao said it looks like a hack, that user funds are SAFU and that he expects full coverage. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said more than 1.567 billion USDT has been frozen, and Circle has reportedly frozen around 800 million USDC. The total size of the incident, around $2.8 billion, is still unconfirmed. BTC trades near $79,300 and BNB is down about 6%.

What the chain shows

At 20:24 UTC on October 29, one transaction moved 167,464 ETH, about $388 million, out of the wallet labeled Binance 14, together with 63 tokens including roughly $1.6 billion in USDT. Twenty-four seconds later, the Binance 16 wallet sent another 28,005 ETH to the same receiving address, which did not exist before Thursday. Within 15 minutes, that address forwarded 195,460 ETH, around $450 million, to another fresh address.

Alert feeds put the total higher. BWEnews estimated about $2.53 billion across more than 60 tokens on Ethereum and labeled it unconfirmed, while Walter Bloomberg reported a $2.77 billion outflow across five blockchains, also noting the hack was unconfirmed.

Tether steps in

Tether froze $971 million in USDT tied to the suspected Binance hack, Walter Bloomberg reported, adding that Binance had yet to issue an update. Because USDT can be frozen by its issuer, the freeze could limit how much of the stablecoin portion an attacker can actually move.

Theft or wallet maintenance?

Exchanges do shuffle funds between hot wallets, and one on-chain researcher said it could be routine maintenance but looked suspicious. Two details point the other way: a Binance-run transfer has no obvious reason to start from a mixer-funded wallet, and the receiving address split funds onward almost immediately. Until Binance comments, none of this is confirmed.

What it means for traders

• The market already reacted: more than $600 million in leveraged positions were liquidated within the hour, mostly longs. See our market crash report.
• If you hold funds on Binance, watch for an official statement before acting on rumors, and expect possible withdrawal delays while it investigates.
• Spreading balances across more than one regulated exchange reduces single-venue risk. Compare security, reserves and fees in our crypto exchange comparison, and read our BingX review (ranked number 1) and OKX review (number 2).

This is a developing story and will be updated as Binance responds. For information only, not investment advice.

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Related reviews

• Bingx review
• Okx review

Sources

• BeInCrypto: Is Binance Being Hacked? $2 Billion Outflow Puts Customer Funds in Question
• Walter Bloomberg: Binance wallets see $2.77 billion outflow
• Walter Bloomberg: Tether freezes $971M USDT amid suspected Binance hack
• BWEnews: Binance hot wallet looks to be getting drained

News is for information only and is not financial advice. More crypto news