Binance Sees $2 Billion Flow Out After Withdrawals Reopen
Whale Alert recorded the outflow shortly after withdrawals reopened, while Binance added new wallets to its proof-of-reserves list after the hack.
Key Takeaways
- Binance saw about $2 billion in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins flow out within three hours of reopening withdrawals.
- Whale Alert recorded, among other things, 10,000 BTC, nearly $1 billion in Tether, $200 million in USD Coin, and 30,000 ETH.
- Binance says it will now pay withdrawals from brand-new wallets and has not yet reopened all wallets after the hack.
Binance saw about $2 billion (€1.8 billion) worth of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins move within roughly three hours of reopening withdrawals. Whale Alert recorded the transfers shortly after the crypto exchange turned withdrawals back on, following the hack in which about $6.3 billion (€5.6 billion) was stolen.
What Moved Out of Binance
According to Whale Alert, the transfers included 10,000 BTC worth about $779 million (€697 million), nearly $1 billion (€0.9 billion) in Tether, $200 million (€179 million) in USD Coin, and 30,000 ETH worth $68 million (€60.9 million). The tracker marked each transfer as a move from Binance to an unknown wallet.
Binance says it will now fund every withdrawal from brand-new wallets. The exchange added those addresses to its proof-of-reserves list on Sunday, the public list of wallets Binance says hold customer funds. The exchange has not yet publicly linked the transfers to those new wallets.
Reopening After the Hack
Withdrawals were shut down after attackers stole about $6.3 billion (€5.6 billion) on October 29. According to Binance, about 95% of the stolen assets have now been replaced. At the same time, the exchange said not all wallets are open again yet and that other parts will first get extra security audits.
The hack has once again drawn attention to the risks of centralized crypto exchanges. That has also increased interest in DeFi as an alternative in the industry, although that by itself says nothing about where users are actually parking their money right now.
Why Traders Are Watching This
For European crypto followers, this is especially relevant because big withdrawals often show how fast money can move after a major incident. This is not just about Bitcoin and Ethereum, but also about stablecoins, which are often used to move quickly between platforms. The mix of a record hack, temporary withdrawal blocks, and new wallet structures makes Binance an important gauge of market confidence for now.
The earlier large Binance outflow also showed how quickly money flows at the exchange can shift when European rules and operational uncertainty come together.
