Binance’s $6.4 Billion Hack Sparks SpaceX Dispute With Musk

Chainalysis estimated that attackers took about $6.4 billion from Binance-linked wallets on October 29, 2026. The theft ranks as the largest cryptocurrency theft on record. TRM Labs and Chainalysis linked the attack to North Korea’s TraderTraitor.

How did the attackers move the funds?

Initial reports showed at least $5.57 billion leaving Binance-linked wallets. The funds moved across Ethereum, Bitcoin and Tron. One transfer sent more than $1.6 billion in USDT to a newly created Ethereum address.

The attackers then used decentralized exchange Uniswap and lending protocol Aave to move and borrow assets without relying on a traditional intermediary to approve each transaction. Decrypt tracked wallets receiving tens of thousands of ETH through those operations.

Decrypt also found 19,762 ETH borrowed against approximately $60 million in USDT. Tether and Circle froze about $1.8 billion in attacker-linked assets initially. The companies issue USDT and USDC. Their combined freeze later reached $2.39 billion.

Ethereum has no central issuer that can freeze native funds. That makes recovery harder once stolen assets become ETH.

TraderTraitor was previously blamed for the $1.5 billion Bybit hack in February 2025.

Why did CZ and Musk clash?

The dispute surfaced Friday, October 30, when Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao, known as CZ, objected to Elon Musk appearing to mock the exchange after the hack.

Zhao wrote on X: "Elon, have a lot of respect for you, but bad time to troll. Please stop."

The holding came from Binance’s $500 million investment in the Twitter takeover. Zhao said its SpaceX shares were worth more than $1 billion.

Musk had estimated that, with much of the stolen money frozen, Binance’s losses could reach around $1 billion despite roughly $144 billion in assets under custody. He then replied in the discussion with a grimacing emoji.

Another user shared an old post from former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. It claimed his exchange had enough money to cover losses. FTX collapsed weeks later.

Binance co-CEO Yi He then addressed the possibility that Binance might sell its SpaceX holdings. "Reporting to the major shareholder: Our company's revenue for the year is sufficient to cover the losses, so we do not yet need to sell the SpaceX shares you are bullish on," she wrote. She added a shrugging emoji.

Zhao later clarified that he had never proposed selling the shares. He said he was only showing Musk the funds Binance might have available. The aim, he said, was to reassure Musk about Binance’s financial position. Musk did not explain what his emoji meant.

What does this change for Binance?

Binance said it has reserved more than $6.34 billion in company funds for the incident. The reserve includes $5 billion already held in the same tokens that were stolen. Binance is acquiring the remaining assets through market and over-the-counter purchases.

That process can take longer when certain tokens have limited liquidity. Setting aside the money does not complete the purchase program. According to Yi He, Binance can fund it without selling the SpaceX position.

Annual revenue can cover the loss, she said. The company does not yet need to sell the SpaceX shares. The practical issue is execution.

The purchases must still run through market and over-the-counter channels, including assets with limited liquidity. The immediate test is whether those trades can replace the reserved assets without prolonged delays.