FBI says it has seized more than $1.2 billion of crypto stolen in the $6.3 billion Binance heist

The FBI said on Thursday that it had seized more than $1.2 billion of cryptocurrency reported stolen last month from Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange³.

The bureau described the funds as seized or restrained².

US authorities have seized around $1.2 billion in virtual assets stolen from the exchange¹.

One report put the amount at $1.5 billion, a figure that differs from the $1.2 billion given in most accounts^2,5.

The theft of about $6.3 billion from Binance is regarded as the biggest crypto heist in history, and the FBI has previously attributed it to North Korea^4,6.

Why it matters to investors

The seizure recovers roughly a fifth of the stolen total, based on the $1.2 billion and $6.3 billion figures reported^3,4.

It comes as the Justice Department cracks down on North Korean crypto theft after the Binance heist⁶.

The department said it had announced actions to disrupt what it called North Korea’s massive theft of cryptocurrency⁷.

Those actions included the seizure of infrastructure linked to an operation known as FaceStealer, through the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, according to the department⁷.

For Binance’s customers, the exchange said it had already completed replenishing the hacked assets⁸.

Binance said it has released reserves for 198 coins and expects generating full zero-knowledge proofs to take 40 to 50 hours⁸.

The breach has also become a subject for rival platforms: Coinbase chief executive Brian Armstrong used his first television interview since the hack to discuss the crypto market, cybersecurity and the future of the industry⁹.

What to watch

The next step is whether the authorities can recover more of the remaining funds, since the seizure covers only part of the roughly $6.3 billion taken^1,4.

The Justice Department’s statements are its own account of its enforcement work, and further detail on how the seized assets were traced has not been set out in the reports^2,7.

Investors will also watch the proof-of-reserves process at Binance, which the exchange says will take 40 to 50 hours to complete with full zero-knowledge proofs⁸.

The attribution to North Korea keeps the case tied to a wider government campaign against the country’s crypto theft, rather than a single exchange incident^6,7.