Binance moves about 7,500 BTC from SAFU fund as hack recovery hits 90%
Binance moved roughly 7,500 BTC, about $581M, out of its SAFU fund and says it has replaced 90% of assets lost in a breach it put near $6.3B.
Binance moved about 7,500 BTC out of its Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) on October 31, according to several outlets. The transfer is part of the exchange's effort to replace assets taken in a recent breach. Binance says it has now replenished about 90% of the lost amount.
On-chain tracker Lookonchain reported that the SAFU fund sent 7,500 BTC, valued at $580.88 million, to a new wallet. The Defiant and The Cryptonomist both put the figure at 7,499 BTC. The Cryptonomist said Whale Alert valued the move at roughly $581 million.
What the transaction shows
The Cryptonomist said the Bitcoin moved from Binance's disclosed SAFU address to a single receiving address. It was confirmed in a block stamped 10:51 a.m. ET. Binance said the SAFU transfer was complete and linked to the transaction.
The small gap between 7,499 and 7,500 BTC may come down to rounding or fees, but the sources don't explain it. The Cryptonomist cited Mempool.space as showing 7,500 BTC at the receiving address. It also said the address had no confirmed or pending outgoing transactions when it was checked.
Recovery progress and funding
Binance said its replenishment had reached 90% of the lost amount, up from about 80% earlier. The Cryptonomist reported that the exchange estimates the breach at about $6.3 billion. It said Binance had set aside more than $6.34 billion in company funds to cover it.
According to the same report, the money comes from a partial use of SAFU, part of Binance's futures insurance fund and its corporate treasury. Binance said the futures insurance fund stayed above the minimum coverage level required for risk management after the reallocation.
Bitcoin and nine other assets are already fully backed, Binance said. The remaining 10% is in less-liquid tokens, which the exchange says take longer to source. It is buying them through market trades and over-the-counter deals. The Defiant reported that Binance also pledged to rebuild SAFU to about $1 billion.
What traders should watch
Withdrawals are still paused. Co-CEO Richard Teng said they would stay that way until they pass rigorous testing. In its October 31 update, Binance said it was on track to reopen them on Sunday, November 1.
Teng also said Binance would publish a full proof-of-reserves report by Monday, with an initial view hopefully sooner. Traders may want to check that report for confirmation of the 90% figure. They may also want to follow how quickly the last 10% of tokens is acquired. Another thing to track is whether the SAFU fund is rebuilt toward the $1 billion target, since Binance has given no timeline for that in these reports.
Sources
- Binance SAFU Fund transferred 7,500 $BTC($580.88M) to a new wallet an hour ago. Lookonchain
- Binance Confirms 7,499 BTC SAFU Transfer After Hack The Defiant
- Binance’s BTC SAFU transfer from its emergency fund comes as recovery hits 90% The Cryptonomist
Written with AI assistance from the sources above and checked against them. Not investment advice.