North Korea Rejects US Allegation That It Carried Out the $6.3 Billion Binance Hack

The denial came in a statement from Kim Yo Jong, sister of leader Kim Jong Un, carried by state media on Tuesday, according to Reuters and ABC News. She called the US claim "absurd rhetoric and nothing new", said the FBI was trying to brand North Korea a "cyber criminal state", and described the accusation as "a grave political provocation". She also said Pyongyang had "issues to reconsider" because of what she called a hostile US attitude, without saying what those were.

The FBI said on Saturday that a North Korean state-sponsored group known as TraderTraitor carried out the attack, which took place on or about October 29. The agency said it had seen the group converting stolen assets into Ethereum and expected it to launder them further. North Korea has consistently denied involvement in cryptocurrency thefts and other cybercrime, while security researchers say its hackers are among the most prolific crypto thieves and that the proceeds help fund its weapons programmes. Analysts in Seoul said the speed of Pyongyang's response suggested concern that the allegation could lead to tougher efforts to cut off its revenue sources.

Binance lifted a temporary suspension of withdrawals on November 1. The exchange said on X that between 06:00 and 15:30 UTC that day it processed $4.649 billion in withdrawals and $1.01 billion in deposits, a net outflow of about $3.64 billion, and that market conditions were stable. ABC News reported that Binance said it had used company money to cover 90 per cent of the stolen assets. The exchange has separately said the attack began with a fake job interview and was enabled by an internal AI tool, and that it remains in very strong financial health.

The case matters in the Gulf because Binance counts Abu Dhabi's MGX as a major investor, after the AI-focused fund took a $2 billion stake in 2025. It also adds to pressure on exchanges and regulators to tighten defences as state-linked groups use social engineering and AI tools to target crypto platforms.