Massive $6 billion Binance crypto hack likely has small impact in the Netherlands
Cryptocurrency platform Binance has reported that $6.3 billion (5.6 billion euros) is linked to what is being called the biggest hack ever recorded in the cryptocurrency industry. Roughly half of the funds have been frozen in an effort to stop hackers from carrying out large-scale theft at the world's largest crypto exchange. Binance used to have a significant presence in the Netherlands but exited the market a few years ago when it failed to reach a deal with De Nederlandsche Bank.
"The estimated total impact amounts to approximately $6.3 billion," Binance wrote in a post on X. "We are working with blockchain partners to freeze the affected funds. So far, approximately $3 billion has been frozen on-chain."
The hack at Binance is unlikely to have a significant impact on Dutch cryptocurrency investors, according to Mauro Halve, chairman of the Dutch Association of Crypto Service Providers (NVC). The organization represents regulated crypto companies in the Netherlands. "Trading on Binance has been prohibited for some time, so we consider it very unlikely that Dutch investors will be affected."
The exchange has temporarily halted all withdrawals, but expects the service to be restored within 48 hours. Binance also assured customers that their funds remain "safe" and that it will reimburse any losses resulting from the incident.
Binance revealed overnight that it had suffered a "security incident." In response, the exchange announced several measures, including freezing billions of dollars in cryptocurrency and temporarily halting trading in some products.
Binance suspects the security breach may have originated from a software developer's laptop that had been “compromised.” Blockchain analysis firm TRM Labs, meanwhile, has attributed the theft to hackers from North Korea.
The Financial Times reported earlier this month that the European Union had raised questions about Binance continuing to operate within the bloc. The cryptocurrency exchange had failed to secure a license earlier this year and was subsequently required to wind down some of its EU operations.
Binance withdrew from the Dutch market in 2023 after being fined millions of euros by the Dutch central bank a year earlier. DNB imposed the penalty because the exchange had provided cryptocurrency services in the Netherlands without obtaining the required registration.
The news initially triggered a sell-off in the cryptocurrency market, with Bitcoin falling by almost 5 percent and Ethereum dropping nearly 6 percent. Both have since recovered most of their losses.
DNB said in 2022, when it fined Binance millions of euros, that the exchange had "a very large number of customers" in the Netherlands. Halve noted that investors often use several cryptocurrency platforms simultaneously, unlike traditional bank accounts. "Binance was one of the most popular crypto platforms in the Netherlands for a long time," he said.
"Consumers should check whether the cryptocurrency service provider they intend to use has a license and where it is licensed," the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) said. Europe has introduced MiCAR, a set of rules governing cryptocurrencies and crypto services. "If service providers do not have a license in Europe, customers should be aware that they are not subject to MiCAR supervision and that this carries additional risks."
Bloomberg described the Binance incident as the largest cryptocurrency hack in history. The previous record was set in February 2025, when hackers stole $1.5 billion from crypto exchange Bybit. The FBI later attributed that attack to North Korean hackers, Bloomberg reported.