Stablecoin issuers freeze $2.3B after Binance flags possible breach
DeFi & Yields ·
Tether and Circle moved to lock down more than $2.3 billion in combined stablecoin holdings after Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao said the exchange may have suffered a hack.
Tether chief executive Paolo Ardoino disclosed that his company froze upward of 1.567 billion USDT connected to the suspected intrusion. Circle chief executive Jeremy Allaire said his firm separately froze more than 800 million USDC tied to the same incident, working alongside law enforcement. Together the two freezes account for the bulk of the $2.3 billion figure now attached to the episode. Multiple accounts of the stablecoin freeze have circulated, with reporting on Tether's action ranging from "over $1.5 billion" to the more precise $1.567 billion figure, and at least one version suggesting the freeze may trace to a regulatory directive rather than a voluntary compliance move.
Zhao, who said he no longer runs day-to-day operations at Binance, nonetheless addressed the situation publicly, telling followers that customer assets should end up fully protected and crediting Tether and Circle for their response. Binance itself issued a statement acknowledging it was looking into reports of a security problem and insisting that user funds remain entirely secure. The exchange said its security team was conducting an urgent review and would share verified updates through its official channels as they become available, and it separately cautioned users to watch out for scams, fake links, unsolicited messages, and requests for account credentials.
The mechanics of how the funds came to be frozen illustrate the leverage stablecoin issuers hold over tokens built on their infrastructure: both Tether and Circle can unilaterally block specific USDT and USDC addresses from moving, a capability now being used to contain assets suspected of originating from the Binance incident, according to wublockchain.xyz.
What remains unconfirmed is the precise nature and scope of the hack itself — whether it originated from a wallet compromise, an exploited vulnerability, or another vector — and how much, if any, user-facing loss actually occurred despite Zhao's assurances. The discrepancy between differing reports of the frozen USDT amount, including the suggestion of regulatory involvement, has not been reconciled, and Binance has not yet published the verified findings it promised through its official channels.