Bitcoin falls below $77,000 as Binance hack fuels sell-off
Bitcoin drops below $77,000 after Binance hack
Bitcoin fell below $77,000 late Thursday after a major hack at Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. A cryptocurrency exchange is a platform where people buy, sell, and hold digital money. The price drop came alongside losses in other major digital assets as traders reacted to the security breach.
Binance Co-CEO Yi He said the exchange will cover all user losses resulting from the hack.
Key figures from the market drop
- Bitcoin dropped 4.5% over 24 hours to $76,664 at 10:00 p.m. ET on Thursday.
- BNB, the token that powers the Binance ecosystem, lost 7.1% to $698.65.
- Ethereum slid 5.2% to $2,190, and XRP fell 7% to $1.21.
- Crypto liquidations, when leveraged positions are automatically closed because of losses, reached $1.55 billion in 24 hours, affecting 246,482 traders. Most of that came from bets on rising prices.
- Binance said about $3 billion in stolen funds has been verified as frozen.
Binance pledges to cover user losses
Binance said on X that the currently verified frozen amount from the hack is around $3 billion. The exchange's co-CEO also said it will cover all user losses related to the breach.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said Coinbase is supporting the situation by blocking transfers to compromised wallets and called for industry cooperation.
Analysts differ on market impact
Dominick John, an analyst at Zeus Research, said the hack intensified market-wide selling and that liquidations added pressure to Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Rick Maeda, head of Markets at Laevitas, described the reaction as "fairly contained" and noted that stablecoin providers, companies that issue digital tokens pegged to traditional currencies, such as Tether and Circle froze more than $2.4 billion.
Jeff Ko, chief analyst at ViaBTC, said he does not expect the stolen Bitcoin to add much selling pressure and believes Binance can absorb the loss.
What is confirmed
- Bitcoin traded below $77,000 late Thursday, according to The Block's price data.
- BNB, Ethereum, and XRP all posted percentage losses on the day.
- More than $1.5 billion in crypto positions were liquidated in 24 hours, with most of those being bets on rising prices.
- Binance promised to reimburse users for losses from the hack.
What remains uncertain
Chainalysis estimated that roughly $5.9 billion was stolen, but the article does not provide a final confirmed total. The source also does not explain how the hack occurred or when full withdrawals will resume.
Why this matters for crypto markets
The hack added to a broad sell-off, and the resulting liquidations put extra pressure on Bitcoin and Ethereum prices. Industry players such as Tether, Circle, and Coinbase responded by freezing funds or blocking transfers, showing how exchanges and stablecoin issuers react during a major breach.
Sources
Newisty Editorial Team covers technology, cryptocurrency, digital products, online platforms, developer tools and the wider digital economy. Our content is researched from official sources, company announcements, public documentation, market data and other primary or reputable sources. Articles are reviewed and edited before publication for clarity, accuracy and useful context.