Binance Co-CEO Richard Teng Says No Customer Lost Money in the $6 Billion Heist the FBI Blames on North Korea, and That 98% of Assets Are Replenished
In his first public remarks since the theft, Teng told Fox Business the exchange is absorbing the full loss, that flows have normalized, and that the attack used fake job interviews, malicious developer tools and AI.
Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said Tuesday that customers lost no money in the theft of more than $6 billion in cryptocurrency, and that the exchange will bear the full cost, Fox Business reports.
What he said. Speaking on "Varney & Co.," Teng said: "First of all, this should not have happened, and we apologize to our users for the disruption." He described "a highly sophisticated multi-month campaign" that the FBI has attributed to North Korea, using "fake recruitment interviews, malicious software disguised as developer tools, AI techniques to work their way in." Asked whether customers lost anything, he said: "No, not at all... Our company, we bear full responsibility."
The recovery claim. Teng said Binance has "set aside more than 100% of the amount" and that "98% of impacted assets have been replenished." The remaining 2%, he said, are less-liquid tokens that take time to buy without disrupting the market. He said customers can check balances through the exchange's proof of reserve. After a surge in withdrawal requests on reopening, he said, hourly flows are "pretty much normalized."
The backstop. Teng pointed to the exchange's SAFU user-protection fund and futures insurance funds. Fox says public records show Binance holds about $171 billion in total reserve backing. Teng added that "many platforms would not have survived an episode such as this."
The FBI's finding. Fox reports the FBI said Saturday that North Korean hackers were responsible, and that the FBI, Secret Service and IRS Criminal Investigation saw the thieves converting stolen assets mainly into Ether, with expected laundering through decentralized finance platforms and instant exchanges.
Related. Our earlier reports covered the breach, the FBI attribution to North Korea's "TraderTraitor" group, and the frozen assets.
What we could not check. The 98% figure is Teng's. A separate Fox Business report the same day says Binance replenished about 90% of the stolen assets, roughly $6 billion; the two numbers are not reconciled in either piece. We have not seen Binance's published report or its proof of reserve.