A Decade Ago, a $6.3 Billion Hack Would Have Sunk Binance & BTC, Bitwise CIO Says

Bitwise Chief Investment Officer (CIO) Matt Hougan says the Binance hack would have sunk the trade a decade in the past. The $6.3 billion theft, he argues, leaves the long-term course of Bitcoin (BTC) unchanged.

Precedent, nevertheless, backs him on the long run however not the quick time period. US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) did shed $643 million the day after the theft, however the worth was already dropping earlier than the hackers hit

Did Earlier Hacks Break Bitcoin?

Mt. Gox, as soon as the dominant Bitcoin trade, filed for chapter in February 2014 after as many as 950,000 BTC vanished. Bitcoin fell 30% that month, Bloomberg reported.

However, collectors started receiving repayments in 2024, when NBC valued the lacking cash above $58 billion.

Bitfinex misplaced about 120,000 BTC in August 2016. Bitcoin fell 13% over two days, although a part of that slide predated the announcement.

Bybit misplaced roughly $1.5 billion in February 2025, and its reserves fell from $10.8 billion to $6.5 billion inside days.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s monthly performance fell to damaging 13.6%, on-chain agency Glassnode says, amid a broader correction.

Four days later, daily Bitcoin ETF outflows hit a file of roughly $1 billion.

Is the Binance Hack Different From Mt. Gox?

In distinction, Binance says it has already coated $6 billion of the loss.

It restored withdrawals in phases from November 1, beginning with Bitcoin.

Binance mentioned companions froze about $3 billion, roughly half the haul, a signal Hougan reads as business maturity.

Hougan added that 5 years in the past, establishments had no ETFs to show to for higher safety.

The FBI has attributed the assault to North Korea, because it did with Bybit. Bitget Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Gracy Chen mentioned North Korea was very seemingly behind a $350 million breach in September.

Hougan known as it a conventional cybersecurity hack, not a flaw in Bitcoin’s blockchain. North Korea has been linked to Bybit, Bitget and Binance since 2025, so exchanges may stay the weak level.

Coming ETF flows will present whether or not Binance matches Bybit’s near-$3 billion week or fades quicker.

The submit A Decade Ago, a $6.3 Billion Hack Would Have Sunk Binance & BTC, Bitwise CIO Says appeared first on BeInCrypto.