Rubbish Check
BBC Business · 31 October 2026
source“Crypto firm Binance covers 90% of losses after $6.3bn hack”
R3/ 10
Lightly altered
Rubbish Rating — 1 = base fact, 10 = pure rubbish
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In short
Rubbish Talk rates BBC Business's claim that Binance "covers 90% of losses after $6.3bn hack" a 3/10 because the figure is accurate but the headline omits that Binance has already set aside $6.34bn, more than the full stolen amount, under a standing pledge to cover 100%.
The Verdict
Lightly altered. The 90% figure is real and the headline doesn't overclaim, but by stopping at "90%" without noting the full reserve is already earmarked, it leaves a reader with a slightly more precarious impression of Binance's position than the underlying facts support.
What actually happened
Binance disclosed that it had replenished 90% of the assets stolen in a $6.3bn hack, with the remaining 10% expected to take longer to source in the exact crypto assets needed. The exchange has pledged to cover 100% of losses using company funds rather than user money, and says it has reserved over $6.34bn to do so. The FBI separately attributed the hack to North Korea's Lazarus Group, operating as "TraderTraitor."
Key facts
- Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, says it has covered 90% of the $6.3bn assets stolen in a hack on Thursday, with the remaining 10% possibly taking longer to source.
- Binance pledged to cover 100% of the losses and said it has set aside more than $6.34bn in company funds to do so, meaning the full reserve already exceeds the stolen total.
- The FBI said North Korea was responsible for the attack, naming the Lazarus Group, also known as TraderTraitor, as the culprit.
- The hack is believed to be the largest in history, eclipsing the record of a $1.5bn heist on the Bybit exchange in 2025, for which North Korea was also blamed.
- Independent reporting confirms the same core figures: Binance "says it has replaced 90 per cent of the amount stolen after a record $6.3 billion" hack, per the Irish Times.
What to watch for
- Whether the remaining 10% ($630m) is fully replenished and in which assets, since Binance flagged sourcing difficulty for specific tokens.
- Follow-up on whether the FBI's attribution evidence is published in detail, given some outlets noted the Bureau's statement offered limited public technical backing.
- Any shift in Binance's withdrawal-restoration timeline across networks, which was still being phased in as of this report.
About this scoreThe R-Score is Rubbish Talk's editorial opinion on how far a headline's framing sits from what the underlying facts support. It is a judgement about presentation and emphasis, not an allegation that any outlet has acted dishonestly. Every figure we rely on is linked under Receipts so you can check it yourself.
