Weekly Wrap: Crypto Plunges After Binance Hack

Bitcoin’s (CRYPTO: $BTC) price was down 5% and trading at $77,000 on the afternoon of Oct. 30 following revelations of a massive $6.3 billion U.S. theft at cryptocurrency exchange Binance. The theft at privately held Binance is being called the worst cryptocurrency attack ever. Other digital assets were also down sharply on the day, with Ethereum’s (CRYPTO: $ETH) price down 4% at $2,240 U.S.

Binance said it is temporarily suspending all withdrawals while it assesses the security breach and the damage done. Binance said that it expects to begin resuming withdrawal services again within the next 48 hours. The company has also pledged that it will cover all losses from the $6.3 billion U.S. hack. However, that appears to be little comfort to investors, with reports that institutions are pulling digital assets and cash from other central exchanges. 

The fallout from the record-breaking hack is extending beyond Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, as investors grow increasingly nervous about the security of digital assets. Analysts have warned in recent months of elevated threat levels due to the emergence of artificial intelligence (A.I.) and advanced quantum computers.

Here’s what else happened with cryptocurrencies over the past week…

Ripple Secures U.S. National Trust Bank License: Financial technology firm Ripple secured a license to operate a national trust bank in the United States. The privately held company, which builds blockchain technologies for cross-border transactions and tokenization, can now operate a specialized bank under U.S. federal supervision. A national trust bank is a specialized financial institution that operates under a federal charter and can perform trust, fiduciary, and custody services on behalf of clients.

Datavault AI Says It Can’t Access Its Bitcoin: Crypto treasury firm Datavault AI (NASDAQ: $DVLT) says it is unable to access a large portion of its Bitcoin holdings following a failed transaction. In a regulatory filing, Datavault AI said that it has been unable to withdraw Bitcoin from crypto exchange Biconomy since June of this year and would have to restate its financial results. The situation has not only tied up Datavault AI’s Bitcoin and led to it restating its financial results, but it is also expected to reduce the company’s reported assets by $92.2 million U.S.

Galaxy Digital Says Bitcoin Bear Market Is Over: Galaxy Digital (NASDAQ: $GLXY) said that the bear market in Bitcoin is officially over and it is now time to buy the biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. Galaxy said that mounting U.S. debt and deficits strengthen Bitcoin’s appeal as a hedge against currency debasement, with federal debt at $40.44 trillion U.S.

Ethereum Developers Fix Glamsterdam Bug: Ethereum developers say they’ve managed to fix a bug in the upcoming Glamsterdam upgrade. The bug could have enabled people to steal Ethereum. The repair paves the way for Glamsterdam to proceed, which is the biggest upgrade to the Ethereum network since the 2022 Merge took place. Developers finalized the fix on Oct. 23 and the change is now part of Ethereum’s consensus specifications.

Google Debuts Crypto Security System: Google parent company Alphabet (NASDAQ: $GOOGL) launched a new cryptocurrency custody security service as the threat posed to digital assets by A.I. intensifies. Alphabet showcased the new security system designed to help banks and other financial institutions safeguard crypto and tokenized assets at its digital asset symposium on Oct. 28. The product, officially named “Google Multi-Party Compute,” is in preview mode and not yet available to the public. Alphabet plans to make the system commercially available in early 2027.

Visa Reports Tenfold Increase In Stablecoin Settlements: Credit card giant Visa (NYSE: $V) said it surpassed $25 billion U.S. in annualized stablecoin settlement volume, a tenfold increase from a year earlier. Within banking, settlement refers to the final stage of a financial transaction where funds are moved and exchanged between financial institutions. Owing to strong demand, Visa has expanded its stablecoin-linked card business to more than 225 programs, serving approximately five million cards in more than 50 countries.

Strategy’s Chief Financial Officer Resigns: Strategy’s (NASDAQ: $MSTR) Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Andrew Kang has announced his resignation and will step down on Nov. 5 of this year. Kang said he informed Strategy of his intention to resign for personal reasons on Oct. 26. 
Kang will remain in an advisory capacity at Strategy through the end of this year, said the company. Reza Virasteh, currently executive vice-president of operations at Strategy, will replace Kang in the CFO role starting on Jan. 1, 2027.

Bitwise Raises Bitcoin Price Forecast: Crypto asset manager Bitwise has raised its price target on Bitcoin to $1.6 million U.S. by 2036. The new price target is up from $1.3 million U.S. previously. Bitwise projects that Bitcoin will generate a 34% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the next 10 years. Bitwise assumes that Bitcoin will capture 25% of the global store-of-value market and 1% of institutional investment assets within a decade.

Utah Files Criminal Charges Against Kalshi Founders: The U.S. State of Utah filed 14 criminal charges against prediction market Kalshi and its co-founders. Utah’s Attorney General accuses the Kalshi founders of promoting illegal online gambling after an undercover investigator placed 12 sports wagers on the prediction market platform. Prosecutors in Utah have hit Kalshi with 13 felony counts and one misdemeanor involving alleged gambling promotion. Utah’s Attorney General Derek Brown claims that Kalshi continued accepting sports wagers from residents in the state after a federal court ruled that Utah could enforce its gambling laws against Kalshi. Kalshi called the charges a “crazy overreach.” 

Bitmine Buys 10,452 Ethereum: Bitmine Immersion Technologies (NYSE: $BMNR) continued buying Ethereum. The company, which is the world's largest corporate owner of Ethereum, purchased an additional 10,452 ETH during the past week. The latest purchases lifted Bitmine’s total Ethereum holdings to 6.05 million digital tokens, equal to 4.95% of Ethereum’s circulating supply. The company, led by Chairman Tom Lee, has a stated goal to acquire and hold 5% of Ethereum’s circulating supply.