The phased restoration was followed by an initial surge in withdrawals, with the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange recording more than $3.6 billion in global net outflows on Sunday, according to data from cryptocurrency analytics platform DefiLlama.
Binance said withdrawal volumes were declining towards normal levels and represented a small proportion of the approximately $162.8 billion in assets it held in custody at the end of 2025.
The development creates a major confidence test for the exchange in Africa, where cryptocurrency increasingly serves purposes beyond speculation, including cross-border payments, remittances, savings and access to dollar-denominated assets.
Binance says it provides direct fiat channels and peer-to-peer trading in more than 30 African countries. Its services support currencies including the South African rand, Kenyan shilling, Ghanaian cedi, West African CFA franc, Central African CFA franc, Ugandan shilling and Tanzanian shilling.
Reuters reported that Binance saw an initial spike in withdrawals after reopening access for several digital assets, although the company said the volumes subsequently began stabilising.
“Withdrawal volumes spiked at the beginning, however we are seeing a sharp downward trend and withdrawal levels are stabilising to what we would consider normal and expected on-chain activity,” a Binance spokesperson said.
The first phase of the reopening covered 15 assets, including Bitcoin, Ether, BNB, Solana, XRP, Dogecoin and transactions involving some USDT and USDC stablecoins.
Binance said it prioritised assets using customers’ demand over the preceding week.
Binance replaces $6 billion of stolen assets
Hackers stole approximately $6.3 billion in digital assets from Binance’s hot wallets on October 29, making it the largest recorded cryptocurrency theft.
The bulk of the assets reportedly left the exchange in about 20 minutes.
Binance has used its corporate treasury, insurance reserves and its Secure Asset Fund for Users to replace approximately $6 billion, or 95%, of the stolen assets.
The company said the remaining 5% comprised less-liquid tokens that could take longer to acquire in the quantities required. It has repeatedly said customers will not bear the financial losses.
Around $3 billion of the stolen assets had also been located or frozen with assistance from law-enforcement agencies, blockchain intelligence companies and digital-asset issuers.
The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation attributed the attack to TraderTraitor, a North Korean state-sponsored hacking group. North Korea has previously denied using state-backed cyber units to steal cryptocurrency or generate revenue.
US President Donald Trump said Washington had not independently settled the question of North Korea’s involvement.
“We don’t know if it’s North Korea, but if it is, we’ll talk to North Korea about it,” Mr Trump said.
Africa’s cryptocurrency market reaches $101 billion
The breach comes as Sub-Saharan Africa emerges as the world’s fastest-growing cryptocurrency region.
Blockchain research company Chainalysis estimates that the region’s cryptocurrency economy increased by 13.4% to $101 billion between July 2025 and June 2026.
South Africa’s cryptocurrency market grew by 52% to $39.3 billion, while Nigeria recorded $38.1 billion in activity. Together, the two countries accounted for more than three-quarters of cryptocurrency transactions across Sub-Saharan Africa.
Ghana’s market grew 80% to $5.1 billion, while Senegal’s increased 215% to $2.3 billion. Ethiopia processed approximately $3.7 billion.
The figures show that Binance’s African exposure extends well beyond one country. The exchange supports local payment channels in markets including South Africa, Kenya, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, alongside peer-to-peer transactions across a broader group of countries.
Personal wallets received 32.3% of cryptocurrency value transferred in Sub-Saharan Africa during the period, the highest proportion recorded in any region globally. Cross-border peer-to-peer transactions accounted for 70.9% of the value entering those wallets.
Stablecoin transactions through peer-to-peer channels also rose more than sixfold, from $2.3 billion in 2022 to $14.6 billion in 2026.
That growth has made reliable access to exchanges and withdrawal channels increasingly important for African individuals and businesses using digital assets to preserve value or move money across borders.
Binance had 335 million registered customers globally at the end of 2025. It has not disclosed how many are based in Africa or provided a geographical breakdown of the $3.5 billion in net outflows.
Source: africa.businessinsider.com
