Binance Takes Steps to Recover $6.3B in Stolen Assets as Ethena Transfers $24M in ENA

Binance's Strategic Buyback Following Major Hack

In a remarkable turn of events, Binance has embarked on a strategic buyback of its lost cryptocurrencies following a staggering $6.3 billion hack. Fresh insights from blockchain tracking platforms reveal that wallets connected to Ethena have successfully transferred approximately 128.63 million ENA, equivalent to around $24 million, to Binance. These transactions were first spotted by blockchain analysts on October 31, who noted Binance’s active efforts to recover stolen assets via various market channels and over-the-counter (OTC) deals.

Details of the ENA Transfer

Over the span of approximately eight hours, Ethena deposited the substantial amount of ENA into Binance, with tracking data indicating the tokens originated from a wallet noted as "Ethena: Coinbase Prime Custody." This transfer occurred in increments of around 25.25 million ENA, ultimately ending up in a designated Binance deposit address. Cryptographic analysts have calculated that the recorded transfers represent nearly 59% of the overall 217.5 million ENA that was illicitly siphoned off from Binance on October 29.

Hacker's Liquidation of Stolen Assets

In a concerning twist, the hacker had already liquidated the stolen ENA, converting it into about $33.93 million through seven separate sales that yielded a total of 70,480 ETH. This dubious activity was detailed in previous reports covering a massive $158 million sell-off that transpired recently.

Binance's Commitment to Users

As it stands, ENA is trading around $0.19. Binance's initiative to buy back the missing tokens is part of their commitment made during an update on October 30 by co-CEOs Yi He and Richard Teng, who assured users that the company would utilize its Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) and corporate holdings to compensate for the stolen funds. The exchange has reportedly allocated over $6.34 billion for this purpose, with $5 billion specifically earmarked in the stolen assets like USDC, USDT, BTC, ETH, and BNB, addressing around 80% of the losses incurred. The update further emphasized:

"We are actively buying the remaining relevant token assets through market and OTC channels."

Communication and Future Plans

Yi He has been proactive in communicating with users, ensuring them that Binance is committed to maintaining their trust. Even when offered donations from users to aid in offsetting the losses, she directed those intentions toward charitable contributions, underscoring Binance’s capacity to manage its own recovery.

Other Recovery Efforts

Moreover, Ethena isn’t the sole entity looking to resolve inadequacies left by the hack. The Reserve Protocol team has also confirmed Binance's intention to repurchase the 3.38 billion RSR that was similarly stolen during the incident. With RSR currently trading around $0.00137, the repurchase would total approximately $4.6 million. Analysts have noted a recent uptick in RSR’s value by about 6.4%, though it remains uncertain if this rise is directly linked to Binance's acquisition efforts.

Anticipated Buyback Completion

The Reserve Protocol team anticipates that Binance will complete its buyback by Monday, aligning with the planned issuance of a comprehensive proof of reserves report to validate the full backing of balances. Binance aims to conduct an initial snapshot of its reserves shortly after its latest update, with results set to be available by November 2. The company also indicated that withdrawals will recommence in phases within the subsequent 34 hours, pending necessary security verifications. This upcoming report will determine whether Binance has successfully closed the remaining gap of 20%, roughly translating to $1.3 billion, and to what extent other project treasuries, including Ethena’s, may have played a role in the recovery.