Cryptocurrency thefts reached $8.74 billion in 2026 through October 31, representing more than three times the $2.51 billion recorded during the same period in 2025. The sharp increase came largely from the October 29 Binance security breach, which accounted for approximately $6.36 billion in reported losses.
However, excluding the Binance incident presents a very different picture. The remaining crypto thefts in 2026 totaled approximately $2.38 billion, around 5% below the comparable 2025 figure. This happened despite attackers targeting 325 projects and platforms, compared with just 120 incidents during the previous year. In other words, the number of attacks increased substantially, but most individual incidents involved smaller amounts before the massive Binance breach.
Total Value Lost to DeFi Hacks
Cryptocurrency prices have also displayed an interesting pattern following major security incidents. An analysis of the ten largest hacks since January 2025 shows that Bitcoin’s daily performance on the day of an attack ranged between a 4.1% decline and a 1.9% gain.
Looking at the following month, Bitcoin’s performance across the nine incidents with a complete 30-day observation period varied from a 15.5% loss to a 19.9% increase. These movements largely reflected the broader direction of the cryptocurrency market rather than the security incidents alone.
Major exploits in 2025 occurred during a declining market environment, with Bitcoin recording lower prices one month after every incident in the sample. By comparison, most major hacks in 2026 took place while the broader market was trending upward.
This raises two important questions: how severe has the crypto security situation actually become in 2026, and what can previous market reactions tell investors about Bitcoin and Ethereum following the Binance breach?
Crypto Hack Losses in 2026 vs. 2025: What Drove the Increase?
The biggest difference between the two years comes down to the scale of the largest individual theft.
Until September, 2026 had recorded approximately $2.24 billion in crypto losses, below the $2.48 billion reported during the comparable period in 2025. That changed dramatically on October 29, when the Binance incident resulted in an estimated $6.36 billion in losses across ten blockchains in a single night. The amount exceeded the combined losses from all reported crypto hacks during 2025.
North Korean hacking groups have also featured prominently in both years’ largest incidents. The FBI attributed the $1.4 billion Bybit exploit on February 21, 2025, to North Korea’s TraderTraitor group. Chainalysis has now linked the Binance incident to the same hacking unit.
The largest reported cryptocurrency exploits in each year include:
Major hacks in 2026:
- Binance: $6.36 billion (October 29)
- Bitget: $387 million (September 24)
- Liquid Network: $320 million (September 6)
- Drift: $295 million (April 1)
- Kelp: $293 million (April 18)
Major hacks in 2025:
- Bybit: $1.4 billion (February 21)
- Cetus: $223 million (May 22)
- Balancer: $128 million (November 3)
- Bitget: $100 million (April 20)
- Phemex: $85 million (January 23)
The broader attack landscape also looks different. By the end of October, 2026 had recorded 325 security incidents, nearly three times the 120 reported during the same period in 2025. Five attacks in 2026 resulted in losses exceeding $290 million, compared with only one such incident in 2025.
Outside the Binance breach, compromised private keys and cross-chain bridge vulnerabilities accounted for a substantial share of the stolen funds.
However, gross theft figures do not necessarily represent the final amount permanently lost. CertiK’s October assessment identified approximately $3.03 billion in frozen or recovered funds, much of it associated with Binance assets intercepted on-chain. After accounting for these amounts, adjusted losses for the month stood near $3.47 billion.
Different tracking platforms also report varying annual totals. CertiK estimates gross crypto losses at $9.2 billion in 2026 and $3.35 billion in 2025, while DefiLlama reports approximately $8.74 billion and $2.72 billion, respectively.
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