Binance's CFO exits a week after a $6.3B hack

Binance CFO Kaiser Ng is leaving over a week after a reported $6.3B hack.

According to TechCrunch (citing Bloomberg), the CFO announcement came barely more than a week after hackers stole $6.3 billion in cryptocurrency from Binance users. The Guardian dates the theft to 30 October and calls it a record heist. Per TechCrunch, Justin Yek will replace Ng as CFO.

Co-CEO Yi He said in a statement that Ng's departure will allow him to "pursue a new venture after more than five years at Binance," and that a transition plan has been "implemented over the last half year."

Per TechCrunch, Binance froze withdrawals for several days. After accounts were unfrozen, users withdrew a net $3.6 billion in the first few hours. Binance and the FBI blamed a North Korean group called TraderTraitor, and The Guardian says the hack has been attributed to the North Korean state. Binance said it will bear the financial impact and that the losses will not be passed on to users.

The facts we checked

According to TechCrunch (citing Bloomberg) and The Guardian

1. Binance chief financial officer Kaiser Ng is leaving the exchange.Reported · TechCrunch
2. Co-CEO Yi He said in a statement that Ng's departure will allow him to "pursue a new venture after more than five years at Binance."Quote · TechCrunch (citing Bloomberg)
3. Yi He said a transition plan has been "implemented over the last half year."Quote · TechCrunch (citing Bloomberg)
4. Justin Yek will replace Ng as CFO.Reported · TechCrunch
5. Hackers stole $6.3 billion worth of cryptocurrency from Binance users. The Guardian dates the theft to 30 October and calls it a record heist.Fact · TechCrunch; The Guardian
6. The CFO announcement came barely more than a week after the theft.Reported · TechCrunch
7. Binance froze withdrawals for several days after the hack.Reported · TechCrunch
8. After accounts were unfrozen, users withdrew a net $3.6 billion in the first few hours.Figure · TechCrunch
9. Binance and the FBI blamed a North Korean group called TraderTraitor for the hack.Alleged · TechCrunch
10. The Guardian says the Binance hack has been attributed to the North Korean state.Alleged · The Guardian
11. Binance said: "Binance will bear the financial impact of the stolen funds. These losses will not be passed on to users."Quote · TechCrunch

Sources

• TechCrunchBinance CFO is leaving to ‘pursue a new venture’ after $6.3 billion hack
• The GuardianHot fridges, a fake nuclear alert and a $6bn heist: are we in the foothills of a hacking epidemic?