Opsek founder says Binance attackers may have had access for weeks before the hack

Pablo Sabbatella's timeline suggests the record heist was a slow, methodical operation, not a smash-and-grab The biggest digital asset heist on record may have started long before anyone noticed. Opsek founder Pablo Sabbatella suspects the attackers behind the Binance breach were inside the exchange’s systems for weeks before they ever moved a coin. That matters because the theft itself was fast. If Sabbatella is right, the speed was the final act of a long, patient setup. A heist measured in minutes, prepared over much longer On October 29, 2026, attackers drained approximately $6.3 billion worth of digital assets from Binance’s hot wallets. Hot wallets are the internet-connected accounts exchanges keep for day-to-day withdrawals, the crypto equivalent of a cash register rather than a vault. Sabbatella’s analysis of the timeline points to a highly organized operation. The bulk of the funds left in a window of roughly 20 minutes, spread across at least 10 blockchains. And the groundwork appears to have been laid well in advance. Staging activity tied to the hack began at least 36 hours before the cash-out, according to the analysis. Sabbatella’s broader suspicion goes further. He b...