North Korea slams FBI claims it was behind €5bn Binance hack and test fires missiles

By Gavin Blackburn Published on 3 November 2026 - 7:53 GMT+1 Share Comments Add Euronews on Google Share Facebook Twitter Flipboard Send Reddit Linkedin Messenger Telegram VK Bluesky Threads Whatsapp A 2024 United Nations report said proceeds from North Korean cyberattacks had "reportedly helped to fund the country's development of weapons of mass destruction". Pyongyang has blasted the FBI's allegations that it was behind the theft of $6 billion (€5.3 billion) from cryptocurrency platform Binance, as it test-fired strategic cruise missiles in a new display of its weapons capabilities. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The missile launch came on the heels of a public rebuttal from Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong-un, who slammed the FBI's allegations as a "grave political provocation". On Saturday, the FBI said a North Korea-affiliated hacking group called TraderTraitor had been behind the hack. Experts see the incident as potentially the largest cryptocurrency theft in history, with a haul equalling "nearly a quarter of the DPRK's estimated annual GDP," Michael Bosack, founding director of the Parley Policy Institute and a former UN Command official, told the AFP news agency. Kim Yo-jong said the FBI's claim was "absurd rhetoric and nothing new," given prior US allegations that Pyongyang was behind last year's major hack of Bybit. Still, North Korea likely felt compelled to respond because of the "level of international attention on the incident", Bosack said. A TV screen shows a file image of Kim Yo-jong during a news programme at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, 1 June, 2023 AP Photo The denial was aimed at maintaining channels through which North Korea could continue laundering and using the cryptocurrency, Bosack added. "If external parties start closing doors based on the international heat on the matter, then the stolen cryptocurrency does nothing to support the Kim regime's near-term priorities," he said. The hack has prompted South Korea to call for increased protections for its digital infrastructure against cyberattacks. "Not long ago, even the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange suffered astronomical losses from a cyberattack believed to have been carried out by a hacking group," President Lee Jae-myung said. "As hacking techniques become increasingly intelligent, sophisticated and commonplace with the development of artificial intelligence, existing security systems centred on inspections and responses after incidents have revealed clear limitations," he said. The logo for cryptocurrency site Binance on a mobile phone in New York, 31 January, 2023 AP Photo "We must establish a comprehensive prevention system to address the cybersecurity crisis," he added. A 2024 United Nations report said proceeds from North Korean cyberattacks had "reportedly helped to fund the country's development of weapons of mass destruction". 'Double deterrence' Monday's launch by North Korea involved strategic cruise missiles fitted with a new cluster-munition warhead, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Tuesday. "The middle-sized dispersal warhead tipped on the cruise missile is capable of turning into ashes a target area of 5 to 6 hectares with its highest-density power," KCNA said. KCNA said the test had "perfected the capability to deliver a vertical strike against the target by improving the terminal manoeuvrability of the cruise missile". New launch vehicles for nuclear-capable short-range missiles during a military ceremony in Pyongyang, 18 February, 2026 AP Photo A North Korean official was quoted as saying the test was conducted "because our armed forces should defend the security of the country and deter all sorts of threats." North Korea is demonstrating that they are capable of disabling "key South Korean and US military infrastructure, including airfield runways, radar bases, air defence batteries and assembled troops, with a single cruise missile", Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, told AFP. The launch also aims to provide a "double deterrence against South Korea by strengthening conventional asymmetric strike capabilities at a stage before the use of nuclear weapons", he said. The nuclear-armed North recently trialled a range of weaponry including attack drones, a new precision-guided torpedo system and an intermediate-range hypersonic missile. South Korea's military did not announce the cruise missile launch, as it had also not done with Sunday's test. Related North Korea fires intermediate-range missile, claiming evasive flight and AI featuresSeoul suspects Zelenskyy revealed North Korean POW transfer to win arms support Unlike ballistic missile launches, North Korean cruise missile tests are not prohibited by UN Security Council sanctions. Asked on Monday about Sunday's reported test, Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson Jang Do-young said South Korea and the United States were "closely coordinating and conducting a highly detailed analysis of its characteristics and specifications". "Our military does not announce all projectiles launched by North Korea," Jang said, citing operational security and the protection of intelligence assets. 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