Tether and Circle Freeze Billions in Stablecoins After Binance Reports Possible Security Issue

Two stablecoin companies, Tether and Circle, have frozen a combined total of more than $2.38 billion after the cryptocurrency exchange Binance said it was investigating reports of a potential security issue, according to Reuters. Binance made its statement on October 29, 2026.

Stablecoins are digital tokens designed to hold a steady value. To freeze tokens means to block them from being moved. Tether issues the world's largest stablecoin, according to Yahoo Finance, which reported that Tether froze nearly $1.57 billion linked to the Binance incident.

Tether's chief executive, Paolo Ardoino, said the company had frozen more than $1.5 billion in equivalent value related to a potential Binance exchange hack. Circle's chief executive, Jeremy Allaire, said Circle had frozen more than $800 million in equivalent value associated with the incident, doing so in coordination with law enforcement. Changpeng Zhao, who has described himself as a Binance shareholder, put the Circle freeze at about $823 million in a post on X.

Binance has described the matter as a potential security issue under investigation. Binance's founder said the incident "does look like a hack on Binance," according to The Guardian. A Binance spokesperson said user funds are completely safe, and Zhao made a similar statement on X.

Markets reacted during the same day. Bitcoin's price fell 3.2% in the afternoon of October 29, 2026, to under $79,000, The Guardian reported.