North Korea rejected accusations linking it to the Binance theft, while the exchange released new details about how attackers penetrated its systems. November 3 also brought developments in stock derivatives, blockchain privacy, institutional payments and Bitcoin infrastructure.
North Korea Denies Responsibility for Binance Hack
Kim Yo Jong rejected the allegation that North Korea orchestrated the roughly $6.3 billion Binance theft, according to a statement carried by state media on November 3. The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un portrayed the accusation as politically motivated and evidence of Washington’s hostility. Her denial followed the FBI’s attribution of the attack to North Korean cyber activity it calls TraderTraitor.
Binance Details Employee Compromises Behind the Theft
Binance’s initial incident report described a prolonged campaign involving malicious software, a fraudulent recruitment process and compromised employee computers. According to the exchange, attackers used stolen credentials and an internal AI tool to reach systems connected to wallet signing before executing the October 29 theft. Binance said it had tightened security controls and was commissioning an independent cybersecurity review.
CFTC Clears Path for U.S. Single-Stock Perpetual Futures
CFTC Chairman Michael Selig announced that perpetual futures tied to individual stocks could begin trading on qualifying U.S. exchanges. Eligible venues must be registered with the CFTC and also hold the required SEC registration for security futures. The contracts fall under both agencies’ regulatory frameworks, extending a trading format widely used in crypto into U.S. equity derivatives.
Bullish Names Three Networks for Tokenized Shares
Bullish selected Solana, Aptos and Ethereum as the first blockchain partners for its equity tokenization services. The company already uses Solana and plans to extend its capabilities to Aptos and Ethereum, giving issuers additional networks on which to make their shares available. Under the proposed approach, the transfer agent continues to maintain the official ownership record.
Jupiter Adds Asian Stock Exposure Through Chainlink Data
Jupiter introduced perpetual contracts tracking Asian companies including TSMC, Tencent, Samsung, SK Hynix and BYD, using Chainlink’s expanded APAC Equities Streams. The November 3 data expansion covers exchanges across China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. The contracts give traders exposure to stock-price movements without conveying ownership of the underlying company shares.
Aztec Announces Tierra Upgrade for Private Applications
Aztec unveiled Tierra, its Alpha V6 release, with security fixes and performance improvements for its Ethereum privacy network. The foundation said private transaction proofs can now be generated in approximately one second on native devices, twice as fast as before. It also reported that Ethereum-to-Aztec message delivery can take as little as 12 seconds, compared with a previous average of two minutes.
Liquid Confirms Bitcoin Reserve Shortfall Has Closed
The Liquid Federation announced that its reserves once again provide one Bitcoin of backing for every LBTC following September’s exploit. Federation board member Samson Mow identified Blockstream as the source of the replacement Bitcoin used to close the remaining gap. The update confirmed restored backing but did not establish that all restrictions on direct federation withdrawals had ended.
Alchemy Pay Connects Fiat Payments to Walt
Alchemy Pay announced an integration with Walt, the digital-asset application accessible through Telegram, enabling supported crypto purchases and sales using conventional payment methods. The company said the service reaches users across 173 countries through its payment infrastructure. The integration gives Walt users another way to fund their accounts directly within the application.
HashKey Adopts Standard Chartered’s Tokenized Deposits
HashKey announced that it is using Standard Chartered’s tokenized deposit service for institutional treasury management and settlement. The arrangement allows eligible bank balances to move within an approved blockchain environment, helping HashKey manage funds across its businesses beyond conventional banking cut-off times. This is a new customer adoption announcement following Standard Chartered’s November 2 product launch.
South Korea Reviews Central Cybersecurity Authority
President Lee Jae Myung instructed officials to examine a government-wide cybersecurity body, citing the Binance attack during a November 3 Cabinet meeting. He called for stronger coordination between public agencies and private businesses, including earlier threat detection and faster sharing of warnings. The proposal remains under review, with the government yet to settle the body’s structure or establish it.
Bitcoin Miner Abits Explores AI and Computing Hosting
Abits Group announced plans to assess whether its existing U.S. infrastructure could support artificial intelligence and high-performance computing customers alongside Bitcoin mining. Its initial work will examine electricity capacity, cooling, connectivity, upgrade costs and potential commercial arrangements. The company said it has not signed definitive hosting agreements, and any deployment would depend on financing, customer demand and technical feasibility.