Digital currency Bitcoin hits new high before losing S$200 in value in one day

[LionFlyer]

Malone Lam has just been outdone.

Jokes aside. The stolen amount is ~4% of Binance's assets under custody and so is not a small amount. But because cryptocurrency is on blockchain technology, the stolen money is easily traced. Besides a small amount that was immediately laundered into cash, stablecoins like USDT/USDC have been frozen immediately by their issuer. The issuer (like a central bank) can eventually "burn" the stolen stablecoins and re-issue new ones back to the rightful owner. As for cryptos like bitcoin/ether which are downloaded into cold wallets, historical evidence suggest that they can still be easily traced once they surface onto the market.

It seems like cryptos are more robust to cold hard cash/money in banks in the event of a bank heist or scam.

I don't see it that way. Stablecoins, yes, the issuer can freeze it. But the decentralized ones like bitcoin, nothing much can be done because that is the nature of the instrument except to monitor attempts to launder into fiat cash. I mean, from a safety standpoint, you don't see thieves trying to steal from central banks (Sri Lanka SWIFT attack was the only one in recent memory) and certainly not the in order of billions.