In brief
Senior North Korean leader Kim Yo Jong has accused the United States of defamation after it linked the Binance cryptocurrency heist to a hacking group allegedly supported by Pyongyang. The U.S. agencies have blamed North Korea for the record‑breaking $6 billion theft, a claim the DPRK rejects as "absurd rhetoric." Kim said the U.S. attempts to tarnish North Korea’s image are a grave provocation against its sovereignty.
On Monday, November 3, 2026, Pyongyang’s Kim Yo Jong, a department director of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, condemned the United States for linking the Binance cryptocurrency heist to a hacking group she said was supposedly supported by North Korea. By combining the two events she said the U.S. was defaming the country and violating its sovereignty.
Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, confirmed that bitcoin‑based hackers stole more than $6 billion from the platform in what was described as the largest cryptocurrency heist on record. The theft has drawn intense scrutiny from both U.S. law‑enforcement agencies and cyber‑analysis circles that have pointed the finger at Pyongyang’s alleged cyber units.
The North Korean official’s communiqué, published by the Korean Central News Agency, stated that the U.S. “has attempted to spread misunderstanding of the DPRK in the international community, blindly linking the DPRK with the ‘cyber crime’ incidents whenever they occur on an international scale.” She charged that the U.S. moves were “to mislead the international public opinion” and a “grave political provocation.”
"The United States has attempted to spread misunderstanding of the DPRK in the international community, blindly linking the DPRK with the ‘cyber crime’ incidents... to mislead the international public opinion,"
Kim Yo Jong added that the country was “closely monitoring the persistent provocations of the United States” and would reconsider its stance on the U.S. hostile attitude in various aspects. She referred to the U.S. allegations as a denigration of the DPRK as a “cyber criminal state.”
U.S. reports have described the allegations linked to the Binance heist as “absurd rhetoric” and a “grave political provocation” against North Korea. Reuters coverage echoed the DPRK’s denials, while a BBC report highlighted that the North Korean government simply denied any involvement in the $6.3 billion crypto theft, calling the claims unfounded.
The exchange’s reported figures and the U.S. officials’ assertions are at odds with the DPRK’s position, leaving an unresolved question about who operated the rogue hacking group. For the moment, the North Korean government stands firm in its rejection of U.S. accusations. The cyber‑crime saga continues to unfold amid heightened geopolitical tensions.
