The scale of a crypto theft can look different when measured in dollars, Bitcoin, customer exposure or an exchange’s ability to cover losses, CZ said.
His post came amid debate over the scale of the Binance incident and Bitcoin’s price response. Binance put the estimated impact at about $6.3 billion in an Oct. 30 update, a figure also described in EconoTimes’ earlier coverage. CZ called it the biggest crypto theft measured in dollars.
The amount of Bitcoin involved offers another measure. CZ said the Mt. Gox collapse involved 650,000 Bitcoin (BTC), a quantity exceeding 5% of the supply at the time.
He said the impact in both the Mt. Gox and FTX events reached nearly all users and affected their assets. The damage also depends on how much of each customer’s holdings was exposed, he said. If an exchange cannot cover losses, customers may bear the shortfall.
CZ described the incident as a severe blow to the industry, Binance and himself, while saying the exchange could absorb it and that user protection came first.
