Investing.com --Bitcoin traded slightly above $77,000 on Saturday as investors assessed fresh developments in the record $6.3 billion Binance hack, with Wall Street analysts suggesting the cryptocurrency's recent selloff may have created buying opportunities.
The world's largest cryptocurrency was trading down 1.71% at $77,175.4 as of 01:34 ET (05:34 GMT) after the security breach rattled digital asset markets late Thursday, triggering sharp declines in cryptocurrency-linked stocks.
Attention has shifted from the initial theft to the attackers' efforts to move stolen funds and the industry's ability to contain the damage.
Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis identified previously unseen laundering patterns involving thousands of transactions, suggesting hackers deployed automated systems to conceal stolen assets.
Investigators linked the activity to Tradertraitor, a North Korean hacking group, after identifying connections between the stolen Binance assets and funds taken during September's Bitget breach.
The attackers also converted $325 million in stablecoins into approximately $285 million in ether, apparently seeking to move funds beyond the reach of issuer-controlled freezes.
Binance, meanwhile, outlined plans to restore withdrawals in phases following security checks and said it had reserved more than $6.34 billion in company funds to cover losses.
The exchange also plans to publish proof-of-reserves data by Monday, November 2, providing investors with another measure of its financial position.
Despite the disruption, analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald, TD Cowen and Compass Point argued that the breach does not necessarily threaten Bitcoin's underlying technology or the broader market's recovery.
Cantor analyst Ramsey El-Assal viewed weakness in cryptocurrency-linked equities as a potential buying opportunity.
Compass Point identified the $75,000 to $77,000 range as an important support area for Bitcoin, warning that a sustained break below those levels could threaten its recent recovery.
Separately, Tether reported $1.5 billion in third-quarter operating profit, bringing its nine-month total to $4.5 billion.
The stablecoin issuer's reserves reached $191.5 billion, exceeding liabilities by nearly $8 billion.
The figures provided another indication of the financial resources available within the stablecoin sector as issuers face renewed scrutiny over their ability to freeze stolen assets.
Legal experts cautioned that freezing tokens does not automatically establish ownership or guarantee their recovery, leaving the outcome of the Binance investigation uncertain.
Crypto prices today: altcoins mostly decline early Saturday
Broader crypto prices were lower on Saturday, based on the latest market snapshot.
World No. 2 cryptocurrency Ether edged up 0.02% to $2,240.54.
World No. 3 cryptocurrency XRP dropped 0.96% to $1.2450.
Solana declined 1.98% to $96.08, while BNB fell 1.91% to $702.57.
Cardano retreated 0.26% to $0.1929, while Dogecoin lost 1.16%.
Among meme coins, TRUMP fell 2.21%, while Shiba Inu rose 0.85%.
Original Article
Bitcoin holds above $77,000 as Binance hack recovery takes shape
Bitcoin cuts some losses, but falls below $77k after Binance hit with $6.3B hack
Tether nearly doubles reserve buffer to $8 billion as Q3 profit holds steady
