Former Bank of England Deputy Governor Calls for Crypto 'Guard Rails' After Record Hack

Former Bank of England Deputy Governor Sir Jon Cunliffe has called for the establishment of 'guard rails' to protect cryptocurrency in Britain following a record $6.3 billion hack. The attack, targeting the world's largest crypto exchange Binance, highlights the growing integration of digital currencies with traditional financial systems.

Sir Jon cautioned that failing to implement regulations early on could lead to difficulties similar to those seen in regulating social media platforms. However, he noted that Binance was not authorized or operating in the UK, meaning the mainstream system was not yet vulnerable to destabilization from such a crypto-related incident.

Cybersecurity investigators have identified North Korea's state-backed Lazarus Group as the most likely perpetrator of the $6.3 billion hack. Experts from TRM Labs and Chainalysis pointed to key signatures used by North Korea, a group also blamed for a previous $1.5 billion hack of the Bybit exchange in 2025. Isabella Chase, head of policy at TRM Labs, described the Binance attack as highly sophisticated and well-planned, suggesting it took months to organize. She indicated that a developer's laptop may have been compromised, granting attackers the necessary approvals to drain funds within 20 minutes.

While $3 billion of the stolen funds have reportedly been frozen, North Korea may still profit from an estimated $2.4 billion. Chase explained that the funds would need to be laundered through cryptocurrency, then converted into traditional currency to be utilized for the regime's programs, such as its nuclear weapons initiative. This process is expected to significantly reduce the final profit.