US authorities have won court approval to seize or freeze more than $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency stolen from Binance. The Department of Justice announced the move on 13 November 2026. It blames the theft on North Korean military hackers.
The action followed an attack on or about 29 October. More than $6 billion was taken from the exchange. The DOJ said government and private-sector efforts have already frozen more than $2.7 billion of that total.
- The news: The DOJ said it can seize or restrain more than $1.2 billion in crypto recently stolen from Binance.
- The key figure: Binance lost more than $6 billion on or about 29 October 2026; $2.7 billion is frozen.
- What happens next: The XRP Ledger resets its Testnet and Devnet on 25 November 2026, and Strategy leaves the MSCI USA Index after the close on 30 November 2026.
DOJ Ties the Binance Theft to North Korea’s TraderTraitor
The FBI calls the group behind the theft “TraderTraitor.” The DOJ describes its members as North Korean military personnel. The agency said they stole more than $6 billion in virtual assets, or cryptocurrency. That was from Binance on or about 29 October, according to its release.
A court then authorized the seizure and restraint of more than $1.2 billion, the DOJ said. “Restraint” means the funds are frozen where they sit rather than taken. They cannot be moved.
Separately, the department said government and private-sector efforts have frozen more than $2.7 billion of the stolen assets.
FaceStealer Stole $400 Million in 18 Months
The DOJ also said it disrupted FaceStealer. The scam impersonated identities and took more than $400 million in cryptocurrency over 18 months. Such schemes rely on social engineering. That means tricking a person into handing over access or credentials.
Under a federal warrant, the FBI seized over 900 webcam videos of FaceStealer victims. Authorities also seized cloud infrastructure used in the scam, the department said.
XRP Ledger Testnet Reset Set for 25 November
The XRP Ledger’s Testnet and Devnet are scheduled for a reset on Wednesday 25 November 2026. Both are test versions of the network. Developers build and try code there without using real funds.
The reset is meant to improve full history server stability. Testnet had relied on a single full history server. It crashed and cannot be recovered without a reset, according to the XRPL Foundation.
A reset deletes all ledger data on those networks: accounts, transactions, balances, settings, offers, automated market makers and escrows. Only Testnet and Devnet are affected. Mainnet, the live network that carries real XRP, runs as usual.
Strategy’s MSCI USA Index Exit Takes Effect 30 November
MSCI’s November 2026 review lists Strategy’s MSTR shares, recorded as “STRATEGY A,” for deletion from the MSCI USA Index. The removal takes effect at the close of business on 30 November 2026. It also drops the stock from broader indexes that include US companies. Those include the MSCI World and MSCI All Country World indexes.
The date matters because index funds aim to mirror these benchmarks. They rebalance when the list changes. Strategy’s shares trade under the ticker MSTR.
Bitcoin Near $65,000 as ETF Outflows Reach $1.53 Billion
Bitcoin traded near $65,000 on 14 November, its lowest level since the summer. It lost more than 5% in 24 hours and almost 14% over the week. It sits almost 49% below its record high of about $126,000, set in October 2025.
The fall came with heavy selling in exchange-traded funds, or ETFs. These are baskets of assets that trade on stock exchanges. US crypto ETFs holding Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Hyperliquid and Zcash recorded $1.53 billion in net outflows. That was in the week of 9 to 13 November. Bitcoin funds accounted for $1.065 billion of that. Ethereum funds lost $398.9 million despite a small net inflow on Friday.
Farside’s fund-flow data shows Bitcoin ETFs lost $185.4 million on 13 November alone. That was a seventh straight day of withdrawals. BlackRock’s IBIT gave back $143.5 million and Fidelity’s FBTC $41.9 million.
Leveraged positions worth more than $1 billion were forcibly closed within 24 hours, according to CoinGlass. 93% of them were bets on rising prices. More than 195,000 traders were affected.
Sentiment swung hard too. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index, a gauge that scores market mood, fell to 13. That is deep in “extreme fear,” from 20 on Friday and 28 on Thursday. CoinGecko put the total value of the crypto market at about $2.22 trillion. That is down more than 7% in a day.
Altcoins fell harder than Bitcoin: XRP dropped below $1 and Ether below $1,850. The move extended the slide our market roundup covered on 13 November. Then, Bitcoin fell below $69,000 and liquidations topped $1.3 billion.
Two dated events now sit ahead. The XRP Ledger resets on 25 November, and Strategy’s index exit lands after the close on 30 November. For the selloff itself, two levels would settle the question. Bitcoin’s weekend low is $65,000, and XRP lost the $1 mark in the fall.