Binance Coin (BNB) Surges 11% Despite ‘FUD’ Hack Rumors

On a relatively muted Thursday for the cryptocurrency market, one coin is a clear outlier: binance coin (BNB).

While bitcoin ekes out a small 2 percent rise, binance coin is up almost 11 percent in the last 24 hours. The move comes despite hackers claiming to have obtained personal data from the Binance exchange.

Binance Coin up 11%

BNB is the biggest mover on the cryptocurrency market today, outperforming bitcoin and every other coin in the top 50. Its 11 percent pop puts its market cap at $4.76 billion.

Bitcoin, meanwhile, failed to punch back above $12,000 in Thursday’s Asian session. Despite that, traders remain long-term bullish on BTC, claiming the pullback below £12k is a healthy respite before pushing higher.

Binance hack: real or fake news?

As CCN.com reported, a hacker allegedly obtained users’ personal data from on the Binance exchange yesterday – a claim that Binance quickly refuted. The hacker then circulated know-your-customer (KYC) images on a Telegram group.

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao was quick to respond, calling the leaks “FUD” (fear, uncertainty and doubt). A more detailed statement from the exchange later explained :

“An unidentified individual has threatened and harassed us, demanding 300 BTC in exchange for withholding 10,000 photos that bear similarity to Binance KYC data. We are still investigating this case for legitimacy and relevancy. After refusing to cooperate and continuing with this extortion, this individual has begun distributing the data to the public and to media outlets.”

Binance disputes the legitimacy of the images, citing the lack of Binance watermarks on the photos. The exchange also made clear the data likely came from an already reported leak from earlier in the year which hit multiple exchanges.

Traders strengthen support for Binance

Binance has grown a reputation for transparency. When trouble strikes, they are quick to respond and keep users in the loop.

To see Binance and CEO Changpeng Zhao quickly diffuse yesterday’s rumors likely strengthened the resolve of BNB holders. For now, binance coin remains the top-performing cryptocurrency in the top ten yea-to-date.

About the Author

Ben Brown

Ben is a journalist with a decade of experience covering financial markets. Based in London, UK, his writing has appeared in The Huffington Post and he was Chief Editor at Block Explorer, the world's longest-running source of Blockchain data. Reach him at Twitter at _Ben_Brown. Email ben @ benjamin-brown.uk.

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