Binance cofounder and former CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao called for an industry-wide security alliance following the exchange’s Oct. 29 hack, arguing that AI is accelerating attacks and that the risks extend beyond crypto into global finance.
In his first public interview since the hack, Zhao told the Talking Tokens podcast that companies should invest in AI-based defenses, security staff and partnerships with AI security providers. His proposals were reported by The Block in an article published on Nov. 4, 2026, at 04:42:36 UTC+8.
What Binance said happened
Binance said earlier Tuesday that attackers used a fake job interview to compromise an employee’s computer, then leveraged an internal AI tool during the attack. The exchange also said it had detected and prevented 57 suspected North Korea-linked cyber threats in 2026. That disclosure did not establish responsibility for the Oct. 29 hack.
The report placed the incident alongside a separate AI-assisted breach at blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis and a $46 million security incident at Brazilian exchange Mercado Bitcoin.
Zhao said he learned about the Binance incident around midnight in the UAE and focused on communicating with the community while the exchange’s team worked to contain the attack and protect users. He attributed relatively calm market conditions and subsequent net inflows to Binance’s response, financial capacity and user trust. Those explanations were Zhao’s assessment, rather than independently established causes.
What a security alliance would do
Zhao proposed collaboration on four fronts:
- Sharing lessons from security failures.
- Exchanging best practices.
- Conducting cross-audits.
- Helping freeze stolen funds more quickly.
He described security as a continuing process, not a milestone the industry must finish before adoption can proceed. He also said incidents can be prevented with sufficient effort and attention, while warning against organizational complacency.
“The speed of hacking is going to pick up because of AI capabilities [being] so strong now,” Zhao said. “At the same time, we’ve got to use more AI to defend.”
Why he sees a wider financial risk
Zhao pointed to crypto’s connections with stablecoins, tokenized stocks, real-world assets and traditional finance as reasons a major attack can have consequences beyond a single exchange.
“It impacts the company, impacts the industry, impacts global finance,” he said, calling the threat “definitely at the national security level as well.”
He said he had not spoken with President Donald Trump or other U.S. officials about the incident, but that Binance and the broader industry would welcome government assistance. Trump had said the U.S. was “looking into it.”
Zhao also expressed optimism that AI could identify software vulnerabilities and strengthen defenses, while blockchain could support faster transactions facilitated by AI. The alliance remained a proposal in the supplied report; it did not describe an established organization, confirmed participants or an implementation timetable.