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Binance Sets New Record: Spot Trading Volume Reaches $427 Billion

According to a recent CoinGecko report, Binance, the world’s largest centralized exchange (CEX) by trading volume, has retained its market leadership position in 2023. 

Despite facing increased regulatory scrutiny and undergoing significant leadership changes, Binance maintained a market share of 43.7% and saw its spot trading volume rise to $427.1 billion in December 2023, representing a 37.5% month-on-month (MoM) increase.

Binance Trading Volume Reached $3.8 Trillion In 2023

According to CoinGecko’s report, Binance started the year with a commanding 63.5% market share but experienced a gradual decline throughout 2023, ending with a 43.7% market share in December. 

While Binance still dominated the market with 52.6% of the total spot trading volume in 2023, the exchange’s relative market share decline was notable. In absolute terms, Binance generated $3.8 trillion in trading volume throughout the year.

Binance

As previously reported, Binance faced significant regulatory pressure throughout 2023, culminating in a settlement agreement in November that required the exchange to pay a $4.3 billion fine to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CTFC) for alleged financial breaches. 

As part of the settlement, Binance’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), also agreed to step down. Richard Teng has assumed the role of the company’s head, while CZ remains restricted from traveling outside the jurisdiction of the United States as the legal battle unfolds. 

Upbit And OKX Follow Closely

Upbit, South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, managed to maintain its position as the second-largest centralized exchange in 2023, with a 9.5% market share and $687.0 billion in spot trading volume for the year.

According to the report, Upbit benefited from the Kimchi Premium, which resulted in strong local demand and premium prices for crypto assets. 

The exchange’s monthly spot trading volume hit a yearly high of $90.7 billion in December, with a 93.5% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) increase.

Conversely, OKX secured the third position among centralized exchanges in 2023, with a 6.7% market share and $485.9 billion in trading volume. Throughout the year, OKX experienced a steady increase in market share, starting at 5.1% in January and ending at 8.9% in December. The exchange’s trading volume in Q4 reached $177.9 billion, reflecting a notable 151.6% QoQ gain.

Among the top 10 centralized exchanges, CoinGecko reports that MEXC recorded the highest growth in Q4 2023, with trading volume surging by 203.7% to $90.4 billion. 

Bybit followed closely with a growth rate of 162.1% ($107.5 billion), while KuCoin experienced a growth rate of 161.2% ($49.2 billion). KuCoin regained its spot in the Top 10 in Q4 after briefly losing it in Q3, with a market share of 3.3% at the end of December.

Binance

Binance Coin (BNB) has successfully maintained its position above the $300 threshold, with the current trading price standing at $304. This represents a 1.8% decrease in price over the past 24 hours.

Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com 

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OKX DEX Loses Over $400,000 To Hackers – What Happens To Customer Funds?

According to blockchain security company SlowMist, OKX DEX, a decentralized exchange aggregator platform, lost cryptocurrency valued at over $400,000.

An attacker was able to transfer tokens that users had not allowed by compromising the management privileges of a market maker contract, according to the explanation for the vulnerability.

On the OKX DEX aggregator platform, a deprecated proxy contract was the subject of a recent vulnerability that allowed a hacker to obtain administration access to the contract without authorization.

OKX DEX: Deprecated Contract Raises Concerns

When a protocol stops actively using a contract to carry out user transactions, it is considered deprecated. It appears that OKX has updated the contract but hasn’t entirely stopped using it.

The claimTokens function of the OKX DEX smart contract experienced a problem, according to blockchain security firm SlowMist. The TokenApprove contract, which required user authorization, invokes the ability to send cash to a trustworthy DEX Proxy.

On December 12, the SlowMist team reported that the OKX DEX Proxy Admin Owner upgraded the DEX Proxy contract with a new implementation. The purpose of this new implementation was to invoke the claimTokens function straight from the DEX contract.

The exchange said that 18 of the approved addresses for the contract had been compromised, and linked the event to the management rights of a cancelled OKX DEX market maker contract being compromised.

Additionally, the exchange pledged to pay back all impacted users. It would also carry out a comprehensive security examination in order to stop something similar from happening again.

OKX Hack: Actual Damages Unknown

According to PeckShield, another researcher specializing in blockchain security, this vulnerability has cost over $2.76 million.

In the last 30 days, OKX DEX is thought to have had over 50,000 active user wallets; however, it is unknown how many users were impacted by the most recent hack.

Users should employ caution while communicating with DeFi protocols, especially those supported by well-known firms in the industry, as highlighted by the OKX DEX breach.

Featured image from Shutterstock

Posted on

OKX DEX Loses Over $400,000 To Hackers – What Happens To Customer Funds?

According to blockchain security company SlowMist, OKX DEX, a decentralized exchange aggregator platform, lost cryptocurrency valued at over $400,000.

An attacker was able to transfer tokens that users had not allowed by compromising the management privileges of a market maker contract, according to the explanation for the vulnerability.

On the OKX DEX aggregator platform, a deprecated proxy contract was the subject of a recent vulnerability that allowed a hacker to obtain administration access to the contract without authorization.

OKX DEX: Deprecated Contract Raises Concerns

When a protocol stops actively using a contract to carry out user transactions, it is considered deprecated. It appears that OKX has updated the contract but hasn’t entirely stopped using it.

The claimTokens function of the OKX DEX smart contract experienced a problem, according to blockchain security firm SlowMist. The TokenApprove contract, which required user authorization, invokes the ability to send cash to a trustworthy DEX Proxy.

On December 12, the SlowMist team reported that the OKX DEX Proxy Admin Owner upgraded the DEX Proxy contract with a new implementation. The purpose of this new implementation was to invoke the claimTokens function straight from the DEX contract.

The exchange said that 18 of the approved addresses for the contract had been compromised, and linked the event to the management rights of a cancelled OKX DEX market maker contract being compromised.

Additionally, the exchange pledged to pay back all impacted users. It would also carry out a comprehensive security examination in order to stop something similar from happening again.

OKX Hack: Actual Damages Unknown

According to PeckShield, another researcher specializing in blockchain security, this vulnerability has cost over $2.76 million.

In the last 30 days, OKX DEX is thought to have had over 50,000 active user wallets; however, it is unknown how many users were impacted by the most recent hack.

Users should employ caution while communicating with DeFi protocols, especially those supported by well-known firms in the industry, as highlighted by the OKX DEX breach.

Featured image from Shutterstock