Binance CFO Kaiser Ng quits days after $6.3 b crypto heist rocks exchange, Justin Yek named new finance chief

Binance’s finance chief, Kaiser Ng, has stepped down from the company to pursue another venture, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange confirmed. The announcement came days after hackers stole $6.3 billion from the platform in a record heist. Following his resignation, Justin Yek, a longtime finance executive who was recently vice-president of finance at Airwallex, is set to take over as the new CFO.

In a statement on Saturday (November 7), Binance Co-Chief Executive Officer Yi He said, "Kaiser Ng has decided to pursue a new venture after more than five years at Binance, with a transition plan implemented over the last half year".

Binance major hack

This follows roughly a week after Binance disclosed a major hack in which attackers made off with cryptocurrency through an elaborate scheme that had actually been in motion for months. According to Binance, the breach occurred on October 29 and traced back to malware slipped in via software downloads and bogus job-recruitment lures aimed at its engineers. The exchange has pledged to make affected customers whole.

The FBI has pointed to a North Korean hacking outfit as responsible for the theft, a claim North Korea has rejected. Ng, who has served as Binance’s CFO since January 2022, previously worked at competing exchange Kraken, per his LinkedIn profile.