Binance Review 2026: The October Hack, SAFU, Fees and EU Exit
Binance review for 2026: the October 29 hack and SAFU payout, proof of reserves, fees, mandatory KYC, EU and country limits, deposit methods, pros and cons.
In this article
- Binance at a glance
- Three things to check before signing up
- Who Binance suits, and who it does not
- Binance key facts
- Security: the October 29 hack, SAFU and reserves
- Fees and the BNB discount
- Account opening and KYC
- Where Binance works: EU, Turkey, the Americas and Asia
- Satovela code plus Binance’s own rewards
- Common problems and what to do
- Pros and cons
- Binance vs the other three
- Bottom line
Binance at a glance
Binance charges 0.1% per spot trade at the Regular tier, cuts that to 0.075% when fees are paid in BNB, and requires identity verification before any deposit. The defining event of 2026 is the October 29 hack, with an estimated impact of about US$6.3 billion. Binance says it is covering the loss from SAFU and company funds; media reports put restored assets at about 98% by November 4. Binance.com does not serve the United States or Canada, and it stopped taking new EU business in 2026. Readers elsewhere can open a Binance account with the Satovela code: a 10% fee rebate plus Binance’s own new-user rewards.
Three things to check before signing up
- Withdrawals are still being restored: as of November 8, 2026, Binance had not announced that every asset is back. Some low-liquidity tokens are still being sourced.
- Your country may be blocked: the US, Canada and the Netherlands are on third-party copies of Binance’s prohibited list, and the EU lost access to new services in 2026.
- KYC comes first: an unverified account can only withdraw, cancel orders, close positions and redeem. Deposits and trading stay locked.
Who Binance suits, and who it does not
| Reader | Fit? |
|---|---|
| Active futures trader | Yes: 0.02% maker / 0.05% taker at Regular tier, 10% less with BNB |
| Holder of BNB | Yes: 25% off spot fees once BNB deduction is switched on |
| Resident of the US or Canada | No: Binance.com does not serve either country |
| Resident of an EU country | No new accounts: no MiCA licence, new services paused since July 2026 (third-party reports) |
| Someone in Mexico, Argentina or Colombia paying in local currency | Yes: official bank-transfer deposits in MXN, ARS and COP |
| Long-term holder | Buy on the exchange, then move coins to a self-custody wallet |
Binance key facts
| Item | Binance (checked November 8, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Spot, Regular tier (maker/taker) | 0.1% / 0.1%; 0.075% with BNB |
| USDⓈ-M futures (maker/taker) | 0.02% / 0.05%; 0.018% / 0.045% with BNB |
| 2026 incident | Hack on October 29, about US$6.3 billion; loss covered by Binance |
| SAFU | About US$1 billion, held in BTC |
| BTC reserve ratio | 100.04% in the October 31, 2026 snapshot (third-party) |
| EU status | No MiCA licence; not on the ESMA register as of November 1, 2026 |
| Not served | US (Binance.US is separate), Canada, plus others on the prohibited list |
| Apps | iOS and Android |
SATOVELA10% trading-fee rebate with this code · Unlocks new-user rewardsSecurity: the October 29 hack, SAFU and reserves
What Binance confirmed
- Attackers used credentials stolen from a wallet DevOps engineer to log into another employee’s computer, deploy a malicious container and send unauthorized withdrawals.
- Binance estimates the impact at about US$6.3 billion, with roughly US$3 billion frozen on-chain with partners.
- Binance said it found no evidence that wallet private keys were exposed.
- The official commitment: SAFU and the corporate treasury cover all stolen funds, so users do not absorb the loss.
Withdrawal timeline
| Date (UTC) | Event |
|---|---|
| October 29, 2026 | All withdrawals paused for security checks |
| November 1, 06:00 | Phased restart: first 15 networks and assets, all live by 12:36 |
| November 1 | US$4.649 billion withdrawn, US$1.01 billion deposited; net outflow of US$3.64 billion |
| November 3 | 31 more Ethereum assets and 20 more Solana assets reopened (media) |
| November 4 | About 98% of affected assets restored (media) |
| November 6 | “Recovery Update #9” reopened more assets |
Binance has not said how much came from SAFU and how much from its own treasury. Covering the loss was a company decision, not an insurance obligation. The full timeline is in the October 2026 Binance hack.
SAFU and proof of reserves
SAFU (Secure Asset Fund for Users) holds about US$1 billion, all in BTC, according to Binance and Reuters. Third-party summaries of Binance’s proof of reserves show the BTC ratio above 100% in each 2026 snapshot found: 100.22% in May, 100.35% in early October and 100.04% on October 31, after the hack.
The official reserves dashboard is an interactive chart, so open it for the current figure. The proof of reserves guide explains what the ratio covers and what it leaves out.
Fees and the BNB discount
| Product (Regular tier) | Maker | Taker | Paying with BNB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spot | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.075% / 0.075% |
| USDⓈ-M futures | 0.02% | 0.05% | 0.018% / 0.045% |
- BNB deduction only works with BNB in the account and the “pay fees with BNB” switch turned on. VIP discounts can stack with it.
- VIP1 starts at US$1 million of 30-day volume, so most retail accounts stay on the Regular table.
- Zero-fee promotions on selected pairs come and go with each announcement. Check the fee page before relying on one.
A US$1,000 spot buy costs US$1.00 in fees at the standard rate and US$0.75 with BNB. The calculator on the exchanges page estimates what a referral rebate saves over a year.
Account opening and KYC
| Level | Requirements |
|---|---|
| Verified | Government ID (passport, ID card or driving licence, depending on country) plus a liveness face check |
| Verified Plus | Higher fiat buy and withdrawal limits; proof of address in some regions such as the EU (third-party) |
- Reviews usually finish within a few hours and, per Binance, take no more than 2 business days.
- Common rejections: blurry documents, details that do not match, failed face checks. Up to 10 attempts are allowed per day.
- Two-factor options: hardware security key, Binance Authenticator, Google Authenticator, SMS and email. Passkeys are not offered.
- Resetting 2FA triggers a 48-hour block on withdrawals, P2P sales and payments.
Where Binance works: EU, Turkey, the Americas and Asia
| Market | Status on November 8, 2026 |
|---|---|
| United States | Not served by Binance.com; Binance.US is a separate company with fewer products |
| Canada | Binance left in 2023 and has not returned; residents cannot open accounts |
| European Union | Greek MiCA application withdrawn on June 24, 2026; no licence in any member state. Third parties report new sign-ups, deposits, spot orders and Earn stopped from July 1; withdrawals still work |
| Turkey | Binance TR is a separate company, registered with the CMB since September 2024, with 24/7 TRY transfers and 130+ TRY pairs |
| Mexico, Argentina, Colombia | Official bank-transfer deposits in MXN, ARS and COP, with three monthly limit tiers of US$5,000, US$15,000 and US$40,000 equivalent by verification level |
| Brazil | PIX and TED in BRL; licence application with the central bank under review |
| Indonesia | Official IDR deposit page exists |
| Vietnam | No direct VND deposit; VND trading happens on Binance P2P |
| Licences published | Official page lists three Abu Dhabi (ADGM) entities regulated by the FSRA |
Third-party copies of the prohibited list name the US, Canada, the Netherlands, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk. The official list of prohibited countries did not load in full during the check, so open it before registering.
Satovela code plus Binance’s own rewards
| Benefit | Detail | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| 10% fee rebate | Satovela’s Referral Pro setting | Confirm on the sign-up page and in the account |
| Identity verification | US$20 fee voucher | Binance Welcome Rewards |
| First deposit (min. US$10 equivalent) | US$30 fee voucher | Welcome Rewards |
| First spot or Convert trade (min. US$10) | US$50 fee voucher | Welcome Rewards |
- The three tasks unlock after KYC and must be finished within 14 days, for up to US$100 in vouchers.
- Vouchers work in the app only and do not cover API trading. Business accounts and some regions, including the US, UK, Canada, Japan and Singapore, are excluded.
- The only referral exclusion in Binance’s terms is the Lite referral link. The Satovela code is a Pro code; the account’s rewards page has the final word.
- Forgot the code? Within 30 days, with no deposit, no trade and no other referrer, it can still be bound on Binance’s binding page. Details in the Binance referral code guide.
Common problems and what to do
- Deposit not credited: confirm the payment came from an account in your own name, then open a ticket with the receipt.
- Fiat withdrawal rejected: the receiving bank account must belong to the same person as the Binance account.
- KYC rejected repeatedly: after too many tries in one day, wait 24 hours and retake photos without glare.
- Token still frozen after the hack: read the latest “Recovery Update” on the official announcement, and ignore “support agents” in private messages.
- P2P seller does not release coins: stay in the order chat and file an appeal; Binance escrow holds the seller’s crypto.
Each of these is slower through official channels, but those channels leave a record.
Pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| 0.1% spot, 0.075% with BNB | About US$6.3 billion hack in October 2026 |
| Company covered the loss; about 98% of assets back by November 4 | A few assets still being restored on November 8 |
| SAFU of about US$1 billion in BTC | Not available in the US or Canada |
| BTC reserves above 100% in 2026 snapshots (third-party) | No MiCA licence; new EU services stopped |
| Up to US$100 in welcome vouchers | Official prohibited list hard to read in full |
| Hardware-key 2FA supported | No passkeys; KYC required before any deposit |
Binance vs the other three
| Binance | Bitget | Bybit | Gate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spot, standard (maker/taker) | 0.1% / 0.1% | 0.1% / 0.1% | 0.1% / 0.1% | 0.1% / 0.1% |
| With own token (spot) | 0.075% (BNB) | 0.08% (BGB) | 25% off with MNT (third-party) | 0.09% (GT) |
| EU access | No MiCA licence | No MiCA licence yet | Through licensed Bybit EU (third-party) | MiCA licence via Malta |
| US and Canada | Not served | Not served | Not served | Not served |
| Serious incident in 2026 | Oct 29, about US$6.3B, covered by Binance | Sep 24, about US$350–390M, covered by fund | None found | None found |
| With the Satovela code | 10% rebate + new-user rewards | 20% rebate | No code yet | 20% rebate |
Figures checked November 8, 2026; each exchange’s official page takes priority. The exchanges page has a country filter and a savings calculator.
Bottom line
Binance offers a 0.1% standard fee with a BNB discount, local bank deposits in several Latin American currencies and a protection fund that was used in 2026. The weak points are the October hack, the closed door in the US, Canada and the EU, and a prohibited list that is hard to verify. Anyone who opens an account should finish KYC, use an authenticator app or hardware key, and keep long-term holdings off the exchange.
SATOVELA10% trading-fee rebate with this code · Unlocks new-user rewardsFAQ
Is Binance safe after the October 2026 hack?
On October 29, 2026, attackers took an estimated US$6.3 billion through Binance's internal wallet systems. Binance says SAFU and company funds cover the full loss and user balances were not cut. Media reports put restored assets at about 98% by November 4.
Can US or Canadian residents use Binance.com?
No. Binance.com does not serve US residents, who are directed to the separate company Binance.US. Canadian residents have not been able to open accounts since Binance left Canada in 2023.
Does Binance still work in the EU?
Binance holds no MiCA licence in any EU member state. It withdrew its application in Greece in June 2026, and third-party reports say new sign-ups, deposits and spot orders stopped for EU users from July 1, 2026, while withdrawals continue.
What are Binance's trading fees?
Regular-tier spot fees are 0.1% maker and 0.1% taker, or 0.075% when paying with BNB. USDⓈ-M futures charge 0.02% maker and 0.05% taker.
Does the Satovela referral code stack with the new-user bonus?
Binance's welcome-reward terms exclude only accounts opened through Binance Lite Referral links. The Satovela code uses the Referral Pro model, which is not named in that exclusion. Check the rewards page in your account to confirm.
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