In the largest cryptocurrency heist ever, hackers stole US$6.3billion (A$9.2 billion) last month from cryptocurrency exchange Binance, with North Korea suspected to be responsible. Binance responded quickly, freezing about half of the funds and suspending withdrawals, and has since covered all customer losses. 

This swift action saved its user base and kept losses in the broader crypto market relatively minor. However, the broader industry’s response raises more questions than it answers about crypto’s main tenet of “decentralisation”.

Unlike a traditional currency or security, many cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are not controlled by an issuing government or central bank, but rather by an underlying cryptographic code…