A $3 million bet turned $1.6 billion — then vanished in days

A $3 million bet turned $1.6 billion — then vanished in days. At its peak in April 2021, Binance's holdings of approximately 15 million LUNA tokens were worth $1.6 billion, up from a $3 million investment the company made in 2018 through Binance Labs. The exchange never sold or transferred the tokens during the run-up, maintaining a hands-off approach to its early-stage crypto bets. That position collapsed in May 2022 when Terra’s algorithmic stablecoin UST lost its dollar peg, unleashing a cascade that obliterated more than $40 billion in market value. LUNA’s price plummeted from over $100 to less than a cent. Binance’s stake, once a paper fortune, fell to less than $3,000.