Euler Finance, a lending protocol that allows investors to lend and borrow a variety of crypto assets, has lost approximately US$197 million in an exploit, according to online crypto security analysts on Monday.
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Fast facts
- “We are aware, and our team is currently working with security professionals and law enforcement,” the UK-based decentralized finance (DeFi) lending protocol said in a tweet. “We will release further information as soon as we have it,” it added.
- Data from smart contract auditor BlockSec shows that the losses occurred over four transactions in dai (DAI), wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC), staked ether (sETH), and USDC.
- According to analysis from crypto analytic firm MetaSleuth, the hackers were connected to a Binance Coin (BNB) exploit from January.
- DeFi platforms have become a popular target for crypto hackers, who are able to take advantage of the protocol’s open-source nature to gain unauthorized access to its assets.
- Over US$3 billion was stolen from DeFi protocols via hacks or exploits in 2022, a record breaking year for crypto hacking, according to American blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis.
See related article: Bitcoin ATM firm accused of profiting from crypto scams via unlicensed machines: U.S. Secret Service
