Insights into Decentralized Finance

Welcome to Finance Redefined, your weekly digest of essential decentralized finance (DeFi) insights. This newsletter aims to deliver the most noteworthy developments from the past week in the DeFi ecosystem.

Crypto Hacks Escalate to $19 Billion Over 13 Years

The crypto industry has experienced 785 documented hacks and exploits in the last 13 years. As per a report from Crystal Intelligence conveyed by Cointelegraph, digital assets worth almost $19 billion were pilfered starting from June 19, 2011, when the initial known crypto hack emerged. Noteworthy among these incidents was the 2019 Plus Token scam, which saw attackers bag $2.9 billion worth of Bitcoin and Ether. More recently, in February 2024, the $290 million security breach at PlayDapp became the most substantial single crypto heist within the past two years.

Curve Founder Settles 93% of $10 Million Debt from Liquidation

Michael Egorov, the founder of DeFi platform Curve Finance, claims to have repaid 93% of the $10 million bad debt arising from the protocol's soft liquidation. This settlement followed an event where Curve Finance's soft liquidation mechanism was put to the test amid a hacking attempt, resulting in a 28% drop in the price of its native CRV token. Blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence highlighted Egorov's exposure to $140 million in liquidations due to borrowing against CRV and stablecoins across multiple accounts.

Terraform Labs Ceases Operations, Terra Community Takes Charge

Chris Amani, CEO of Terraform Labs, announced the discontinuation of the company's operations subsequent to a $4.47 billion settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). As part of the transition, key projects within the Terra ecosystem will be divested, with the Terra community assuming control of the Terra blockchain. This decision was propelled by the aforementioned settlement with the SEC, linked to the downfall of the TerraUSD stablecoin in 2022, necessitating a significant disgorgement of profits and civil penalties.

Solana Takes Action Against Validator Sandwich Attacks

The Solana Foundation has ousted a group of validator operators from its delegation program due to their involvement in sandwich attacks targeting traders. These attacks involve malicious traders manipulating asset prices by orchestrating front-run and back-run transactions around a pending transaction. The Solana ecosystem's crackdown on such activities underscores the commitment to safeguarding the integrity of its platform.

DeFi Market Overview

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView reveals a bearish week for DeFi's top 100 tokens by market capitalization, with most showing red on the weekly charts. Despite this, the total value locked in DeFi protocols surged to $101 billion.

Total value locked in decentralized finance. Source: DefiLlama

Thank you for exploring the key DeFi highlights from this week. Stay tuned for more updates, insights, and educational content on the ever-evolving DeFi landscape next Friday.