Major Crypto Heist: $292 Million Stolen from Kelp DAO, Leaving Wrapped Ether Stranded Across 20 Blockchains

A devastating hack has struck a cross-chain bridge, resulting in the theft of nearly a fifth of the circulating supply of a restaked ether token, with the fallout spreading rapidly across the DeFi ecosystem. The attacker made off with 116,500 rsETH, valued at approximately $292 million, by deceiving the bridge's validation logic into releasing the funds to a controlled address. The bridge, which held the reserve backing wrapped versions of the token on over 20 blockchains, was exploited on Saturday at 17:35 UTC. Kelp DAO's emergency response team froze the protocol's core contracts 46 minutes later, but not before the attacker attempted two follow-up heists. The incident has triggered a wave of panic, with Aave, SparkLend, and Fluid freezing their rsETH markets and Lido Finance pausing further deposits into its earnETH product. As the situation continues to unfold, holders of wrapped ether tokens on non-Ethereum blockchains are left wondering if their assets are backed by anything, sparking fears of a potential liquidity crisis. The exploit has also raised concerns about the security of cross-chain bridges and the potential for further contagion. With the hack still under investigation, the future of rsETH and the broader DeFi ecosystem hangs in the balance.