# KelpDAOBridgeHacked

#KelpDAOBridgeHacked
KelpDAO Bridge Exploit - April 18, 2026: What Happened and Current Status
On April 18, 2026, KelpDAO, a liquid restaking protocol, suffered one of the largest DeFi exploits of the year when its cross-chain bridge was compromised. The attacker managed to drain approximately 116,500 rsETH tokens, valued at roughly $292 million at the time of the incident. This marks the biggest crypto hack of 2026 so far, surpassing the Drift Protocol exploit that occurred earlier in April.
How the Exploit Occurred
The attack exploited a critical vulnerability in KelpDAO's LayerZero-powered

#KelpDAOBridgeHacked ✨The DeFi ecosystem experienced its biggest stress test of the year with the Kelp DAO bridge attack on Saturday, April 18, 2026, at 17:35 UTC. Kelp DAO's LayerZero-powered cross-chain bridge was tricked with a fake message validation, and 116,500 rsETH — approximately $292 million — was drained in a single transaction sequence. This amount represents roughly 18% of the total rsETH supply of 630,000, and the event occurred within 46 minutes. The Kelp team paused contracts with an emergency multisig at 18:21 UTC, but by then, a large portion of the funds had been converted t

#KelpDAOBridgeHacked
The reported exploit involving KelpDAO’s bridge infrastructure has once again highlighted a persistent structural vulnerability in decentralized finance: cross-chain bridge security. While DeFi continues to expand in scale and complexity, bridge protocols remain one of the most systematically exploited layers due to their high-value liquidity pools and often intricate smart contract logic.
This incident is not isolated in its implications. Bridge hacks historically have triggered broader market concerns, even when the direct financial impact is contained, because they cha

#KelpDAOBridgeHacked
In the ever-evolving landscape of decentralized finance (DeFi), security breaches remain a persistent and devastating threat. The latest victim to suffer a major exploit is KelpDAO, a prominent liquid restaking protocol built on EigenLayer. Reports have confirmed that the KelpDAO bridge was hacked, leading to significant losses and raising urgent questions about cross-chain infrastructure safety. This post provides a comprehensive, factual breakdown of the incident—how it happened, the immediate consequences, the team’s response, and broader lessons for the DeFi community

#KelpDAOBridgeHacked #KelpDAOBridgeHacked
The recent KelpDAO bridge hack has once again shaken confidence across the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem, highlighting the persistent vulnerabilities that continue to challenge even the most advanced blockchain infrastructures. As the crypto industry matures and expands into a multi-layered financial network, incidents like this serve as a stark reminder that innovation often outpaces security—creating gaps that malicious actors are quick to exploit.
At the center of this incident lies the cross-chain bridge, a critical component designed to e

#KelpDAOBridgeHacked
On April 18, 2026, KelpDAO suffered one of the most serious security breaches in the crypto space this year when attackers exploited its cross-chain bridge and drained approximately 116,500 rsETH tokens worth nearly $292–294 million in under 46 minutes, making it not only one of the largest hacks of 2026 but also one of the fastest executed exploits in DeFi history.
This was not just a simple theft, but a highly structured attack that triggered a chain reaction across multiple protocols, exposing how deeply connected and fragile the DeFi ecosystem can be under stress.
How

Another Defi exploit just happened through KelpDAO.
116,500 $rsETH was minted through a bridge vulnerability, worth about $291M.
The attacker used it as collateral on Aave to borrow ETH, leaving the protocol exposed to a massive hole in the ETH market.
Aave itself wasn’t directly hacked, but the impact has forced a freeze on $rsETH markets while the situation is being reviewed.
Withdrawals have been affected, and users are currently unable to exit positions as usual.
The only available route was to swap ETH to USDC but right now it's not available either.
This came just a few weeks after the

JUST IN: KelpDAO lost over $292 million in a targeted wallet drain. The attacker's wallets were pre funded through Tornado Cash to conceal their origins. The Instagram account was also compromised.