DeFi lenders lose $83M in price manipulation attacks
Tectonic and Moonwell hit by price manipulation attacks, with combined losses estimated at over $84 million.
Two decentralized finance (DeFi) lenders have suffered combined losses of more than $80 million in a series of attacks that exploited price manipulation techniques, according to security researchers.
The larger of the two incidents affected Tectonic, a lending protocol running on the Cronos blockchain. Security firm GoPlus estimated that roughly $75 million in assets were impacted.
The second attack targeted Moonwell's MAMO lending market, causing additional losses. Security researchers say the two exploits occurred within four days of each other, with the Moonwell incident taking place three days before the Tectonic attack.
Attack type previously flagged by regulators
Both incidents involved variations of a price-manipulation strategy that US financial regulators had previously warned about. The method typically involves manipulating the price of an asset used as collateral to borrow more than it is worth, leaving the protocol with bad debt.
The attacks highlight ongoing security risks in DeFi, where millions of dollars in digital assets are often locked in smart contracts that may have vulnerabilities or rely on price feeds that can be gamed. As decentralized lending grows, such exploits remain a recurring concern for users and developers.