TLDR
- Cetus, the largest decentralized exchange on the Sui network, was hacked for $260 million.
- The attacker exploited a flaw in the pricing curve using spoof tokens like BULLA to drain liquidity pools.
- The hack caused unauthorized outflows of SUI and USDC, leading Cetus to pause all smart contract operations.
- On-chain data revealed a sudden spike in transaction volume, reaching $2.9 billion in just 24 hours.
- Spoof token BULLA dropped 60 percent while other Sui-based tokens suffered steep losses.
Sui-based decentralized exchange Cetus suffered a $260 million hack after a malicious actor compromised its liquidity pools. The attack affected multiple assets, including SUI and USDC, halting all smart contract activity. On-chain data and analytics confirmed abnormal activity, significantly impacting the Sui ecosystem’s financial stability and token prices.
Sui-Based DEX Hit by Major Exploit
The attacker targeted Cetus’s liquidity mechanism by exploiting a flaw in its pricing curve through spoof tokens such as BULLA. He manipulated liquidity states and executed transactions that allowed large amounts of real assets to be withdrawn. The exploit led to the unauthorized outflow of SUI and USDC, both critical tokens in the Sui protocol ecosystem.
Cetus(@CetusProtocol) on #SUI was hacked and lost more than $260M!
The hacker is converting the stolen funds into $USDC and cross-chaining to #Ethereum to exchange for $ETH, with ~60M $USDC already cross-chained.https://t.co/b0uGu8icXrhttps://t.co/0BpKSaygmr pic.twitter.com/txfxLoImOd
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) May 22, 2025
The hacker added near-worthless assets using deceptive token valuations while extracting genuine funds from the pool. During the early stages of the attack, the exploiter acquired $75 million in SUI and USDC. As a result, Cetus suspended its smart contracts to prevent further outflows and began investigating the breach.
🚨Alert Announcement 🚨
There was an incident detected on our protocol and our smart contract has been paused temporarily for safety. The team is investigating the incident at the moment. A further investigation statement will be made soon. We are grateful for your patience.
— Cetus🐳 (@CetusProtocol) May 22, 2025
The breach also caused the protocol’s transaction volume to spike to $2.9 billion within 24 hours. According to on-chain reports, this volume represented a nearly tenfold increase compared to its average daily activity. The sudden surge added to suspicions and confirmed the scale of the exploit across the Sui network.
Sui Tokens Crash Following Cetus Hack
The spoof token BULLA dropped by 60% in response to its role in the exploit. The attack’s impact spread to other Sui-based tokens such as SLOVE, Uni, and MEMEFI, causing widespread losses. SLOVE declined by 93%, Uni lost 77%, and MEMEFI saw a 51% drop within hours.
The native token of Cetus, CETUS, fell 34% following the confirmed hack and liquidity pool manipulation. Market sentiment across the Sui ecosystem turned negative, but SUI remained relatively stable, losing just 2.37%. Despite this, the event raised serious concerns about protocol vulnerabilities and DEX security.
The manipulated assets were quickly converted to USDC and bridged to Ethereum. Lookonchain confirmed that the attacker had already transferred $60 million to Ethereum smart contracts. Security experts are now tracking these cross-chain movements to recover stolen assets linked to Sui-based tokens.
Support Gathers Around Sui Amid Protocol Turmoil
The Sui community has received support from leading crypto exchanges and blockchain security groups. Binance confirmed it is working with Sui developers to assess the situation and prevent further exploitation. Bybit also stated its readiness to assist in response efforts concerning the breach.
Blockchain security teams have started tracing wallet addresses and identifying transaction trails linked to the attacker. Meanwhile, Cetus continues to work with on-chain firms to resolve internal vulnerabilities. Their goal remains to restore trust and ensure Sui’s largest liquidity protocol recovers.
Since the incident, the Sui protocol has not experienced further disruption outside of Cetus’s services. While the exploit caused major liquidity losses, Sui’s core systems have maintained stability and uptime. Developers are now prioritizing patching potential risks across the Sui ecosystem to avoid recurrence.
