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Bitcoin bounces above $76,000 as DeFi suffers $14 billion exodus after KelpDAO hack

Bitcoin prices rebounded above $76,000 despite geopolitical tensions, while the decentralized finance sector faced a $14 billion exodus following a major $292 million exploit at KelpDAO.

Key Points

  • Bitcoin rose 2.4% to surpass $76,000, supported by steady spot ETF inflows and reduced market leverage.
  • The KelpDAO exploit resulted in a $292 million loss, triggering widespread contagion fears across lending protocols.
  • Total value locked in DeFi protocols dropped by $14 billion to $85 billion, marking a one-year low.
  • Aave experienced approximately $10 billion in withdrawals as users reacted to the security vulnerability.
  • Volo Protocol separately lost $3.5 million in a vault exploit involving WBTC, XAUm, and USDC assets.

Why it Matters

The divergence between resilient bitcoin prices and a collapsing DeFi ecosystem highlights a growing investor preference for large-cap assets over riskier decentralized protocols. This shift suggests that security concerns and contagion risks are fundamentally altering capital allocation strategies within the broader cryptocurrency market.
CoinDesk Published by Krisztian Sandor
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