Sui Ecosystem Faces Major Setback Amid $223 Million Exploit on Cetus DEX
In a dramatic turn of events, the Sui blockchain ecosystem has been significantly impacted by a major exploit on its largest decentralized exchange, Cetus. On May 22, 2025, malicious actors managed to siphon off approximately $223 million worth of digital assets from Cetus’ liquidity pools, sending shockwaves through the crypto community.
The exploit led to a sharp decline in the value of Sui’s native token, SUI, which fell from $4.18 to $3.82 shortly after the news broke. Despite this initial drop, SUI has shown signs of recovery, trading at $3.89 according to CoinGecko data. Over the past 24 hours, the token has seen a 3.7% decrease in value.
The attack involved the deployment of spoof tokens to manipulate price curves and reserve calculations within Cetus Protocol’s smart contracts. This manipulation allowed the attackers to extract real assets from multiple liquidity pools, including the SUI/USDC pool. The stolen funds have been converted into USDC and bridged to other chains, with approximately $164 million currently held in a Sui wallet and $61.5 million worth of USDC bridged onto Ethereum.
The incident has had a ripple effect across the Sui ecosystem, with notable meme coins like LOFI, HIPPO, and SQUIRT experiencing significant losses. LOFI, HIPPO, and SQUIRT plummeted by 76%, 80%, and 97% respectively within an hour of the exploit. The Cetus token itself dropped by 53% during the same period. According to DEX Screener, 46 Sui tokens have recorded double-digit losses over the past 24 hours.
In response to the exploit, the Cetus team has paused its smart contracts to prevent further theft and is currently exploring ways to recover the stolen funds. An incident report is expected to be released soon. The Sui team has also issued a statement on social media, acknowledging the attack and outlining their efforts to address the situation.
This incident underscores the ongoing challenges faced by the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, which has been plagued by a series of high-profile cyberattacks. A recent Chainalysis report highlighted that stolen funds in the DeFi sector reached $2.2 billion in 2024, marking a 21% increase from the previous year. The exploit on Cetus is a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities that exist within decentralized exchanges and the need for enhanced security measures.
As the Sui ecosystem grapples with the aftermath of this exploit, the broader crypto community is closely watching the developments. The incident has sparked discussions about the security of decentralized exchanges and the importance of robust smart contract audits. For now, the focus remains on recovering the stolen funds and restoring confidence in the Sui ecosystem.
Sui Token Fundamentals
- Asset Type: Crypto Currency
- Close Price (2025-05-20): $0.00313965
- 52 Weeks High (2024-11-15): $0.0298907
- 52 Weeks Low (2025-04-16): $0.0013989
- Market Cap: $32,005,518.88
As the Sui ecosystem continues to navigate this challenging period, the resilience of its community and the effectiveness of its response will be critical in determining its future trajectory.