$600 Million Stolen in 24 Days… Will the Crypto Market, Breached by North Korean Hackers, Collapse Like This?

▲ North Korea, Hacking, Ethereum (ETH)/AI Generated Image ©

In just 24 days, an astronomical sum exceeding $600 million vanished due to hacking, triggering immense security fears in the decentralized finance (DeFi) market, fueling an exodus of investors and shaking the cryptocurrency ecosystem.

According to investment media outlet The Motley Fool on April 26 (local time), cryptocurrency protocols lost a staggering $606 million due to hacking and exploits in April alone. This is the worst damage since the $1.4 billion Bybit hacking incident in February 2025, significantly escalating market anxiety.

95% of the losses resulted from just two devastating attacks. On April 1st, a Solana (SOL) ecosystem project was compromised, followed by an Ethereum (ETH) ecosystem project on the 18th. Both incidents were attributed to North Korea's notorious hacker group, Lazarus Group. These attacks were not mere code flaws or indiscriminate cyber intrusions but rather the result of intelligent operations combining legitimate protocol activities with sophisticated social engineering techniques over several months.

The shock quickly spread throughout the affected ecosystems. In just 48 hours after the attacks, over $8.4 billion in deposits flowed out of AAVE alone, and the total value locked (TVL) across DeFi plummeted by $13 billion. The Ethereum ecosystem, in particular, was hit hard, experiencing a capital outflow of $1.6 billion on April 24th alone.

This massive capital outflow further amplified the shock, occurring at a time when investor pessimism regarding DeFi's investment value and security had reached its peak. The media analyzed that investors, who had been wavering without finding a safe place for returns, are now completely exiting the market due to this incident, increasing downward pressure on prices.

However, there is also a positive side. Since this security incident stemmed from vulnerabilities in third-party projects rather than fundamental flaws in the Ethereum and Solana networks themselves, the damage did not lead to the complete collapse of the entire ecosystem. The media emphasized that historically, price drops due to hacking have always presented buying opportunities and advised investors to securely store their assets in financial institutions or cold wallets rather than DeFi protocols for the time being.

*Disclaimer: This article is for investment reference only, and we are not responsible for investment losses based on it. The content should be interpreted for informational purposes only.*