KyberSwap Hack and Negotiation Stance
The exploiter behind the significant $46 million crypto theft from KyberSwap has indicated a willingness to negotiate the return of the stolen funds. However, they demand a reduction in hostilities from KyberSwap’s executives and token-holders, threatening to postpone negotiations in the face of continued aggression.
On-Chain Message and Treaty Proposal
In an on-chain message dated November 28, the hacker addressed KyberSwap executives, token-holders, and liquidity providers, stating their intention to release a statement regarding a potential treaty with KyberSwap on November 30. The message underscores the hacker’s conditional approach, based on the treatment they receive.
Hacker’s Response to Hostilities
The exploiter expressed dissatisfaction with the reactions from KyberSwap’s executive team, which mostly consisted of threats and deadlines. They emphasized the need for a more civil approach to proceed with the negotiations.
KyberSwap’s Initial Bounty Offer
KyberSwap, a cross-chain decentralized exchange, initially proposed a bounty deal, suggesting the hacker return 90% of the stolen funds and keep the remaining 10%. This offer was later followed by threats of legal action when the hacker did not comply immediately.
Law Enforcement and Bounty Program
KyberSwap communicated its intention to involve law enforcement and initiate a public bounty program to incentivize information leading to the hacker’s arrest and the recovery of user funds. This was conveyed in a November 25 on-chain message, increasing the pressure on the exploiter.
Recovery of a Portion of the Funds
KyberSwap has already recovered $4.67 million from the total $46 million exploit. This recovery was made possible by tracking down operators of front-running bots that extracted crypto from KyberSwap pools on the Polygon and Avalanche networks.
Awaiting KyberSwap’s Response
As of now, KyberSwap has not publicly responded to the exploiter’s latest message. The crypto community and KyberSwap are presumably awaiting the details of the proposed treaty by the hacker.
The Hack’s Technical Details
DeFi pundit Doug Colkitt described the hack as a sophisticated smart contract exploit, leveraging an “infinite money glitch” across several networks, including Avalanche, Polygon, Ethereum, and layer-2 networks like Arbitrum, Optimism, and Base.
Kyber Network’s Role
KyberSwap operates on the Kyber Network, a blockchain-based liquidity hub that consolidates liquidity from various blockchains, facilitating token exchanges without intermediaries.
