Sui-Based Cetus Protocol Reportedly Hit by Major Exploit, USDC Depegged, Tokens Crash Over 90%

• 22 May 2025
• |
• 14:52

The Cetus Protocol, a major decentralized exchange and liquidity hub on the Sui blockchain, has reportedly suffered a devastating exploit, triggering a system-wide liquidity drain and the near-total collapse of several tokens within its ecosystem.

According to on-chain data and reports, attackers removed critical liquidity from Cetus trading pools, causing token prices—including USDC on Sui—to crash. At one point, USDC was trading for fractions of a cent, and liquidity for some pairs was reported as low as $143K.

“Liquidity providers are losing everything,” HodlFM stated. “Hackers are draining and dumping tokens, crashing SUI ecosystem coins by 70–90%.”

Key indicators suggest a coordinated removal and dump of assets, as trading activity plummeted and DEX functionality broke down. Token pairs across the platform lost value rapidly, with some showing 99.63% declines over the past 24 hours. Screenshots show buy and sell transactions reduced to a trickle and extreme price discrepancies surfacing in real time.

While $SUI remains stable on centralized exchanges, the decentralized side of the ecosystem has entered crisis mode, with Cetus trading halted and users scrambling for clarity.

READ MORE:

Bernstein Predicts $330 Billion Corporate Bitcoin Allocation in Next 5 Years

Cetus, a core component of DeFi on Sui, had become a go-to venue for swaps and liquidity farming. The impact of this exploit could ripple across the entire Sui DeFi ecosystem.