- The anonymous main developer of the Solana-based exchange Cypher Protocol, Hoak, acknowledged stealing and betting with protocol money.
- Cypher recovered $600,000 following a $1 million exploit in August and established a wallet so consumers could get their money back.
- Hoak seems to have taken out ETH, WSOL, BONK, and other cryptocurrencies from Cypher’s redemption contract in 36 different transactions.
Hoak, a contributor to the Solana based exchange cypher under pseudonym, acknowledged stealing and betting with the protocol’s money that was obtained through an exploit.
Another Cypher contributor going by Barrett discovered that Hoak appears to have taken out ETH, WSOL, BONK, and other cryptocurrencies from Cypher’s redemption contract over the course of 36 transactions. The Block computed the amount taken from the redemption contract at current prices, and it came to about $260,000.
Barrett claimed on social media that he called the police in reference to Hoak’s transactions.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Hoak said, “I know nothing I say or do will make things better—perhaps other than rotting in jail.” To answer the biggest issue, it is true that I took the money and squandered it away. Nobody else, including myself, took it and ran.
Hoak said that his actions were caused by his mental condition deteriorating over the previous 12 months. He claimed to have had “multiple other psychological factors that went unchecked for too long” in addition to a “crippling” gambling addiction.
Hoak went on, “I let too many things pile up in my head for too long.” I allowed them to control me, and in the end, they got the best of me. I went through complete breakdowns in the latter part of last year and the first part of this one, to the point where just trying to maintain my composure was having an adverse effect on everything else in my life. I started to distance myself from family and close friends, missed deadlines, acted erratically, and you name it.
Cypher exploit and forgiveness
An exploit that Cypher encountered in August 2023 cost them 123,184 USDC and 38,530 SOL. At the time, Cointelegraph stated that the exploit’s overall value loss exceeded $1 million.
Money worth $600,000 that had been taken via an exploit on centralized exchanges was frozen by the Cypher team. Then, in order to help people get their lost money back, they devised a redemption contract.
Barrett posted on social media to voice his dismay with what happened to the recovered cash.
Barrett remarked, “I’m really saddened by this.” Having a key contributor who stayed on after the exploit to try to rebuild the project be the one who rugged funds from the redemption contract was not something I ever imagined would be possible.
It wasn’t discovered until someone in the discord ping mentioned that they were unable to withdraw. Barrett continued, “Hoak then gestured that he would take care of the issue.” The person contacted Hoak once more to inform him that they were still unable to withdraw after the deadline.
Disclaimer : This article was created for informational purposes only and should not be taken as investment advice. An asset’s past performance does not predict its future returns. Before making an investment, please conduct your own research, as digital assets like cryptocurrencies are highly risky and volatile financial instruments.
