Hacken Breach Triggers $HAI Token Crash and Bridge Suspension

Highlights:

• Hacken has been exploited, leading to 900M HAI tokens minted by a hacker.
• The company halted its Ethereum and BSC bridges to avoid an additional loss.
• HAI’s price crashed by 97% within minutes after the breach.

One of the leading Web3 security companies, Hacken, has been struck with a large-scale security breach affecting its HAI token ecosystem. The attack happened on June 21, causing devastating losses in two networks. Hacken confirmed that two of its bridges, Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain (BSC), were the target of the exploit.

Advertisement

Analytics company Cyvers revealed the breach on X, disclosing that the unauthorized actor had illegally minted 900 million HAI tokens. The hacker used the vulnerable private key that was related to the bridge deployment. Thereafter, Hacken started looking into the problem to avoid additional loss.

🚨ALERT🚨Today, @hackenclub appears to have suffered a security breach across $BNB and $ETH networks. The deployer wallet of the $HAI token seems to be compromised, allowing the attacker to transfer funds. Root cause seems to be private key linked to the bridge deployment.

The… https://t.co/S64zxpgaOr

— 🚨 Cyvers Alerts 🚨 (@CyversAlerts) June 21, 2025

Token Crash Followed the Breach

The hacker tried to swap the freshly minted HAI tokens with other assets. However, due to the lack of liquidity, they managed to cash out only $253,000. This incident resulted in a huge downfall of the token price, wiping nearly 97% of the market value of HAI within minutes. Hacken has halted its Ethereum and BSC bridges as panic stemmed to avoid further exploitation. VeChain is the bridge over which token transfers are still possible. The team has advised its users not to initiate any bridge transactions until they provide an all-clear update.

Following the hack, there was an immediate response within the crypto community. In addition, the crash was compared to classic rug pulls by many because of the rapid and sharp decline in prices. The holders of the tokens started exiting, which led to liquidity drains and more price drops across decentralized exchanges.

Hacken Suspends Bridges and Begins Recovery

Hacken responded to the breach by freezing the corresponding bridges, and users were notified using official channels. The company is still evaluating the magnitude of the loss as they liaise with blockchain security experts. 

We are investigating a security incident involving the unauthorized minting of HAI tokens on Ethereum and BNB Chain, caused by a compromised private key linked to the bridge deployment.

As a precaution, the ETH↔️VET and BSC↔️VET bridges have been temporarily paused.

If you hold…

— Hacken🇺🇦 (@hackenclub) June 21, 2025

The attack demonstrates the persistent threats to security concerning bridge contracts in decentralized finance. Hacken, which participates in auditing Web3 projects, became a target of a hack of its own infrastructure. Consequently, this raises concerns with regard to internal key management practices. The firm has so far halted the transfer of tokens over the affected bridges. Users are instructed to do any withdrawals or HAI actions solely through the VeChain network. The entire holdings on Ethereum and BSC are still frozen as part of the containment.

Security Concerns Continue in DeFi

An investigation through a forensic audit is being conducted to find out the nature of the breach. Although low liquidity has constrained the attacker, the minting of tokens poses a risk to long-term trust. Hacken has said they will be making updates on an ongoing basis with regard to further investigation.

This hack is another indication of the vulnerabilities surrounding multichain assets. One of the most crucial risks of the blockchain network is a private key compromise. Quick containment helped avoid wider systemic damage, but market confidence remains fragile. Furthermore, in April, the DeFi sector saw crypto hacks increase to approximately $92 million, rising by more than 100% in March.

Advertisement