Cetus Exploit Exceeds $260M as Hackers Move $60M USDC to Ethereum

In Brief:

DeFi DEX Cetus was hacked, resulting in losses over $260 million.

Hackers are converting stolen assets into USDC and bridging them to Ethereum.

$60 million USDC has already been transferred to Ethereum for further laundering.

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Cetus, the main liquidity provider (LP) DEX on the Sui blockchain, has fallen victim to one of the largest DeFi exploits of 2025, with over $260 million in assets stolen, according to on-chain monitoring by Lookonchain.

The attackers rapidly converted the stolen assets into USDC, using decentralized exchanges and aggregators to avoid slippage, and began bridging funds to Ethereum’s mainnet. So far, approximately $60 million USDC has already been transferred across chains, where it is now reportedly being swapped into ETH.

The exploit appears to have targeted the SUI/USDC liquidity pool, draining most tokens and causing many pool-based assets to crash over 75%. This aligns with earlier reports by Mario Nawfal’s Roundtable and Cointelegraph, which pointed to possible smart contract manipulation or a private key compromise.

While exact technical details remain unconfirmed, blockchain sleuths warn that additional assets may still be at risk, and recovery options could be limited if attackers leverage privacy tools or mixers on Ethereum.

Cetus and the Sui Foundation have yet to issue official responses or confirm a post-mortem timeline.

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