Binance Labs-backed OpenLeverage suffers $236k exploit

Permissionless money market protocol OpenLeverage has reportedly incurred a loss of $236,000, allegedly due to a hacker attack funded via Tornado Cash.

Decentralized margin trading protocol OpenLeverage has apparently suffered a hacker attack, losing as much as $236,000 worth of crypto as per various estimates. According to CyversAlert, the attacker’s wallet for covering fees was funded by Tornado Cash, an OFAC-sanctioned crypto mixing protocol, although the specifics of the attack remain unclear as of press time.

Shortly after the news broke, the OpenLeverage team confirmed the attack, reassuring customers that “accumulated insurance and buyback funds should be able to cover the loss.” The team also added that DistrictOne, a blockchain-based play-to-earn game powered by OpenLeverage was not affected as a result of the attack.

“OpenLeverage protocol is paused; the investigation is underway.”

OpenLeverage

Launched on Ethereum in December 2021, OpenLeverage secured investment from Binance‘s venture arm, Binance Labs, in June 2022. Although the precise financial terms of the funding were undisclosed, Binance Labs emphasized the strategic significance of the investment.

The exchange also said that OpenLeverage would use the proceeds to strengthen OpenLeverage’s presence on BNB Chain (formerly Binance Smart Chain) and develop a multi-chain ecosystem with planned expansions to other EVM-compatible chains like Polygon, Avalanche as well as layer-2 solutions like Arbitrum and Optimism.