ZkLend targets return of $8.4M after hack

Starknet-based (CRYPTO:STRK) lending protocol zkLend has publicly acknowledged a security breach resulting in losses exceeding $9 million.

The protocol is seeking the return of 90% of the stolen funds, which amounts to 3,300 ETH, valued at approximately $8.4 million.

Following the exploit, zkend suspended withdrawal functions to prevent further losses and is currently investigating the root cause of the breach.

The team is actively tracking the stolen funds and working with other teams to identify the hacker.

In an effort to resolve the situation amicably, zkLend has communicated with the hacker, offering a 10% "white hat" reward in exchange for the return of the remaining 90% of the funds.

ZkLend conveyed to the attacker in an on-chain message to the hacker's wallet that it would not pursue legal action if the funds were returned.

“Upon receiving the transfer, we agree to release from any and all liability regarding the attack,” zkLend stated.

The specifics of the zkLend hack are still under investigation.

However, based on patterns from similar DeFi hacks, the perpetrator may have exploited a vulnerability in the smart contract code to drain funds.

zkLend is a money market protocol built on the Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH) layer-2 network Starknet.

Data from DefiLlama indicates that zkLend is among the top five decentralised finance (DeFi) projects on Starknet, with a total value of assets locked on the protocol standing at $6.25 million.