Sui Validators Vote on $162 Million Recovery Plan After Cetus Exploit

Sui validators are currently voting on a recovery plan to restore $162 million of the $220 million in digital assets lost in a recent exploit of the Sui-based decentralized exchange, Cetus. The vote, which is part of a broader recovery plan, is scheduled to end on June 3. The recovery plan includes using Cetus’ treasury and securing an emergency loan from the Sui Foundation to ensure a 100% recovery for all affected users.

The exploit occurred on May 22, resulting in the loss of over $220 million worth of digital assets. However, Cetus was able to freeze $162 million of those funds shortly after the incident. The ability of Sui validators to freeze the funds has sparked debate within the community, with some users criticizing the centralization risk and others praising the rapid response as a positive step for security.

At the time of writing, 52.9% of validators had voted in favor of the recovery plan, while 46.7% have yet to cast their votes. The outcome of the vote will determine whether the frozen funds will be recovered from the attacker and held in a multisig trust account until they can be returned to the affected accounts. Regardless of the vote’s outcome, Cetus has stated that a recovery process will begin immediately, with a detailed plan outlining next steps for affected users to be published.

The situation has drawn parallels to a previous incident where the Cetus developers successfully recovered funds from a hack on the Solana network. This experience has likely influenced the current recovery plan, providing a blueprint for the Sui community to follow. The Cetus team's familiarity with such situations has been instrumental in navigating the current crisis, offering hope for a full recovery.

The recovery plan not only aims to restore the stolen funds but also to rebuild trust within the Sui community. The swift and decisive action taken by the validators has demonstrated their commitment to protecting user assets and maintaining the integrity of the network. As the governance vote progresses, the community awaits the outcome with anticipation, hoping for a successful resolution that will see all affected users fully compensated.