SUI rebounds after $162 mln Cetus hack – Will lost funds make it home?

• Sui validators froze $162M in stolen assets after the Cetus Protocol exploit, preventing further losses.
• Cetus patched the exploit, traced hacker wallets, and offered a whitehat deal to recover stolen funds.

Sui [SUI] network is on the trend of headlines following the news that validators within the network locked up around $162 million of stolen funds from the recent Cetus protocol attack.

The swift action, confirmed by Sui’s official account, sparked a wave of confidence across the community.

While liquidity on Cetus took a hit, the validator response became a real-time test of the network’s threat-handling capabilities—and it passed with force.

Community rallies for recovery plan

In parallel, the Cetus team issued a detailed update confirming its ongoing collaboration with the Sui Foundation, law enforcement, and anti-cybercrime experts.

They’ve already patched the exploit, traced hacker wallets, and initiated negotiations for a potential whitehat settlement.

“We have offered a time-sensitive whitehat settlement in exchange for the outstanding balance.”

Most importantly, the validator and community combined effort is sending a strong message that users’ trust and security are important to the Sui Network.

Price and OI surge amid recovery hopes

The news comes amid growing concerns from investors about the security and timeliness of blockchain networks.

According to CoinGlass, Open Interest in SUI spiked alongside its price, both climbing sharply after the announcement.

The ability to freeze stolen funds is rare among blockchains and is a good built-in safeguard. This could be a bullish tale for SUI, especially if the recovery proves successful and enjoys widespread support.

Also, the recovery plan can serve as a sentiment pivot. With the recovery process carried out openly, this could attract positive sentiment towards the long-term reliability of the network.

As more people use the network and investors grow in confidence, SUI could see bullish price action.

Source: CoinGlass

Security as a selling point

The event, while regrettable, is becoming a model case study for good blockchain governance. Being able to respond quickly without sacrificing decentralization could change the way users assess its ecosystem security.

In the meantime, everyone’s eyes are on how the recovery plan plays out.

If it succeeds, it could create a new standard for Web 3 incident response, which could be a boost for SUI price action.

Next: Bitcoin’s uptrend can target $114K – 2 key factors supporting BTC’s rally