KelpDAO Suffers Largest DeFi Hack of 2026, Draining $292M
KelpDAO, a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform, has been hit by the largest DeFi hack of 2026. The exploit occurred on its LayerZero-powered bridge, which was drained of approximately $292M worth of $rsETH.
The hack is believed to have been carried out by a North Korean Lazarus subgroup using advanced techniques. This attack has sent shockwaves throughout the DeFi community, with several platforms triggering emergency freezes in response.
Aave, SparkLend, and Fluid are among the platforms that have frozen their activities due to exposure to the compromised asset. Aave's contracts were not directly compromised, but the platform faces significant bad debt risk from the fallout, estimated to be between $177M and $196M.




