SUI Network Pivots to Damage Control: $10M Security Overhaul Follows Cetus Exploit

After the Cetus protocol breach sent shockwaves through DeFi, SUI Network slaps a $10M band-aid on its security infrastructure—because nothing inspires confidence like reactive crisis spending.

Security theater or genuine fortification? The Layer-1 chain’s emergency fund allocation reeks of VCs scrambling to protect their bags—but hey, at least the white-hat auditors get paid.

SUI’s mammoth security fund

Sui Network’s $10 million security fund was announced, along with an official explanation as to what actually took place.

Source: X

The network has explained that the $223 million exploit of Cetus Protocol stemmed from a bug in Cetus’s custom math library – Not a flaw in the sui blockchain or the Move programming language. The team further acknowledged that the user impact reflects on the broader network.

Importantly, they have reassured that the allocation of these funds will be shaped collaboratively with the developer community – An effort towards shared accountability and long-term resilience for dApp builders. 

Governance under fire

Sui’s decision to propose an on-chain vote to return frozen funds to Cetus has ignited controversy, drawing comparisons to Ethereum’s 2016 DAO rollback. Although the SUI Foundation maintained a neutral position, critics expressed concern over validator influence and the potential erosion of decentralization.

The incident has once again fueled discussions around governance models and the true immutability of blockchain systems. Amid the debate, Cetus has offered a $6 million white-hat bounty to recover the stolen assets. Also, the Sui Foundation has added a $5 million reward for information that could lead to the attacker’s identification.

Here are the aftereffects

Since the exploit, SUI’s price has dropped by roughly 17.5%, falling from around $4.30 to a low NEAR $3.54 at press time. Despite such a sharp decline, the altcoin’s price action has stabilized within the $3.40-$3.60 range though.

Source: TradingView

The RSI on the 2-hour chart climbed to neutral too, indicating a slowdown in selling pressure. In fact, the OBV highlighted modest accumulation as well.

Source: DeFiLlama

Finally, on-chain metrics reflected early signs of recovery at press time. The TVL began climbing again, while bridged TVL surged – A sign that cross-chain users have been regaining trust. While DEX volume and app revenue have remained below pre-hack levels, sustained inflows and rising TVL mean that Sui’s DeFi ecosystem may be beginning to recover. Subscribe to our must read daily newsletter