Resolv Labs’ USR stablecoin depegged dramatically after an exploit allowed an attacker to mint tens of millions in unbacked tokens. The token fell 86% to $0.14 before recovering to $0.42, while the attacker converted much of the haul into roughly $24 million in Ether. Major DeFi protocols moved to contain exposure, with initial assessments suggesting the incident is isolated and not systemic.
An attacker exploited the minting mechanics of the Resolv USR stablecoin, creating tens of millions in unbacked tokens and dumping them. This broke the stablecoin’s dollar peg, causing it to drop as low as $0.14 before rebounding to $0.42.
The Resolv team stated that the collateral pool remains intact and the problem is isolated to issuance. Onchain data showed the attacker sold part of the haul for about 11,400 ETH, worth roughly $24 million.
Decentralized finance protocols with exposure raced to clarify their positions. Lido Finance, Morpho, and Aave all issued statements indicating user funds were safe or that exposure was limited.
Michael Pearl, vice president at security firm Cyvers, said exposure appears concentrated in specific lending markets and yield strategies. He noted several protocols took precautionary actions like pausing markets to limit spillover.
The incident raises questions about security audits, which Pearl called inherently static. He advocated for real-time, AI-powered monitoring to detect minting anomalies. A security firm that audited Resolv suggested the root cause was likely a private key compromise.
