The Port3 Network experienced a dramatic 90% decline following a serious exploit in its cross-chain bridge system. This incident occurred when attackers identified a flaw in the “BridgeIn” function, allowing them to mint approximately 1 billion unauthorized tokens. The price of PORT3 dropped sharply from $0.03 to $0.0066 as a result of this breach, leading to immediate trading halts and liquidity removal.
After the exploit, around 162.75 million of the minted tokens were sold for roughly 199.5 BNB, generating an estimated $120,000. Consequently, the market capitalization of PORT3 fell below $5 million amidst panic selling. Many exchanges, including Bybit, promptly paused trading to mitigate further losses.
In response to the exploit, the Port3 team acted swiftly to remove on-chain liquidity, aiming to prevent additional price manipulation. Following this, approximately 837 million of the minted tokens were burned, which temporarily reduced the circulating supply. Despite these actions, the price only partially rebounded to around $0.013, indicating persistent market unease.
Industry analysts noted that this situation exemplifies the risks associated with bridge vulnerabilities. The lack of robust signature checks and verification processes in the contract design left the ecosystem vulnerable to attacks. Experts advised users to be cautious and avoid storing significant amounts of assets on low-liquidity bridges.
Market sentiment remains cautious as the Port3 team works on a recovery strategy. Discussions within the community emphasize the importance of risk management in decentralized finance (DeFi), including diversifying asset storage across wallets and steering clear of high-risk bridges. The incident serves as a critical reminder of the necessity for thorough smart contract audits within cross-chain environments.
As investigations continue, the Port3 team has committed to releasing a full post-mortem report. They are also monitoring the bridge system for vulnerabilities and may revisit smart contract audits to enhance security protocols. Users are encouraged to stay updated through official Port3 communication channels as the situation develops.
