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GoPlus Report: Web3 Security Incidents in October Trigger $45.8M in Losses

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October proved to be another difficult month for Web3 security, with new data from GoPlus Security showing that the crypto ecosystem suffered more than $45.84 million in losses from hacks, scams, and other malicious activity.

According to the on-chain security firm’s latest monthly report, the incidents spanned a wide range of attack types—including protocol exploits, social engineering schemes, phishing attacks, honeypot tokens, rug pulls, and Ponzi operations. In total, 16 major incidents were recorded, each resulting in losses ranging from a few thousand dollars to tens of millions.

Major Incidents: SBI Crypto Hack Leads October Losses

The SBI Crypto hack, which unfolded at the start of the month, was the most significant single event, causing roughly $21 million in losses across multiple assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and Bitcoin Cash.

An investigation by blockchain analyst ZachXBT and security firm Cyvers suggested possible links to North Korean–affiliated hacking groups. The laundering pattern—funneling funds through Tornado Cash—mirrored tactics historically associated with groups like Lazarus. However, SBI Crypto has not confirmed any attribution.

Garden Finance and Astra Nova Also Hit

Additional major exploits highlighted in the report include:

  • Garden Finance: Approximately $10.8 million lost.
  • Astra Nova: A hack of its official social account triggered a large forced sell-off of its RVV token, leading to losses of about $10.3 million.

These incidents underscored continued vulnerabilities across Web3 platforms, particularly those with access control or operational security gaps.

Phishing Attacks Surge, Affecting 11,000 Victims

GoPlus also reported a rise in phishing campaigns throughout October, with estimated losses reaching $3.5 million and impacting more than 11,000 users.

One of the largest incidents involved the trading platform GMGN, where attackers created a convincing third-party phishing site that tricked users into signing malicious transactions. More than 100 users were affected, with total losses exceeding $700,000.

Other notable cases include:

  • A trader who lost $325,000 in Coinbase Wrapped BTC after approving a fraudulent “increaseAllowance” request.
  • Another user who lost $440,000 in multiple assets after unknowingly authorizing a malicious “permit” signature.

GoPlus noted that attackers are increasingly using Phishing-as-a-Service (PhaaS) tools and AI-powered site generators, lowering the barrier to launching large-scale phishing operations.

Honeypot Tokens Spike 600%

The report also highlighted an alarming jump in honeypot tokens, which surged 600% month-over-month to 2,189 tokens across several blockchains—including Ethereum, Base, and BNB Smart Chain.

Honeypot tokens are designed to lure buyers in, while embedded smart contract restrictions prevent them from selling or withdrawing funds.

Breakdown by chain:

  • BNB Smart Chain: 1,780 honeypot tokens
  • Ethereum: 216 tokens
  • Base: 131 tokens

Although the increase is significant, it is still well below the extreme spike recorded in June 2025, when the market saw more than 40,000 honeypot tokens deployed in a single month.

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SEC Ends Aave Probe After Four Years Without Action

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In a landmark moment for the decentralized finance (DeFi) industry, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has officially closed its four-year investigation into Aave without issuing any enforcement action. The move brings long-awaited relief to Aave’s ecosystem and signals a potentially evolving regulatory approach toward DeFi protocols.

The outcome marks a meaningful victory for Aave and its founder, Stani Kulechov, who confirmed the news and emphasized the significant effort required to navigate the lengthy inquiry.

SEC Concludes Aave Investigation With No Enforcement

The investigation, which examined Aave’s governance model, protocol design, and token utility, has now ended without penalties or regulatory action. For Aave—one of the world’s largest decentralized liquidity markets—this resolution provides an opportunity to refocus fully on innovation and long-term development.

Kulechov shared that the process demanded extensive internal resources, highlighting the seriousness of the probe. With the conclusion reached, Aave is positioned to accelerate its roadmap without the overhang of regulatory uncertainty.

DeFi Community Welcomes the Decision

The SEC’s decision has been widely celebrated within the DeFi sector. Builders, investors, and governance participants view the outcome as a sign of maturing regulatory understanding around decentralized protocols.

Kulechov expressed optimism for the broader industry, stating that DeFi can now continue shaping the future of open finance without being restricted by ambiguous oversight. While the decision does not eliminate future regulatory risks, it does offer clarity for other DeFi teams working to balance decentralization with compliance.

A Pattern of Non-Enforcement in DeFi?

The Aave case fits into a broader emerging trend: several DeFi-related SEC investigations have ended with minimal or no enforcement actions. Analysts say this could reflect a shift away from punitive measures and toward evaluating whether certain governance tokens function more like utilities than securities.

For Aave, the decision strengthens the argument that decentralized governance models and transparent, code-driven protocols may warrant differentiated regulatory treatment. Industry researchers suggest this may influence future token classifications and regulatory frameworks across the DeFi landscape.

A Milestone in DeFi’s Regulatory Journey

As the DeFi ecosystem continues to grow, the closure of the Aave probe may serve as a reference point for the industry’s evolution under regulatory oversight. For now, Aave can move forward—and the broader community can view this as an encouraging indicator of cooperation rather than confrontation between regulators and decentralized networks.

“This process demanded significant effort and resources from our team, and from me personally as the founder, to protect Aave, its ecosystem, and DeFi more broadly.” — Stani Kulechov

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Theoriq Unveils Mainnet, Ushering In a New Era of AI-Driven Autonomous Finance

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Theoriq has officially launched its Mainnet—an upgrade that may become one of the most important turning points in the evolution of decentralized finance. With this rollout, developers can now build, deploy, and scale autonomous onchain agents capable of executing real-time financial strategies, ushering in what Theoriq calls the future of AI-native programmable capital.

A Unified Infrastructure for AI-Native DeFi

Theoriq’s Mainnet brings together three critical components—agent logic, execution infrastructure, and liquidity—into one fully integrated, onchain environment. This marks a major leap forward from the fragmented tooling developers previously relied on when building autonomous DeFi automation.

With the launch of AlphaSwarm and AlphaProtocol, developers can now register verifiable AI agents, deploy autonomous strategies, and connect directly to decentralized capital sources, all within a unified system.

The Mainnet follows the strong performance of AlphaVault, Theoriq’s proof-of-concept vault that attracted over $21 million in TVL within four days, showcasing the appetite for agent-driven financial automation.

“The Mainnet creates a system where great AI agents can thrive, earn income, and help millions of people,” said Ron Bodkin, CEO and Co-Founder of Theoriq. “We’re building the infrastructure where autonomous intelligence meets usable, programmable capital.”

What Developers Can Do Starting Today

Theoriq’s Mainnet unlocks a suite of powerful capabilities:

Build & Register Onchain Agents

Using the Agent SDK, developers can:

  • Create verifiable agent identities
  • Register agents directly onchain
  • Integrate seamlessly with AlphaProtocol

This ensures that agents are discoverable, verifiable, and securely connected to relevant contracts.

Access Capital & Execute Strategies

While advanced capital-routing features are still coming, the initial release already allows developers to:

  • Coordinate strategies
  • Deploy capital under controlled parameters
  • Connect agents to DeFi protocols and liquidity sources
Operate Modular, Secure Intelligence

The Messaging Bus enables authenticated, tamper-resistant communication between agents and smart contracts — ensuring reliable execution for complex financial automation.

“Developers have been building amazing agents with nowhere to launch or monetize them,” said Jeremy Millar, Chairman of Theoriq. “Now they have a real onchain market—and users get AI that works for them, not just talks to them.”

THQ Staking Goes Live on Base

Alongside the Mainnet launch, Theoriq activated staking for $THQ, enabling participants to:

  • Stake and receive sTHQ
  • Contribute to network security
  • Prepare for future governance utilities

Delegation is not yet active, but this staking layer establishes the groundwork for agent reputation systems and capital allocation models tied directly to agent performance.

A Step Toward Fully Autonomous DeFi

Theoriq’s Mainnet represents more than a technical upgrade—it’s a philosophical shift in how DeFi operates. Instead of manual user-driven strategies, Theoriq envisions a future where smart agents autonomously:

  • React to market conditions
  • Optimize liquidity
  • Manage capital in real time
  • Integrate across multiple chains and protocols

Pei Chen, Executive Director and COO of Theoriq, described the transition clearly:
“This isn’t just another upgrade. It’s the shift from manually operated DeFi to automated agent economies. We’re opening the door to a new frontier for DeFi.”

Backed by Leading Investors and Ecosystem Partners

Supported by $10.4 million in funding from notable VCs—including Hack VC, IOSG, HashKey Capital, and Foresight Ventures—Theoriq is positioning itself as a foundational layer for the next generation of AI-powered decentralized finance.

Its ecosystem partners include major players such as:

  • Base
  • Mellow
  • Lido
  • Uniswap

With Mainnet now open to developers globally, Theoriq is poised to become a leader in AI-native DeFi infrastructure.

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Magma Finance Emerges as a Cross-Chain Liquidity Engine With Bond-Backed Stability

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Magma Finance, a fast-growing DeFi protocol focused on cross-chain liquidity and yield generation, is positioning itself as a next-generation hub for decentralized stable assets. The protocol has quickly attracted attention for its model centered around bond-backed liquidity, automated yield routing, and a stablecoin architecture designed to maintain capital efficiency across multiple chains.

With market interest rising around alternative stablecoin frameworks, Magma Finance aims to address the growing demand for reliable liquidity that can move seamlessly across networks while remaining backed by transparent, yield-producing collateral.

A Stability Model Built on Real Yield

Magma Finance’s core asset, MAGMA, sits at the center of its ecosystem. The protocol is structured around a vault-based system that supports:

  • Bond-backed collateral pools
  • Automated yield strategies
  • Minting of chain-native stable assets

This design allows users to deploy collateral into Magma vaults, which then interact with liquidity partners to generate yield. Instead of relying solely on algorithmic stability or synthetic value, Magma positions itself as a hybrid model backed by real yield sources.

Cross-Chain Liquidity as a Primary Value Proposition

One of Magma’s defining features is its emphasis on cross-chain operability. The protocol is built to function across multiple ecosystems, enabling:

  • Stable asset minting across chains
  • Efficient movement of liquidity without fragmentation
  • Unified collateral management

This interoperability plays a crucial role in Magma’s growth narrative, especially as multi-chain DeFi continues to evolve.

The ecosystem also prioritizes smooth settlement between chains, leveraging modular architecture that supports speed, low fees, and native bridging.

Token Utility and Governance Expansion

The MAGMA token is central to protocol governance and value routing. Its utility includes:

  • Governance voting
  • Incentive alignment for liquidity providers
  • Participation in yield distribution
  • Collateral use across future Magma products

The project’s roadmap includes expanded governance features in 2026, enabling token holders to shape treasury deployment, collateral partners, and risk frameworks.

Growing Institutional Attention

With an increasing focus on stable, yield-backed assets in DeFi, Magma Finance has garnered interest from institutional and retail participants looking for alternatives to purely algorithmic models. The protocol’s emphasis on transparency and real-yield collateralization positions it well within a rapidly maturing sector.

Industry observers have noted that Magma’s approach aligns with broader trends where stablecoin issuers and liquidity platforms shift toward bond-backed reserves, risk-controlled yield, and cross-chain accessibility.

Outlook: Magma’s Multi-Chain Liquidity Vision

Magma Finance’s trajectory suggests a platform aiming to blend stability, scalability, and interoperability. As the protocol continues expanding across chains and refining its bond-backed architecture, MAGMA is likely to play a more prominent role in governance, liquidity distribution, and stable asset creation.

If adoption continues at its current pace, Magma Finance may evolve into a key liquidity layer for yield-bearing stable assets in a multi-chain DeFi environment.

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