TLDR:

• Scallop’s $140K loss came from a deprecated rewards contract, not its core lending protocol infrastructure.
  
• April 2026 has recorded 13 DeFi exploits, pushing total industry losses past $606M, the worst month since Bybit.
  
• Scallop passed a full Sui Foundation audit in February 2025, yet the deprecated contract remained an open risk.
  
• Experts recommend spreading funds, avoiding legacy contracts, and withdrawing rewards regularly to reduce exposure.

Scallop, Sui’s largest lending protocol, suffered an exploit on April 26, 2026, resulting in approximately $140,000 in losses.

The attack targeted a deprecated rewards contract rather than the core protocol itself. Following the breach, the Scallop team froze affected contracts, identified the vulnerability, and restored operations.

User deposits remained unaffected throughout the incident. The event adds to a mounting list of DeFi exploits recorded in April 2026 alone.

Deprecated Contract Becomes the Entry Point for Attackers

The Scallop exploit did not breach the protocol’s main infrastructure. Instead, the attacker found an opening in an old, unused rewards contract.

This distinction matters, as it shows how legacy code can become a liability over time. Protocols often retire certain components without fully eliminating them from the network.

Scallop had completed a full audit conducted by the Sui Foundation in February 2025. Despite that review, the deprecated contract remained a weak link.

Crypto analyst Crypto Patel noted on X that “audited does not mean safe,” pointing to Scallop and Kelp DAO as examples. Kelp DAO lost $292 million despite passing two separate audits before its breach.

The Scallop team responded quickly by isolating the bug and pausing related contracts. Operations resumed shortly after, with the team confirming no user funds were at risk.

The rapid response helped contain the damage to the deprecated component only. Still, the incident drew attention to how old contracts are increasingly being used as attack vectors.

This pattern has become more common across the Sui ecosystem in recent months. Developers and security researchers have begun flagging unused contracts as a growing concern.

Protocols that leave deprecated components active without proper deactivation face elevated risk. The Scallop case serves as a practical reference point for that ongoing conversation.

April 2026 Records Worst Month for DeFi Losses Since Bybit

April 2026 has proven to be a difficult month for the broader DeFi sector. Industry losses have crossed $606 million, making it the worst month since the Bybit incident.

The Scallop exploit is the 13th recorded DeFi breach this month. That frequency points to a systemic challenge facing decentralized finance platforms.

The Sui network, in particular, has seen repeated incidents over the past year. Cetus DEX lost $223 million in May 2025, followed by Nemo Protocol losing $2.4 million in September 2025.

Volo Protocol was hit for $3.5 million on April 22, 2026, just days before the Scallop breach. These incidents reflect a recurring vulnerability pattern across Sui-based protocols.

Risk management has become a pressing topic among DeFi participants. Crypto Patel recommended avoiding deprecated contracts and withdrawing rewards regularly rather than leaving them idle.

Spreading funds across multiple protocols instead of concentrating them in one platform also reduces exposure. Monitoring official protocol announcements before making deposits adds another layer of protection.

The broader DeFi community continues to examine how audit processes can be strengthened. Passing an audit does not guarantee a protocol is free of exploitable code, especially in legacy components.

Ongoing security reviews that cover deprecated contracts are becoming a recommended practice. The events of April 2026 are likely to shape how protocols approach contract lifecycle management going forward.

TLDR:

• Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion in 2006; the platform is now estimated to be worth $550 billion today.
  
• Google’s $258 million Uber bet returned over $5 billion by IPO, marking a roughly 20x gain on its initial investment.
  
• A $1 billion SpaceX investment made in 2015 is now worth over $21 billion based on the company’s current valuation.
  
• Google’s $3 billion Anthropic stake could reach $112 billion if the startup’s rumored $800 billion funding round closes successfully.

Google’s investment track record stands as one of the most remarkable in corporate history. The tech giant has turned a series of bold, early-stage bets into assets worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

From YouTube to Uber and SpaceX, Google’s capital allocation strategy has consistently outperformed traditional venture capital firms. Now, its position in Anthropic is drawing fresh attention from analysts and investors worldwide.

YouTube Acquisition Proved Critics Wrong Over Time

Back in 2006, Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion. At the time, many industry observers called the price excessive.

YouTube had no revenue, no clear business model, and faced mounting copyright litigation from major media companies.

Despite those concerns, Google moved forward with the deal. The platform eventually became the world’s dominant video-sharing service. Today, YouTube generates approximately $50 billion in annual revenue.

The platform’s estimated worth now stands at around $550 billion. That represents a return of over 300 times the original purchase price. Few corporate acquisitions in any sector have produced comparable results over a similar timeframe.

As noted in a widely shared post by @BullTheoryio, “Google turned a $1.65 billion purchase into a $550 billion asset.” The figures have sparked renewed discussion about how Google identifies and holds long-term value.

Uber, SpaceX, and Anthropic Continue the Investment Pattern

Google’s early-stage investment in Uber followed a similar trajectory. In 2013, Google invested $258 million into the ride-hailing startup. By the time Uber went public, that stake had grown to over $5 billion, a roughly 20x return.

In 2015, Google placed $1 billion into SpaceX. SpaceX is now valued at $350 billion. That single bet is currently worth over $21 billion, based on the company’s latest valuation figures.

The pattern continued in 2023, when Google committed $3 billion to Anthropic, the artificial intelligence company.

Google later pledged an additional $40 billion on top of that initial commitment. Anthropic’s current valuation sits at $380 billion.

Google holds a 14% stake in Anthropic. At the $380 billion valuation, that position is worth approximately $53 billion. Reports suggest investors are now discussing a funding round that could value Anthropic at $800 billion.

At that figure, Google’s stake would be worth around $112 billion. The original $3 billion entry point makes that potential return one of the most striking in recent venture capital history.

The Ethereum price prediction just turned. Bitmine Immersion Technologies reported on April 22 that it bought 101,627 ETH in a single week, the largest seven-day buying round of 2026, pushing its total treasury to 4.98 million ETH worth $11.5 billion per CoinDesk.

ETH climbed to $2,308 on the Bitmine headline and the broader risk-on move after the indefinite ceasefire, and Standard Chartered still carries a $7,500 target for 2026. The smartest capital is not focused on the ETH outlook alone. They know ETH is not enough for the returns that change a financial position, and they are quietly adding a presale that keeps drawing capital, the clearest early entry this cycle offers.

Bitmine spent roughly $236 million on Ethereum in seven days, a corporate buying rate that matches Strategy’s Bitcoin playbook but applied to ETH for the first time at this scale per CoinDesk. The firm’s chairman stated that the recent drawdown created the entry point, and that the buying reflects a belief that the pullback from $4,953 is ending.

Ethereum (ETH) trades at $2,308 after recovering from $1,800 lows set during the worst of the Iran crisis. The Coinbase Premium Index also flipped bullish on April 22, showing that U.S. institutional buyers are stepping back in. One corporate treasury decision could send billions more into ETH and speed up the recovery targets.

Large caps like Ethereum look strong whenever institutional headlines land, but if your account is not seven figures deep, a 113% move to the all-time high keeps you steady without reshaping the next decade. The biggest returns always come from tokens bought before any exchange opens trading, and Pepeto sits right inside that window.

Ethereum Price Prediction and the Presale That Turns Recovery Hype Into Real Positions

Pepeto Gives Traders What the Next Ethereum Rally Needs Before It Starts

The crypto market has always tilted toward large holders. Institutional players move in on corporate treasury announcements while everyday traders pay swap costs and hope the contract is not a trap. Pepeto removes that gap with no-cost trading on its own exchange and a screener that rates every token before a buyer commits capital.

PepetoSwap is already running. Every trade clears at zero fees while the cross-chain bridge carries tokens across Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Solana without taking a cent. Everything operates under one roof, designed by the original Pepe (PEPE) creator who reached $11 billion and a former Binance executive.

Raising $9.53 million while the market dropped shows serious capital already completed its research, and SolidProof verified every contract before round one opened. Staking adds 178% APY that grows the position at $0.0000001866 while the Binance listing draws near.

If the ETH recovery targets hold and institutional buying continues at Bitmine’s pace, entering at $0.0000001866 is the kind of position that creates the largest winners when green candles return. Pepe started at similar fractions, and the market remembers exactly what came next.

Ethereum (ETH) Price at $2,308 as Bitmine’s Record Buy Sets the Stage

Ethereum (ETH) trades at $2,308 per CoinMarketCap after recovering from $1,800 during the April conflict lows. Clearing $2,400 would confirm the first higher move since February and open a path toward $2,800.

Standard Chartered holds a $7,500 forward target and Bitmine’s $11.5 billion treasury adds steady demand beneath the price.

The Ethereum price prediction points higher, yet $2,308 to $7,500 delivers roughly 223% at the top end, strong for a $233 billion asset but nowhere close to what presale pricing creates on an expected Binance debut.

Conclusion:

Bitmine’s record purchase could push billions more into Ethereum (ETH) as the Coinbase Premium stays bullish, but the capital moving fastest right now is flowing into Pepeto, because presales have historically delivered returns that no large cap can match from today’s levels.

The Pepeto presale will not hold for long, and a few months from now the ETH debate will split into two groups: the wallets that entered Pepeto at $0.0000001866, and the ones who saw the opportunity, waited, and spent the rest of the cycle regretting the decision, the same pattern that played out with DOGE, with Shiba Inu, and the list continues.

The Pepeto official website still opens early positions in the strongest exchange token listing of this run, but that window closes once the expected Binance listing happens.

Click To Visit Pepeto Website To Enter The Presale

FAQs

What does Bitmine’s 101,627 ETH purchase mean for the Ethereum price prediction?

The Ethereum price prediction gains strength from Bitmine’s $236 million weekly buy, pushing the firm’s treasury to 4.98 million ETH worth $11.5 billion per CoinDesk. Standard Chartered targets $7,500 for ETH in 2026.

How does the Ethereum price prediction compare to Pepeto presale returns?

Pepeto at $0.0000001866 targets 100x from a single expected Binance listing, while Ethereum reaching $7,500 from $2,308 delivers 223% over months or years. Over $9.53 million raised with 178% APY staking shows strong early commitment before the debut.

Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.

The crypto market structure bill has not made much public movement in a month. While making a prognosis on the bill is difficult, it’s not hard to see that the clock for passage is running out.

You’re reading State of Crypto, a CoinDesk newsletter looking at the intersection of cryptocurrency and government. Click here to sign up for future editions.

The narrative

We won’t get the crypto market structure bill this month. That’s not the end of the process, but we’re approaching a timeline that’ll surely increase the amount of gray in people’s hair.

Why it matters

Much of what’s happened around market structure issues — Securities and Exchange Commission staff statements, for example — are not permanent guidance. The SEC has time to come up with rules that go through a notice-and-comment period, but that’ll take time. Market structure legislation was aimed at cementing crypto industry goals and regulations into law, making it that much more difficult for a future administration to undo those rules. In other words, without the Clarity Act, it’s entirely possible that we’ll have this same conversation in a few years. To be clear, this isn’t advocating for this bill, much as I might wish to write about anything else. This is just stating a likely future scenario.

Breaking it down

Memorial Day — May 25, or just about a month from now — has been seen since at least last December as a “drop-dead” date for legislation to advance, if it is to have a chance at passage before the election. As we get into the summer, lawmakers are going to leave town to run their campaigns and won’t have time to worry about a crypto bill (or much other legislation).

Before Congress leaves, it’s going to take up a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security (House) and figure out if Kevin Warsh will become the next Fed chair (Senate).

CoinDesk’s Jesse Hamilton laid out the other steps necessary to get Clarity across the finish line — i.e. President Donald Trump’s desk — last week.

The crypto industry desperately wants this bill; more than 100 signed an open letter last week urging a markup hearing in the Senate Banking Committee, which would be the first step toward overall passage.

Still, at this point it’s unclear how close the committee is to moving forward. Stablecoin yield continues to dominate the conversation, but other outstanding issues have not been resolved either, at least publicly.

Even when these issues are resolved, the House will need to vote again on the bill.

Congressman French Hill, who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, told CoinDesk earlier this month that many of the outstanding issues around sales practices for stablecoins and decentralized finance had already been sorted out by the House in its version of the bill, meaning the Senate should be able to find common ground.

“I think the Senate’s relayed quite a bit on the House work on both FIT21 [the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act] from the previous Congress and CLARITY in this Congress,” he said. “I think you see that quite clearly in the Senate Agriculture markup, I think you see that in the basic draft of many of the components in the Senate bill.”

And, well, not to plug Consensus Miami again, but we are going to be discussing this next month. It’ll be a party, you should swing by.

This week

If you’ve got thoughts or questions on what I should discuss next week or any other feedback you’d like to share, feel free to email me at nik@coindesk.com or find me on Bluesky @nikhileshde.bsky.social.

You can also join the group conversation on Telegram.

See ya’ll next week!

Litecoin’s network, a long-standing layer-1 proof-of-work chain, faced a notable disruption over the weekend as a vulnerability triggered a 13-block reorganization. The Litecoin team described a denial-of-service event on mining pools running recently updated software, which temporarily suppressed their hash power. This allowed older nodes to peg out coins to decentralized exchanges and cross-chain swap protocols, resulting in invalid transactions appearing on the network’s MimbleWimble Extension Blocks (MWEB) privacy layer. Once upgraded nodes recovered hashing power, the chain reorganized by 13 blocks and reversed the invalid transactions. The Litecoin project says the issue has now been fully patched.

The episode arrives amid heightened attention on zero-day vulnerabilities—entirely new code exploits that software makers have not yet identified or mitigated. Industry observers have also noted that AI systems are increasingly adept at spotting such attack surfaces, underscoring the accelerating risk environment facing crypto networks.

The incident prompted discussion about whether the bug was truly a zero-day. In a separate thread, Alex Shevchenko, co-founder of Aurora, a layer-2 scaling network, pointed to evidence suggesting some actors may have known about the vulnerability beforehand. He wrote that the protocol’s automatic reorg once the DoS attack subsided implied that portions of the hashrate were already running updated code, indicating the issue was not a genuine zero-day. Alex Shevchenko on X.

Other observers have framed the episode as part of a broader pattern. Vadim Zacodil, a blockchain developer, argued that the timing and targeting pointed to a deliberate operation, warning that low-hashrate layer-1s may no longer be reliable collateral for cross-chain value. Vadim Zacodil on X.

The wider crypto ecosystem has repeatedly highlighted cross-chain bridges as an attractive attack surface. In recent years, such bridges have been linked to billions of dollars in losses, as attackers exploit interoperability layers to move assets across protocols with varying security guarantees. The latest Litecoin incident arrives alongside ongoing scrutiny of how cross-chain activity interacts with privacy-focused features like MWEB and how relays, bridges, and liquidity providers respond to transient outages or reorgs.

For context, the crypto press and researchers have noted recent high-profile bridge-related incidents. In April, the Kelp restaking protocol experienced a significant breach that drained about $293 million, underscoring how interconnected DeFi layers can amplify risk when a single vulnerability is exploited. Kelp restaking attack was one of the clearest recent reminders of the ongoing fragility in non-isolated DeFi lending and staking architectures. Kelp exploit.

Beyond isolated incidents, the broader security landscape has drawn attention to how future-proof crypto infrastructure is against evolving attack methods. The industry is also watching for how exchanges and miners coordinate during DoS or reorg events to prevent cascading loss of confidence or asset disruption. Some researchers have argued that robust fallback mechanisms and more frequent, transparent patching cycles are essential as attack surfaces expand with greater cross-chain functionality.

Key takeaways

• Litecoin experienced a DoS-induced 13-block reorganization after updated mining pools encountered a vulnerability, with older nodes briefly enabling invalid transactions on the MWEB privacy layer.
• The network’s attackers reportedly manipulated cross-chain and DEX interactions during the event, before the upgraded miners reclaimed control and the invalid transactions were reversed.
• There is a debate about whether the bug represented a true zero-day or a pre-known vulnerability, bolstered by analysis suggesting some miners were running updated code during the attack.
• The episode highlights persistent risks around cross-chain bridges and DeFi interoperability, where compromised hash power or timing can enable mispriced or invalid states to propagate briefly.
• Industry observers point to recent high-profile bridge exploits and ongoing AI-driven vulnerability discovery as signals that crypto security remains an active and evolving frontier requiring vigorous patching and coordination.

Litecoin’s patch and the path forward for cross-chain security

In the immediate aftermath, Litecoin said the vulnerability has been patched and that the network returned to normal after updated nodes re-established hashing power. The incident serves as a reminder that even well-established PoW networks can suffer transient disruptions when edge-case bugs intersect with evolving mining software and cross-chain activity. The team’s public update, and the subsequent 13-block reorg to remove invalid transactions from the chain, demonstrate that rapid reorganization can contain damage when participation from updated nodes is sufficient to reassert consensus.

Analysts and developers will be watching how quickly miners and exchanges propagate the corrected software, how cross-chain protocols respond to similar disruptions, and whether any retroactive security reviews prompt broader changes to how MWEB transactions are validated during reorgs. The Binance-linked activity cited in discussions around the incident adds another layer to the narrative, suggesting that attackers may coordinate across on-chain and off-chain resources to maximize impact or exploit uncertainty around patch timing.

Looking ahead, the industry’s evolving risk landscape will likely intensify emphasis on monitoring, patch cadences, and the resilience of cross-chain value transfers. As bridging and interoperability expand, so too do the potential vectors for disruption, making ongoing vigilance and coordinated response plans essential for users, developers, and infrastructure operators alike.

Readers should keep an eye on how Litecoin and other networks refine their emergency response playbooks, how mining pools coordinate during DoS events, and whether more rigorous, standardized disclosures accompany major software updates that affect consensus-critical components. The ongoing conversation about zero-day discovery, pre-knowledge indicators, and the role of non-native funds in exploiting vulnerabilities will shape how markets price risk in the months ahead.

For additional context on the broader security conversation, researchers have highlighted AI-assisted vulnerability discovery as a double-edged sword—accelerating discovery but potentially accelerating exploitation as well. See discussions around Claude Mythos and related analyses of zero-day surfaces in OS and browser ecosystems. Claude Mythos zero-day vulnerabilities.

Key Takeaways

• Three-year projections place SOL anywhere from $50 to $900+ based on varying market scenarios
• Bearish conditions could drive SOL down to $50–$100 if crypto adoption stalls
• Central forecast estimates $200–$300 assuming Solana maintains approximately 3% market dominance in a $5T industry
• Optimistic projections reach $500–$700 with expanded use in gaming, payments, and institutional portfolios
• Weighted probability analysis suggests a median price around $250–$300

Solana has established itself as a leading high-performance Layer 1 blockchain, recognized for exceptional transaction speeds and minimal fees. These characteristics have positioned it as a formidable alternative to Ethereum and competing networks.

The critical question remains: what price levels might SOL achieve within the next three years?

A market share analysis offers a data-driven framework for this projection. The methodology is straightforward: estimate total cryptocurrency market capitalization, apply Solana’s anticipated market share percentage, then calculate per-token value based on circulating supply. This approach emphasizes fundamental analysis over pure speculation.

The framework operates on several core assumptions: total crypto market valuation expanding to between $2.5 trillion and $10 trillion, Solana’s circulating supply reaching approximately 650 million tokens, and market share ranging from 1.5% to 6% depending on the scenario.

Under pessimistic conditions, the cryptocurrency sector achieves only $2.5 trillion in total value, with Solana capturing merely 1.5% market dominance. This yields a network valuation around $37 billion, translating to a SOL price between $50–$60. Such an outcome would indicate constrained institutional participation and intensified competition from rival Layer 1 platforms.

Central Projection: $200–$300

The moderate scenario represents the most realistic pathway. Total cryptocurrency market capitalization expands to $5 trillion, while Solana secures approximately 3% of that value. This positions the network at a $150 billion valuation, suggesting SOL prices in the $200–$300 range, centered around $230.

Achieving this outcome requires Solana to maintain developer engagement, experience continued DeFi ecosystem growth, and demonstrate operational reliability. Market share sensitivity is significant at this scale. Within a $5 trillion total market, a shift from 2.85% to 3.15% share translates to approximately $20 price variation.

The optimistic projection envisions total crypto market capitalization reaching $8 trillion with Solana commanding 5% market share. This scenario implies a $400 billion network valuation and positions SOL at $600 or above. Realizing this trajectory demands substantial expansion in blockchain gaming, payment infrastructure, and institutional capital allocation beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Extreme Upside Scenario

The supercycle hypothesis contemplates a $10 trillion total market where Solana secures 6% dominance. Under these conditions, SOL could approach $900 or exceed it. This outcome requires exceptional network execution and comprehensive global integration across diverse application verticals.

Multiple variables will influence which trajectory materializes. Critical factors include on-chain activity metrics, developer ecosystem vitality, competitive dynamics with Ethereum and emerging platforms, institutional capital flows, and overarching macroeconomic conditions.

Aggregating probabilities across all scenarios yields a weighted three-year price estimate around $250–$300 for SOL.