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Step Finance Treasury Breach Leads to $27M in Losses, STEP Crashes 90%

Step Finance, a decentralized finance portfolio tracker on Solana, has disclosed a security breach that led to the compromise of several treasury wallets. The incident resulted in over $27 million worth of SOL being drained from the platform's treasury wallets, causing a sharp sell-off in its native token, STEP.

In a statement posted on X, Step Finance acknowledged the breach and explained that it occurred during APAC hours due to a well-known attack vector. Although the team has taken "remediation" steps, they have not yet confirmed the total scale of the losses or provided details about how the attacker gained access.

Onchain data reviewed by blockchain security firm CertiK reveals that approximately 261,854 Solana (SOL) was unstaked and transferred from Step Finance-controlled wallets. This amount translates to around $27.2 million in value. The team's decision to remain silent on the exact extent of the losses has sparked concerns among investors and users.

Markets reacted swiftly to the news, with the project's governance token, STEP, plummeting by more than 90% within a short period. At the time of writing, the token is trading at $0.001578, down by 93.3% over the past day. This drastic decline reflects the significant loss of trust in the platform and its management.

Founded in 2021, Step Finance positions itself as a "front page of Solana," offering users a unified dashboard to track yield farms, LP tokens, and DeFi positions across most Solana-based protocols. Beyond its core product, the company operates SolanaFloor, a Solana-focused media outlet, and organizes the annual Solana Crossroads conference.

The incident serves as a harsh reminder of the risks associated with decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms. In late 2024, Step Finance acquired Moose Capital, now rebranded as Remora Markets, with plans to introduce tokenized equity trading on Solana. STEP plays a central role in the protocol's governance and incentive structure.

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The Lasting Impact of a Major Hack

Nearly 80% of crypto projects that suffer a major hack fail to fully recover due to poor crisis response and a collapse in trust, according to Web3 security executives. Immunefi CEO Mitchell Amador points out that most teams are unprepared for security incidents, leading to hesitation, slow decision-making, and weak communication in the critical hours after a breach.

Kerberus CEO Alex Katz notes that major exploits typically trigger user exits, liquidity drain, and long-term credibility loss. Even when technical issues are resolved, reputational damage is often permanent. This highlights the importance of prompt action and effective crisis management for DeFi platforms to mitigate losses and maintain investor trust.

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