Shiba Inu’s lead developer, Shytoshi Kusama, has finally broken silence on the recent Shibarium bridge exploit. They confirmed that a dedicated “war room” has been set up to recover lost funds and reinforce the network’s security.
Shytoshi Kusama Confirms “War Room” Response
In a rare public statement, Shytoshi Kusama, the team lead for the Shiba Inu project, confirmed he is actively working alongside the core developers to manage the fallout of the $2.4 million Shibarium exploit.
Kusama rejected suggestions that he had distanced himself from the project, calling such claims “utterly preposterous.”
“Although I am focusing on AI initiatives to benefit all our tokens, I remain with the developers and leadership in the war room,” he wrote on X.
He added that his initial silence was a deliberate choice to fully assess the “complex and deep” situation before making official remarks. The statement marked the first comments from Kusama since the breach and the SHIB election announcement.
Furthermore, he promised more updates would be delivered through official Shiba Inu channels as the team works toward long-term solutions.
Shiba Inu had just announced a developer upgrade for Shibarium. The update aimed to simplify the interaction between validators and builders on the Ethereum Layer-2 chain. The exploit could delay the upgrade as the team looks to solve its loopholes.
Shibarium Exploit: $2.4M Drained, Team Launches Rapid Response
The exploit involved attackers gaining access to validator signing keys on Shibarium’s bridge. By executing a flash loan attack and purchasing 4.6 million BONE ShibaSwap (BONE) tokens, the perpetrators secured a majority of the validator power and moved assets off the network.
In total, the attack drained about $2.4 million. Shibarium developers quickly froze validator functions. They moved the staking assets into a secure multisig hardware wallet and brought in external security partners, including Hexens, Seal 911, and PeckShield, to investigate.
Dhairya, one of the project’s lead developers, emphasized that restoring network stability and safeguarding user funds remain the top priorities.
In a bid to recover the funds, K9 Finance, a Shiba Inu decentralized platform, offered a $23,000 bounty to the attacker for the safe return of stolen assets. The bounty is open for 30 days, but it will decrease after the first week. This highlights the urgency of resolution.
Meanwhile, market prices took a sharp hit. SHIB price saw a decline of about 6% but has now recovered, trading at $0.000013138. Over the past week, BONE experienced wild swings, first peaking and then plunging by almost 35%. The KNINE token from K9 Finance also dropped more than 5% in a single day.
The Shiba Inu team is now looking to restore immediate security while pinpointing the leakages in its system.
Michael Adeleke
Michael Adeleke is a passionate crypto journalist known for breaking down complex blockchain concepts and market trends into clear, engaging narratives. He specializes in delivering timely news and sharp market analysis that keeps crypto enthusiasts informed and ahead of the curve. With an engineering background and a degree from the University of Ibadan, Michael brings analytical depth and precision to every piece he writes.
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