Decentralized crypto exchange Nexera halts trading following $1.5m exploit

As a seasoned researcher and blockchain enthusiast with over a decade of experience in this dynamic field, I find myself disheartened by yet another instance of a decentralized exchange falling victim to hackers. The exploit at Nexera, a platform that has shown great promise since its inception in 2018, serves as a stark reminder of the inherent risks associated with the crypto space.


The multi-chain, decentralized trading platform known as Nexera has fallen victim to an exploit valued at approximately $1.5 million, leading them to halt all trading activities temporarily.

The decentralized cryptocurrency exchange called Nexera, or AllianceBlock Nexera, has unfortunately been the target of a hacker attack, leading to a loss of approximately $1.5 million in liquidity. This security incident was initially disclosed by the blockchain investigation firm Cyvers via a post on X, which highlighted an unusual transaction linked to Nexera’s proxy contract as a cause for concern.

As a concerned crypto investor in Nexera_Official, I’m raising an alarm regarding a questionable transaction related to your proxy contract. It appears that an address has assumed ownership of your proxy contract and upgraded it. Subsequently, this address invoked the withdraw admin function, transferring all $NXRA tokens.— 🚨 Cyvers Alerts 🚨 (@CyversAlerts) August 7, 2024

As reported by Cyvers, an attacker successfully took over the proxy contract belonging to Nexera. This control was then used to update the contract with additional permissions, enabling the hacker to employ the withdraw admin function and move all NXRA tokens. Cyvers further explains that this cybercriminal is currently converting the exchange’s liquidity into Ethereum (ETH). Some of these funds have already been transferred to the BNB chain.

Notice Regarding Smart Contract Exploit Involving NXRA Tokens:— Nexera (@Nexera_Official) August 7, 2024

After the attack, the Nexera team posted on a separate platform that they were looking into a smart contract exploit involving NXRA tokens. The specific details about the hack are yet to be clarified, but for now, the NXRA token contract has been suspended and trading halted while the exchange’s team continues to gather information.

Nexera

Founded in 2018 by Rachid Ajaja and Matthijs de Vries, Nexera serves as a bridge for transactions between the Ethereum network and the Arbitrum layer-2 solution. The platform’s own token, NXRA, plays a key role within the ecosystem, used for transaction fees and incentives. After news of an exploit surfaced, the value of NXRA dropped significantly by more than 40%, currently trading at approximately $0.037 according to crypto.news data.

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2024-08-07 11:40