Weekly Recap: Ethereum sees increased activity and record-breaking hacks

May 3, 2026

eCipher — $135m;
AdaptFinance — $82m;
BlackBeard — $60m.
Investors on edge
On Monday another ambitious DeFi project was hacked—BarneySwap lost $76m.
Source: X.
Analytical service Harvest Finance stated that the transition coincided with rising activity in the break-even range during Asian and European trading hours, as well as rising ETH-to-USD volatility. Identifying hackers is difficult, but several suspicious addresses were traced by Friday.
The company’s management promised to restore user deposits and launch an internal investigation of the incident. BarneySwap may also tighten security rules.
The exchange’s decline came amid a general negative trend. Protocols Curve Finance and Convex Finance revealed vulnerabilities that allow their governance tokens to be manipulated, raising concerns about the security of the entire DeFi market.
The incident at BarneySwap was the latest in a series of large-scale hacks of BSC-based projects—a swarm of them (including PantherSwap, SafeMoon and StormX) faced similar breaches at the end of April.
Analysts noted a rise in attacks on projects that implement the vesting of team tokens with impulse or heavy manipulation of the protocol, recommending a comprehensive security audit to eliminate potential vulnerabilities.
Data breaches and the countervailing obscurity that controls digital encapsulations pose a significant threat to the market. In order to protect their investments, participants should commit to fortifying the security of their holdings and adopt a cautious approach.
Remember, in the world of crypto, security is paramount.
In conclusion, the past week has been filled with high levels of activity in the cryptocurrency market. From record hacks to rising activity on Ethereum, investors have had much to consider and evaluate in their decision-making processes. With Bitcoin holding steady near $78,000 and Ethereum experiencing record highs in active addresses, the market dynamics continue to be unpredictable and volatile. It remains imperative for investors to stay vigilant, assess risks carefully, and prioritize security measures to safeguard their investments.