On the English-speaking crypto timeline, the community is deeply concerned about Aave’s exploit—not because of the $300 million loss (after all, Drift also lost nearly $300 million, and back then, everyone remained calm), but because Aave holds such a critical and central position in the DeFi ecosystem. You can think of Drift as a leg—accidentally punctured, bleeding heavily, painful? Yes, but Aave is more like the heart. A puncture here isn’t about pain—it’s about life or death. Aave is the central hub and lifeline of DeFi: its code is a battle-tested, seemingly impregnable foundation of DeFi, and a vital bridge connecting Web2 finance with Web3 finance. Previous large-scale leadership changes at the team, combined with this exploit by Kelp, have shaken the confidence of many DeFi believers—an unprecedented sight in recent years. Now, on-chain bank runs have begun, with massive liquidity fleeing Aave, locking up numerous assets. Even Sun’s USDD has $380 million in USDT locked on Aave Plasma, with liquidity completely frozen. If this isn’t resolved well, years of progress building the restaking narrative and the on-chain financial Lego ecosystem could be undone. Coupled with my earlier concerns about AI-driven attacks on on-chain protocols, many are now afraid to keep funds in on-chain protocols and are rushing to withdraw their capital back to CEXs—setting the entire industry back by years. Meanwhile, on the Chinese crypto timeline: aside from a few OGs closely monitoring Aave’s developments, the Hong Kong conference is in full swing—cheers, celebration, shoes kicked off. It’s just so surreal. 😂😂😂