KelpDAO chips in 2,000 ETH to DeFi United recovery fund as rsETH rescue continues
KelpDAO announced on April 30 that it has delivered on a pledge to support rsETH holders, transferring 2,000 ETH from its treasury to the DeFi United recovery fund. The one-time contribution joins a broader coalition-led effort, spearheaded by Aave, to restore peg support for rsETH and return affected markets to normal after a major April 18 exploit.
Quick recap of the exploit
- On April 18 attackers drained 116,500 rsETH (about $290–$293 million), roughly 18% of rsETH’s total supply, from KelpDAO’s LayerZero-powered bridge.
- The stolen rsETH was used as collateral across Aave, Compound v3, and Euler to borrow an estimated $236 million in ETH and WETH, creating substantial bad debt for those protocols.
What DeFi United is doing
DeFi United — a coalition that includes Aave, Mantle, Consensys, Arbitrum, Lido Finance, and LayerZero — has outlined a recovery path focused on:
- recapitalizing the bridging treasury,
- restoring oracle functionality, and
- closing funding gaps across affected markets.
Fundraising and major commitments
The coalition has so far provisionally gathered over $302 million from DAOs and ecosystem participants. Major known commitments include:
- Consensys and Joseph Lubin: 30,000 ETH (~$69M)
- Mantle: 30,000 ETH as a low-interest loan
- Aave DAO: pending vote for 25,000 ETH (~$57.5M)
- LayerZero: 10,000 ETH (~$23M)
- Arbitrum Security Council: 30,766 ETH (~$71M) frozen from attacker funds, pending governance action
Where KelpDAO’s contribution fits
KelpDAO emphasized that the 2,000 ETH contribution is a direct fulfillment of an internal pledge that “rsETH holders will not be abandoned.” The protocol framed the donation as an accelerator for the wider recovery — intended to help re-establish collateral support and speed restoration of rsETH’s nominal exchange rate as other funds arrive.
Next steps
DeFi United continues to coordinate recapitalization and technical fixes. KelpDAO said it will keep the community updated as recovery efforts progress.
(Values are approximate and based on current ETH valuations reported with the original disclosures.)
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