Key Takeaways
- •Balancer attributes the $128 million exploit to a smart contract rounding error.
- •Affected assets primarily include ETH and Balancer Pool Tokens.
- •Immediate actions taken involved pausing impacted pools to facilitate recovery.
Balancer's recent $128 million DeFi exploit, which occurred on November 3, 2025, was attributed to a rounding error in smart contracts within its V2 Composable Stable pools across multiple blockchains.
This incident underscores the inherent systemic risks associated with arithmetic precision in decentralized finance, prompting the implementation of immediate asset safety protocols and the recalibration of security measures throughout decentralized financial systems.
Rounding Error Triggers $128M Asset Drain
Balancer's latest $128 million exploit was triggered by a rounding error in its V2 Composable Stable pools. This exposed mathematical flaw led to significant asset draining across major blockchains. "Our team is working with leading security researchers to understand the issue and will share additional findings and a full post-mortem as soon as possible," stated Fernando Martinelli, CEO of Balancer.
The incident involved Balancer's core team and security researchers who mobilized rapidly to address the flaw. Immediate actions were taken to pause affected pools as a measure to control the damage.
ETH and Balancer Tokens Hit by Exploit
The exploit resulted in substantial financial losses, with ETH and Balancer Pool Tokens being the primary assets affected. Rapid market responses were focused on recovery efforts and safeguarding assets against further infiltration.
The DeFi community reacted swiftly, initiating heightened awareness campaigns. Further updates and discussions related to this event can be found on GoPlus Security on Twitter.
Past Incidents Cast Light on Current Flaw
Previous incidents, such as Curve's past arithmetic exploits, provide relevant context to Balancer's recent event. Despite historical precedents, this case ranks among the largest in multi-chain composability.
Future risk mitigation strategies must incorporate thorough composability audits. Data and past trends indicate that overlooked mathematical vulnerabilities could lead to ongoing scrutiny across the industry. The industry's collective focus remains on preventing such faults, a sentiment echoed by organizations like RELX.