Allbridge Core Suffers Over $1.1 Million Loss from Flash Loan Manipulation Attack on Solana
The cross-chain protocol Allbridge Core was attacked on the Solana chain, with the attacker stealing over $1.1 million by manipulating the stablecoin pool exchange rate.
The attacker extracted $1.12 million USDC via a flash loan from Kamino, altered the Allbridge pool liquidity ratio through a rapid USDC/USDT exchange, and utilized the manipulated exchange rate to withdraw liquidity, repaying the flash loan in the same transaction.
The attacker has transferred approximately $1.1 million and mixed the funds through a privacy protocol. Allbridge Core has a single withdrawal limit of about $2.24 million USDC, and vulnerability analysis is still ongoing.
Source: Public Information
ABAB AI Insight
Allbridge has previously iterated its liquidity and routing mechanisms multiple times as a cross-chain bridge protocol. This attack is similar to several DeFi flash loan price manipulation cases between 2022 and 2024, exposing potential weaknesses in the stablecoin pool exchange rate calculation.
In terms of capital pathways, the attacker leveraged the flash loan with zero cost to manipulate the pool ratio and extract value, quickly laundering the funds through a mixing protocol. The motivation is for immediate arbitrage rather than long-term holding, reflecting the short-term incentive structure in DeFi where attacks yield profits.
Similar to the historical attacks on the Ronin bridge and multiple stablecoin pools, this round of Allbridge is in the security validation phase of cross-chain liquidity protocols in the high throughput environment of Solana.
Essentially, this involves technological substitution and capital concentration: flash loans and pool manipulation techniques allow a single attacker to rapidly concentrate liquidity vulnerability profits. The mechanism lies in the smart contract exchange rate logic not adequately resisting extreme liquidity shocks, leading to the transfer of protocol funds to the attacker and amplifying the industry's demand for security audits.
ABAB News · Cognitive Laws
When flash loans are zero-cost, any price manipulation window is an attack surface.
The pool liquidity ratio is the attack leverage, with stablecoin exchanges being the easiest to exploit.
The security of cross-chain protocols will always lag behind the speed of capital flow.