Crypto Thefts Surpass $1.4B in 2024 as Centralized Exchanges Become the Prime Target

According to cybersecurity firm Cyvers' mid-year Web3 security report, the total amount of stolen crypto funds in 2024 is approaching $1.4 billion as centralized exchanges emerge as the new ground zero for exploits.

This text gives a abstract of the week’s most vital decentralized finance (DeFi) developments. It highlights new infrastructure developments introduced by MetaMask, Polygon, and StarkNet, aiming to drive mainstream adoption.

Conversely, the article emphasizes the erosion of mainstream trust due to cryptocurrency hacks, with whole hacked funds exceeding $1.4 billion in 2024. Notably, the bulk of these funds were lost due to hacks on centralized exchanges (CEXs) rather than DeFi protocols.

Crucially, CEXs appear to be emerging as the primary target for crypto hackers, with a 900% year-over-year increase in losses incurred by CEXs.

Crypto thefts surpass $1.4 billion in 2024 as centralized exchanges become the main target

According to cybersecurity agency Cyvers’ mid-year Web3 security report, the total amount of stolen crypto funds in 2024 is approaching $1.4 billion as centralized exchanges become the new ground zero for exploits.

In the second quarter of 2024, total crypto losses exceeded $600 million, marking a 100% increase over the same period in 2023. The surge in stolen funds was driven primarily by a 900% increase in losses on centralized exchanges, according to the report.

“This quarter has witnessed a major shift in attack vectors, with centralized exchanges (CEX) bearing the brunt of major incidents, while decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols show improved resilience,” the report said, adding, “This trend could be attributed to the concentration of assets in centralized platforms and possibly lax security measures in some exchanges.”

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Starknet to introduce staking in Q4 2024

Eli Ben-Sasson, the CEO of StarkWare, announced at EthCC on July 10 that the company plans to introduce staking by the end of 2024 via a Starknet enhancement proposal (SNIP).

If the community approves the SNIP, Starknet staking is expected to go live on testnet soon, followed by the mainnet launch in the fourth quarter.

A GitHub repository for the new staking function will be publicly available throughout the development process.

In a written Q&A with Cointelegraph, Ben-Sasson explained that staking would allow Starknet tokenholders to “participate in core activities of a decentralized network.”

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MetaMask unveils toolkit to ease Web3 onboarding

Consensys unveiled the MetaMask Delegation Toolkit at EthCC, marking a major milestone in the firm’s efforts to promote Web3 and blockchain adoption.

According to a press release shared with Cointelegraph, the toolkit enables developers to create decentralized applications (DApps) and protocols that offer new user experiences.

The MetaMask toolkit will be available on any Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) chain supported by a user operation bundler, including Arbitrum, Avalanche, Base, Linea, Optimism and Polygon.

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SingularityNET and Filecoin partner for AI and DePIN

SingularityNET, a synthetic intelligence platform developer, and the Filecoin Foundation, the governance body behind the Filecoin network, have announced a collaborative partnership.

The partnership aims to integrate the AI and decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN) industries while maintaining decentralization, AI ethics and data provenance.

According to an official press release shared with Cointelegraph, the partnership will also establish an AI ethics working group to ensure that AI development and deployment adhere to ethical practices.

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TON Utility Chain and Polygon team up to launch new TON L2

The TON Utility Chain (TAC) and Polygon Labs are set to bring EVM capability to the TON ecosystem.

In a July 9 announcement, the TON Utility Chain and Polygon announced that the TON L2 had integrated Polygon CDK and the interoperability protocol AggLayer to bring EVM-compatible DApps to TAC.

It aims to increase the range of applications available to the TON network’s users, including DeFi, gaming and identity solutions.

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DeFi market overview

The majority of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market cap have ended the week in the green, as shown by data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView.

Out of the top 100, Telegram-based gaming token Notcoin (NOT) logged the largest weekly gain of over 46%, followed by the Celestia (CELT) token, which is up over 38% on the weekly chart.

However, investor sentiment eroded over the past week, as the crypto Fear & Greed index fell to 25, signaling “extreme fear,” down from last week’s 29. Investor sentiment remains impacted by Bitcoin (BTC) trading below the key $60,000 psychological mark.

Thanks for reading our summary of this week’s most impactful DeFi developments. Join us next Friday for more