Echo Protocol pauses bridge after attacker mints $76M eBTC

Echo Protocol, a Bitcoin-focused DeFi platform, was exploited when an attacker minted unauthorized eBTC tokens on the Monad deployment, resulting in about $76.7 million in synthetic Bitcoin tokens. The attacker moved some funds through decentralized lending markets, with most of the unauthorized supply remaining untouched. The exploit was attributed to a compromised admin private key, and cross-chain transactions were suspended while the investigation continues. This incident adds to a series of DeFi security breaches in 2026, including Verus Protocol, Drift Protocol, Kelp DAO, THORChain, and Transit Finance.