A massive exploit has impacted the decentralized finance platform Balancer, draining over $110 million from its liquidity pools. Initial estimates placed the stolen funds at around $70–88 million, but later reports confirmed a significantly higher sum. Balancer acknowledged the attack hours after reports surfaced, confirming that their v2 pools were affected and vowing to investigate with urgency. The incident came amid growing market jitters in the DeFi space, as Bitcoin’s price fell below $108,000, and traders reacted by pulling back on investments in various cryptocurrencies. The attack targeted multiple liquidity pools including WETH, osETH, and wstETH, draining an estimated $70M to $88M within a short timeframe. On-chain analysis revealed the stolen amount had surged past $116 million, indicating continued siphoning even as Balancer began mitigation efforts. While the project has not disclosed the specific vulnerability, it stated: ‘We’re aware of a potential exploit impacting Balancer v2 pools. Our engineering and security teams are investigating with high priority.’ The exploit quickly sent shockwaves through the crypto market, causing the Balancer ($BAL) token to plummet over 10% intraday, falling near $0.90 – a sharp decline from its previous close at around $0.98. This impacted wider markets too. Traders rushed to de-risk their DeFi exposure, resulting in additional sell pressure on Ethereum, Solana, and Binance Coin (BNB). Meanwhile, Bitcoin ($BTC) held strong against heavy volatility at the $107K support level. Analysts attributed Bitcoin’s resilience to traders seeking refuge in a safe haven asset as they exited altcoins. The market reacted with a mix of panic and uncertainty, as reflected by the chart showing a sharp downward candle pattern. The current BAL price is at $0.90, with a 24-hour change of -10.6%, from its previous close at $0.9838. Key support lies at $0.88-$0.90, while resistance sits between $0.95-$1.00. If panic persists, BAL could slide to the $0.80 level; however, if Balancer unveils a detailed recovery plan, it might stabilize near $0.90.