The decision by Cetus to pause smart contracts during the $260 million hack was intended to protect user funds and initiate a responsible recovery process, including offering a whitehat agreement to the hacker.

Claim

Opposing arguments

The Sui network has previously been accused of centralization due to high token concentration among founders and the limited number of validators.
The ability of Sui validators to selectively block transactions raises questions about the network’s long-term credibility as a censorship-resistant platform in the DeFi space.
The coordinated action by Sui validators to freeze hacker-controlled wallets during the $260 million Cetus exploit has been criticized as fundamentally contradicting the decentralized ethos of blockchain systems.

Quotes that support claims

While this is good in this case, this shows SUI network can freeze your funds on demand.
Immediately after the hack, Cetus quickly paused its smart contracts to prevent further losses. In its latest announcement, the project stated that it had offered a whitehat agreement to the hacker to recover the stolen funds.

Related projects

SUI
Cetus Protocol

Related topics

Ethics

Supporting arguments

Validators on the Sui blockchain successfully froze approximately $162 million in stolen funds following the Cetus protocol hack on May 22, 2025, reducing the impact of the $260 million theft.
The coordinated emergency response by Cetus, Sui validators, and cybersecurity firm Hacken following the largest DeFi exploit in Sui’s history enabled the recovery of most of the stolen assets and minimized systemic fallout.
Cetus halted its smart contracts immediately after a $260 million exploit in order to prevent additional fund losses.