Certik Considers Community Compensation For Merlin DEX Rug Pull Losses
Auditing firm Certik has announced that it is exploring a community compensation plan to cover the approximately $2 million in user funds lost in the recent Merlin decentralized exchange (DEX) rug pull. This move comes after Certik’s audit of Merlin was called into question by some community members.
2/ We urge the rogue developers to accept a 20% white hat bounty. Although we raised the private key privilege issues in the audit report, we want to assist impacted users. We are determined to track down those behind this rug pull. More compensation details will be released.
— CertiK (@CertiK) April 26, 2023
Merlin DEX Rug Pull
According to investigations, the rogue developers behind the rug pull are based in Europe. Certik has stated that it is working with law enforcement to track down those responsible for the theft.
Despite this, Certik has denied that its own audit of Merlin was faulty. The firm maintains that it provided a comprehensive review of the project’s code, which did not reveal any issues at the time of the audit. However, it has removed the content of the initial joint compensation plan with ZKSync, which was aimed at covering losses from the rug pull.
In the aftermath of the incident, the Merlin team has taken steps to improve the security of its platform, including increasing the size of its bug bounty program and hiring additional security experts. The team has also pledged to work with Certik and other auditing firms in the future to ensure the ongoing security of the DEX.
Third-party Audits
The rug pull at Merlin DEX was a blow to the DeFi community, highlighting the ongoing risks associated with investing in decentralized projects. While audits by third-party firms can help to mitigate these risks, they are not foolproof. It is therefore up to investors to conduct their own due diligence and assess the risks of any investment before committing their funds.
Despite the setback, the DeFi ecosystem continues to grow and evolve, with new projects and platforms emerging on a regular basis. As the industry matures, it is likely that we will see increased emphasis on security and risk management, as well as a greater focus on community-driven solutions to issues such as compensation for lost funds.
