In Brief:
- NEAR Intents halted services after a security breach led to a loss of approximately $3.8 million.
- A bug in the Omni deposit and withdrawal infrastructure was identified as the cause, allowing unauthorized withdrawals from a BNB Chain hot wallet.
- Users won’t need to take action for compensation, as NEAR Intents promises to cover the losses.
NEAR Intents stops operations after security breach
NEAR Intents suspended its services on October 1 following the discovery of a security breach that drained about $3.8 million. The incident was traced back to a bug in how its Omni infrastructure interacted with the NEAR Intents smart contract, allowing unauthorized withdrawals.
“The preliminary report indicates the total loss of approximately $3.8M. These funds will be compensated in full,” the team said. The contract vulnerability has since been patched, with NEAR Intents expected to resume operations shortly after the announcement.
Affected networks remain paused
While NEAR Intents resumed some operations, deposits and withdrawals on 11 networks remained unavailable for around 12 additional hours as infrastructure fixes were completed. The affected networks included BSC, Polygon, Avalanche, and others.
Users holding assets on those chains within the NEAR ecosystem weren’t left at a standstill. Once the service returned, they will be able to swap assets into other tokens, though withdrawals to the impacted chains will remain paused.
Investigators trace stolen funds
On-chain investigator ZachXBT reported the stolen funds moved quickly, with transfers directed to KuCoin and then bridged to Bitcoin. These movements through a centralized exchange might aid in tracking, as exchanges can freeze accounts and collaborate with law enforcement.
NEAR Intents has notified law enforcement about the incident and is working with security partners to trace the funds. A detailed report is set to follow in the coming days.
Market reacts to the breach
The NEAR token saw a sharp decline of 7.5 percent immediately following the announcement, dropping to a low of $4.76 before slightly rebounding. The limited scale of the loss and the promise of full compensation mitigated broader market fallout.
While users will not have to take any action to recover lost funds, details on the compensation process are expected in the upcoming report.
Overview of NEAR Intents
NEAR Intents operates as a cross-chain trading protocol that simplifies asset swaps across networks. Users specify their intent to swap, with competing solvers bidding to fulfill that request. Transaction volume has grown significantly, reaching over $20 billion as of June 3, 2026.
However, this rapid growth entails increased complexity. More connections between blockchains mean additional opportunities for bugs to emerge. This incident underscores that the risks often lie in the infrastructure rather than the core application.
Growing concerns over cross-chain exploits
This incident adds to a series of cross-chain exploits in recent weeks. The Sandbox (official site) previously reported a loss of around $14.7 million, and crypto casino Duelbits faced a $7 million loss due to vulnerabilities in their hot wallets.
NEAR Intents quickly promised full compensation, reflecting a growing expectation that major platforms will cover losses from their treasuries to maintain user trust.
Implications for web3 gaming
Tools like NEAR Intents aim to streamline asset movements in web3 gaming. However, incidents like this highlight the underlying risks associated with custody and bridge infrastructure. The event serves as a reminder for studios to partner with responsive entities and for players to limit balances on cross-chain services.
