DeFi United has unveiled a detailed recovery plan to restore backing for rsETH. The April 18 Kelp bridge exploit released 116,500 rsETH tokens—worth approximately $293 million—without burning the corresponding tokens on Unichain. The multi-stage plan involves converting Ether into rsETH, securing the compromised bridge infrastructure, and unwinding exploit-linked positions across major DeFi protocols, according to DeFi United’s official announcement.
The exploit significantly impaired rsETH, a restaked Ether derivative. It disrupted markets across several DeFi platforms. Seven addresses connected to the incident still hold roughly 107,000 rsETH from the exploit, according to DeFi United.
The recovery strategy centers on converting previously committed Ether into rsETH in stages. That gets deposited into Kelp’s bridge lockbox. The bridge can safely resume operations once full backing is restored. LayerZero and Kelp have implemented additional security measures before reopening. “Extra security measures have been added to the Kelp bridge to prevent future exploits,” a LayerZero representative said in a joint security update.
DeFi United has a plan for the attacker-linked positions on Aave and Compound. They’re proposing temporarily adjusting the rsETH oracle price. That enables controlled liquidations. It avoids broader market contagion. The plan, detailed in an Aave governance proposal, would allow DeFi United to recover collateral and repair affected markets. Recovered assets would move to a DeFi United multisig before the oracle resets. Then rsETH gets redeemed for ETH to fill deficits in impacted markets.
Execution requires governance approvals and coordinated protocol changes across multiple platforms. It assumes the exploiter won’t interfere with recovery efforts.
The technical plan builds on earlier funding commitments from major Ethereum stakeholders. Consensys, Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, and Sharplink have joined the recovery effort. Aave Labs has requested the Arbitrum DAO release over 30,000 frozen ETH to support the initiative, according to DeFi United. The organization now reports more than $300 million in pledged capital. Some portions depend on pending DAO votes.
“The recovery plan is crucial to restoring market confidence and stabilizing the ecosystem,” a DeFi United spokesperson said.
The outcome will test DeFi’s ability to coordinate crisis response across multiple protocols. It’ll show whether the sector can restore confidence in restaking infrastructure. This was one of the sector’s most significant bridge exploits.
