bZx Protocol
Last changed 2026-10-10 · Score recalculated — Rescored under Scoring v2, the published formula (avoid.net/scoring): 12 → 49. Problems weighed by who is responsible: incidents the subject suffered −20, concerns that are not fraud −16, problems around the subject, caused by others −0.3; legitimacy credit long-running +10; the penalty for incidents it suffered is capped at 20. Version history →
Why this score
| Every page starts at | 65 |
| Concerns that are not fraud | -16 |
| Incidents it suffered (e.g. hacks) | -20 |
| Problems around it, caused by others | -0.3 |
| Long-running | +10 |
| Sum | 39 |
- The penalty for incidents it suffered is capped at 20 points.
Score: 49/100 (kept between 0 and 100)
How scoring works →Summary
bZx Protocol was an Ethereum-based decentralized margin trading and lending protocol founded in 2017 by Tom Bean and Kyle Kistner. The protocol suffered four separate security incidents between 2020 and 2021, culminating in a ~$55 million hack attributed to a phishing-induced private key compromise. Following a transfer of control to a DAO structure, the successor Ooki DAO was sued by the CFTC for operating an unregistered derivatives exchange, ultimately receiving a default judgment, trading bans, and a court-ordered shutdown in June 2023.
Connected Entities
5 entities · 60 linked investigations- Binance→mentioned with→Ethereum(65%)
- Uniswap→mentioned with→Ethereum(80%)
- bZx Protocol→mentioned with→Binance(60%)
- Polygon→mentioned with→Ethereum(70%)
- bZx Protocol→mentioned with→Polygon(65%)
- Polygon→mentioned with→Binance(70%)
- bZx Protocol→mentioned with→Ethereum(80%)
- bZx Protocol→mentioned with→Uniswap(70%)
Timeline(17 events)
August 2017
Tom Bean and Kyle Kistner conceive bZx Protocol after reading 0x, Kyber, and Bancor whitepapers.
Decrypt / bZx team interviewsJune 2019
Fulcrum DeFi margin trading interface launches on Ethereum mainnet.
IQ.wiki / Ivan on Tech Academy15 February 2020
First flash loan attack on Fulcrum: attacker exploits undercollateralization logic bug, netting approximately $350,000 in ETH.
CoinDesk18 February 2020
Second flash loan attack: attacker manipulates sUSD price oracle on Kyber Network and extracts approximately $633,000 in ETH.
CoinDesk14 September 2020
Third exploit: iToken duplication bug allows attacker to mint ~$8.1 million in tokens including LINK, ETH, USDT, USDC, and DAI.
Finance Magnates / bZx Incident Report23 August 2021
bZeroX, LLC transfers protocol control to bZx DAO; founders describe move as making the protocol 'enforcement-proof'.
CFTC Press Release 8590-225 November 2021
Fourth and largest breach: phishing email compromises developer private keys; over $55 million drained from Polygon and BSC deployments and affected user wallets.
CoinDesk / The Record12 November 2021
Kaspersky attributes November 2021 hack to BlueNoroff, a North Korean state-linked threat actor.
Halborn Security blog2 May 2022
Class action Sarcuni et al. v. bZx DAO filed in S.D. California alleging negligence and joint and several liability of all BZRX token holders.
Skadden Insights22 September 2022
CFTC simultaneously settles charges against bZeroX LLC and founders ($250,000 penalty) and files new civil enforcement action against Ooki DAO.
CFTC Press Release 8590-22March 2023
U.S. district court rules bZx DAO plausibly constitutes a 'general partnership' under California law, opening all BZRX token holders to joint and several liability.
The Block9 June 2023
Judge William H. Orrick grants CFTC default judgment against Ooki DAO: $643,542 penalty, permanent trading bans, and mandatory website shutdown ordered.
CFTC Press Release 8715-23Decision Log
- slot 455357881 · hash 4Y3tFFSZhYmSqEgnMAiYbAQpnFBwVuYq8JpRqgrjDv6n
- slot 423160993 · hash ECTKSPnvLnYAGipfcakjRdue5cbPcFV7tJf3SmML6ux7
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (2 decisions). 18 of 20 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-sonnet-4-5
generated: 5/30/2026, 12:58:35 PM
last updated: 10/10/2026, 6:39:49 PM
3 viewsavoid.net — verified advice for a post-truth world