Drift Protocol on Saturday published its most detailed account yet of the April 1 exploit that drained approximately $280 million from the Solana-based perpetuals exchange, describing what the team called a "structured intelligence operation" that took roughly six months to stage. According to the update, the initial contact came in or around fall 2025, when individuals presenting as a quant trading firm approached Drift contributors at a major crypto conference and expressed interest in integrating on the protocol. A Telegram group was set up at that first meeting, and the same individuals continued meeting ... (full story)