Following a $387.5 million hack of the crypto exchange Bitget, the platform's CEO Gracy Chen requested that the decentralized protocol THORChain block addresses associated with the theft. THORChain declined the request, citing its decentralized and permissionless nature.
THORChain stated it lacks the technical capability to censor specific addresses, noting that it retired its administrative key in February 2025. The protocol previously faced scrutiny when it was used to swap approximately $1.2 billion in funds stolen during a $1.46 billion hack of Bybit.
In contrast, the platform NEAR Intents utilized its automated SHIELD program to block addresses linked to the Bitget hack, preventing the swapping of $50 million. NEAR Intents also rejected a 5% bounty offered by Bitget for this intervention.
Legal expert Yuriy Brisov noted that while blocking addresses can be seen as a good-faith effort, it may undermine a project's legal defense of being truly decentralized. If a protocol demonstrates control over assets, it could potentially face liability for other issues like market manipulation or failure to implement KYC and AML measures.
Regarding potential money laundering charges, Brisov suggested that decentralized protocols might be protected if they lack control over their smart contracts, citing the legal precedent set by the Tornado Cash case.
