Harmony $ONE exploit: 4 billion tokens minted as price crashes

Harmony ($ONE) is facing a major security crisis after an exploit led to the unauthorized minting of roughly 4 billion $ONE tokens.

The newly created tokens represented a significant increase compared with Harmony's previous supply and triggered a sharp sell-off in ONE. The token fell as much as 30% during the initial reaction, while the Harmony team began working with exchanges to freeze funds and investigate a possible network rollback.

The incident is particularly concerning because a large portion of the newly minted ONE was reportedly moved toward exchanges shortly after the exploit was discovered.

Harmony $ONE Faces a Major Supply Shock

The reported exploit resulted in approximately 4 billion unauthorized ONE tokens being created.

Harmony previously had a supply of around 15 billion ONE, meaning the unauthorized mint was equivalent to roughly 26% of the previous supply.

That creates a serious problem for existing ONE holders.

When a large number of new tokens enter circulation without authorization, the existing supply can become heavily diluted. It can also create significant selling pressure if the newly created tokens are transferred to exchanges.

On-chain analyst Juiceberg reported that around 2.8 billion of the newly minted ONE had been moved toward exchange addresses. At the time of the initial reports, only about 115 million ONE from the unauthorized mint reportedly remained on-chain.

The movement raised concerns that a large portion of the newly created supply could reach the open market.

Harmony Confirms the Exploit

Harmony later confirmed that the network had suffered an exploit involving unauthorized ONE minting.

In its official X post, Harmony said it was working with exchanges to freeze the affected funds and was preparing a software patch.

The team is also considering a potential chain rollback as part of its response.

The rollback option is one of the most important developments to watch.

A rollback could potentially reverse the unauthorized mint and transactions connected to the exploit. However, reversing blockchain activity becomes much more difficult once the tokens have moved through centralized exchanges.

It also creates a wider question for the Harmony community: How much of the recent activity can realistically be reversed, and where should the network draw the line?

$ONE Supply Data Raises Additional Questions

Another concern is the difference between what was visible through Harmony's public supply data and what was happening on-chain.

Reports indicated that the network's public total-supply information did not immediately reflect the newly created tokens.

This matters because investors and applications rely on supply data to understand the token's market structure.

A large gap between reported supply and actual on-chain activity can make it difficult for traders to accurately assess dilution, market capitalization and selling pressure.

For a blockchain network, transparency during a security incident is therefore almost as important as the technical fix itself.

$ONE Price Crashes After the Exploit

The market reaction was immediate.

ONE dropped roughly 26% to 36% within 24 hours, briefly falling toward $0.00057 before recovering closer to the $0.0008 area.

The sharp decline shows how quickly confidence can disappear when a blockchain experiences an unexpected supply increase.

However, the lower price does not automatically make ONE attractive.

In this situation, the key issue is not simply how far the token has fallen. It is whether the unauthorized supply can be contained and whether Harmony can restore confidence in the network.

As the market has seen in other crypto security incidents, a token can continue falling even after an initial crash if investors remain uncertain about the underlying problem.

Harmony Has a History of Security Problems

The latest incident is also more serious because it comes after previous security issues involving Harmony.

In June 2022, Harmony's Horizon Bridge was exploited for approximately $100 million. The incident involved compromised private keys and affected assets moving through the bridge. The attack was later attributed by U.S. authorities to North Korea's Lazarus Group.

Harmony also experienced an improper ONE minting issue in 2023 linked to a staking-related bug.

These previous incidents make the latest exploit particularly damaging to investor confidence.

The market is therefore not looking at this as an isolated technical problem. Investors are also considering whether Harmony can demonstrate that its infrastructure and security processes have improved.

Coin Bureau Highlights the Scale of the Problem

The incident also drew attention from crypto research and media platform Coin Bureau.

In a post on X, Coin Bureau highlighted the scale of the reported unauthorized mint and its potential impact on ONE holders.

What Happens Next for Harmony?

The next few days could be critical for ONE.

There are several developments investors should watch closely:

Exchange freezes: Harmony is working with exchanges to identify and freeze affected funds.

Technical patch: The team needs to stop the vulnerability and prevent further unauthorized minting.

Rollback decision: A rollback could potentially address some of the unauthorized activity, but it would also raise difficult questions about transaction finality and community consensus.

Supply transparency: Harmony needs to clearly explain how much ONE was created, where the tokens moved and how much remains accessible.

Market recovery: ONE's price reaction will show whether investors regain confidence after the technical response becomes clearer.

Is $ONE a Buy After the Crash?

The sharp decline in ONE may make the token appear cheap, but price alone is not a strong reason to buy after a major exploit.

The most important questions remain unresolved.

Can the unauthorized tokens be frozen? Can Harmony permanently fix the vulnerability? Will a rollback happen? How much of the new supply has already reached exchanges? And, most importantly, will users continue to trust the network?

Until those questions receive clear answers, ONE remains a very high-risk asset.

A recovery could happen if Harmony successfully contains the exploit and provides a credible solution. But another wave of selling remains possible if the situation worsens or the community loses confidence.

Harmony $ONE Faces a Critical Test

The latest exploit puts Harmony at a major turning point. The unauthorized minting of roughly 4 billion ONE tokens has created serious concerns around supply, market stability and investor confidence.

Harmony's response will now be more important than the token's short-term price. Investors will be watching whether exchanges can freeze the affected funds, whether the team can stop the vulnerability and whether a potential rollback can restore the network's integrity.

For now, $ONE remains a high-risk asset. A successful technical response could help rebuild confidence, but further selling remains possible if Harmony fails to provide clear answers about the unauthorized supply.

The next few days could determine whether Harmony can contain the damage or whether this exploit becomes another major setback for the ONE ecosystem.