Axelar’s AXL has surged over the past 24 hours despite a security incident involving assets bridged from Axelar to Secret Network through the Cosmos IBC connection.
At press time, AXL was up 3.85% to trade at $0.04558, while the token maintained a steady intraday uptrend after the exploit was disclosed. The price action showed limited immediate selling pressure, even as Axelar confirmed that approximately $4.67 million worth of tokens had been taken.
Axelar said the incident affected assets bridged over IBC to Secret Network from the Axelar chain. The team said early information showed the issue was isolated to the Secret-side ICS-20 smart contract used in the Cosmos IBC connection between Secret and Axelar.
Axelar Says Core Protocol Was Not Affected
Axelar said its emergency committee disabled the Secret and Secret-SNIP connections after identifying the incident. The team also said it was contacting relevant exchanges and law enforcement agencies as part of its response.
According to Axelar, the incident was limited to assets on Secret that had been bridged over IBC from Axelar. The company said no other IBC connections, Secret tokens, or Axelar integrations appeared to be affected at the time of its statement.
Axelar also said its core protocol was not affected by the exploit. The team is preparing a detailed post-mortem to explain the cause of the incident, the affected assets, and the response measures taken after detection.
Secret Network is a privacy-focused blockchain designed for encrypted smart contracts, where transaction data can remain private while code remains verifiable on-chain. Its integration with Axelar allows cross-chain communication for applications involving confidential DeFi activity, private NFT transfers, and anonymous governance.
Exploit Adds to June Crypto Security Incidents
The Secret Network and Axelar-linked incident adds to a series of reported crypto security cases in June 2026. The exploit follows several separate breaches and disclosures involving decentralized identity systems, privacy networks, and bridge infrastructure.
On June 8, Humanity Protocol, as we reported, suffered a $36 million breach after a developer’s computer was compromised by malware disguised as a phishing email. Security researchers said attackers obtained private keys and used them to steal and mint more than 193 million Humanity tokens.
Zcash also disclosed a critical soundness flaw in its Orchard shielded pool on June 4. The flaw had reportedly remained undetected for more than four years and created a risk of undetectable token counterfeiting before developers issued an emergency hard fork.
Aztec Network’s legacy Private Rollup Bridge also suffered two infrastructure breaches within a week, with attackers reportedly using a fake rollup proof exploit to drain 1,158 ETH, 150,000 DAI, and 0.47 renBTC. These events have kept bridge security and smart contract review in focus across the crypto market.
AXL Holds Gains After Incident Disclosure
AXL’s price increase stood out because bridge-related exploits often create immediate market concern around affected projects. In this case, the token traded higher after Axelar stated that the core protocol and other integrations were not affected.
Consequently, the token’s performance suggests that traders distinguished between Axelar’s main network infrastructure and the Secret-side smart contract involved in the incident.
The broader security environment remains under regulatory and law enforcement attention. In an earlier post today, FBI Director Kash Patel said crypto fraudsters would be pursued by federal authorities, reflecting continued law enforcement focus on scams, hacks, and digital asset theft.
Axelar’s next update is expected to provide more details through a formal post-mortem. The report will be watched for information on the exact contract issue, affected token flows, recovery options, and whether additional safeguards will be added to IBC-linked bridge connections.
