Aave has shown signs of stabilisation after a sharp decline triggered by the KelpDAO exploit that rattled confidence across decentralised finance markets. The token, which had fallen sharply amid panic-driven selling and liquidity stress, is now trading around $92.30, slightly up 0.5%, suggesting that immediate fear-driven pressure has eased. The recovery in sentiment is not coming from a single catalyst but rather a combination of containment efforts by the Aave team and early signs that liquidity conditions, while still fragile, are no longer deteriorating at the same pace. After a wave of withdrawals and forced deleveraging, the market appears to be reassessing whether the worst-case scenario is already priced in. What happened in the KelpDAO exploit The KelpDAO crisis began on April 19 after a vulnerability in KelpDAO’s rsETH bridge was exploited to mint approximately 116,500 unbacked rsETH tokens, valued at nearly $280M–$293M. These tokens were not backed by real assets, but they were still accepted within DeFi lending flows, including Aave’s collateral system. The attacker deposited the fake rsETH into Aave and borrowed real ETH against it, extracting roughly 106,000 ETH in liquidity. This mechanism effectively converted counterfeit collateral into real value, leaving Aave exposed to a growing imbalance in its lending positions. As ETH utilisation on Aave surged to 100%, users were warned that withdrawals could become constrained. That warning triggered panic. Within hours, withdrawals accelerated to more than $5.4B–$6.6B, with a significant portion coming from stablecoins and large holders. Reports also indicated that TRON founder, Justin Sun , was among those who withdrew capital during the turbulence. The direct consequence of this structure was the creation of an estimated $177M–$200M+ in bad debt, meaning Aave was left holding liabilities backed by collateral that had lost its integrity. Aave team move to contain the damage Following the exploit, Aave’s response focused on isolating the risk and preventing further contagion across its lending markets. The most decisive step was the immediate freezing of rsETH-related markets across Aave V3 and V4. https://twitter.com/aave/status/2045593585966252377?s=20 This action removed the compromised asset from active borrowing and halted any additional exposure linked to it. The protocol also pushed ETH-related markets into emergency management mode as utilisation spiked dangerously close to full capacity. By restricting further borrowing activity, Aave aimed to stop the situation from escalating into a full-scale liquidity breakdown. At the same time, the team began assessing whether its Umbrella safety mechanism could absorb part or all of the bad debt. This reserve system is designed to act as a backstop during extreme stress events, and its potential deployment has become a key factor in stabilising sentiment. However, uncertainty remains. Estimates suggest that even after early containment measures, Aave still carries around $196M–$230M in unresolved exposure, depending on how liquidation and recovery processes unfold. Despite these pressures, the containment strategy has prevented a total system breakdown. Liquidity continues to function, albeit under strain, and markets have avoided a complete freeze of lending activity. Market reaction and broader pressure The impact of the KelpDAO exploit extended beyond the immediate incident, coinciding with broader pressure across the crypto market. Geopolitical tensions involving the United States and Iran added to a risk-off environment, weighing on speculative assets. Against this backdrop, Aave’s token saw a sharp reaction, falling nearly 18% in the immediate aftermath as traders repriced risk. Over a longer period, the token remains down more than 17% over the past month and over 35% year on year, indicating that market confidence is still recovering rather than fully restored. At the same time, Aave’s total value locked has declined significantly, falling from levels above $26B to around $17.5B according to DeFiLlama , reflecting sustained outflows even after the initial panic subsided. While the pace of withdrawals has slowed, capital has not yet returned in meaningful size. AAVE price outlook From a technical perspective, Aave is currently trading in a critical range. The price of $92.30 places it just below a key resistance zone at $95.44, while maintaining short-term support around $80.35. Below that, a deeper support level is located near $75, which analysts describe as an institutional demand zone that could be tested if confidence weakens further. A sustained break above $95.44 would signal early recovery momentum, opening the path toward $115.57 and potentially $129.18, where stronger resistance levels are expected. However, failure to hold current support could see the price retest $80, and in a more severe scenario , drift toward $65.58, where historical buying interest previously emerged. In the near term, analysts note that the market remains in a consolidation phase between $132 and $89.78, with direction likely to be determined by how effectively Aave’s safety mechanisms absorb outstanding bad debt and whether liquidity stabilises in the coming weeks. While the general trend remains bearish with the token trading below all exponential moving averages (including the 10-day, 20-day, 50-day, 100-day, and 200-day EMAs), the RSI (14) currently stands at 43.72, which reflects a neutral market stance. This suggests traders are still indecisive, with price action lacking a clear catalyst strong enough to drive a sustained trend in either direction. On the higher timeframe, the weekly RSI is positioned at 30.62, placing Aave in oversold territory based on closed weekly candles. This signals that while selling pressure has been dominant, conditions may be approaching levels where longer-term buyers typically begin to re-emerge. For now, Aave’s recovery remains conditional. The worst of the panic appears to have passed, but the market is still waiting for a clear resolution to the aftermath of the KelpDAO exploit before a sustained bullish trend can fully take hold. The post AAVE price turns bullish as team moves to contain the KelpDAO exploit appeared first on Invezz
