Crypto bridge hacks hit 14 protocols, drain $340.7mln in May

A PeckShieldAlert report shows 14 major cross‑chain bridge exploits in May that led to $340.7 million stolen, undermining confidence in interoperability solutions. Notable incidents included the Verus‑Ethereum Bridge ($11.4m) and THORChain (~$10m). The article contrasts May’s losses with April’s far larger toll — DeFiLlama records ~$634.85m compromised in April, driven by the KelpDAO/LayerZero exploit (~$292m on April 18) — and notes year‑to‑date losses approaching $770m. The piece warns that message‑passing, validators/relayers and multi‑contract architectures expand attack surfaces, and recommends decentralized validation, cryptographic verification, audits and reducing funds held in bridge contracts to mitigate risk. Overall impact: increased security concerns and downside pressure on cross‑chain protocol trust and related crypto markets.