NIGHT, the token tied to Cardano's Midnight network, crashed over 43% to an all-time low of $0.01524 on Monday. The drop followed the movement of roughly 290 million tokens — about 2% of supply — from a Wanchain Cardano-to-BNB bridge contract. The Midnight Foundation confirmed the protocol itself wasn't compromised; the Midnight blockchain, validator network, and core infrastructure all kept running normally.
What actually happened
On-chain researcher Paul tracked the action. Between 14:46 and 14:55 UTC, 515 million NIGHT tokens were withdrawn from the Wanchain Cardano-side bridge lock address. Of those, 290 million were sold on decentralized exchanges. Another 200 million were transferred to a different wallet, creating an unsold overhang that still hangs over the market. The total NIGHT supply didn't change — no new tokens were minted. This wasn't a hack of the Midnight network itself, but a movement of tokens from a bridge contract that spooked the market.
Bridge infrastructure under scrutiny
Cardano co-founder Charles Hoskinson pointed the finger at Wanchain's bridge architecture. He said the problem came from one of four components in that bridge, and called bridge infrastructure a weak point in crypto due to trust assumptions. Hoskinson also warned that AI tools can now find flaws quickly, echoing earlier warnings from OpenZeppelin co-founder Manuel Aráoz and analyst DeFi Investor about AI-powered attacks making DeFi risky. The incident is a fresh reminder that bridges remain a fragile link in the chain.
Price action and recovery
Before the plunge, NIGHT traded as high as $0.026. After hitting the all-time low, it recovered about 28% but was still down 27% in 24 hours and 34% lower than a week ago. The timing isn't great for a token that's still finding its footing. The unsold 200 million NIGHT tokens sitting in that other wallet remain an overhang on the market. Until that position is clarified — whether it's a whale, an exchange, or something else — traders will be watching closely.
