Lido DAO Team Address Linked to Token Selling Pressure

Cryptopolitan reports that Lido DAO (LDO) has experienced a significant price drop, falling to $0.87 from a recent peak above $1.16. On-chain data reveals wallets identified as belonging to the Lido DAO team have been actively selling tokens to exchanges. One wallet sent 3.5 million LDO tokens to several centralized exchanges, with 2 million allocated to Binance. The team addresses have transferred a total of 21.31 million LDO to exchanges, valued at approximately $21.26 million.

The selling pressure comes shortly after Lido faced an oracle attack, which required an emergency governance vote to resolve. The protocol remains operational despite these challenges, with Lido maintaining its position as the leading liquid staking service in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.

Market Position and Recent Price Action

Despite recent selling pressure, Lido DAO maintains one of the largest treasuries in the DeFi space. According to CoinMarketCap, LDO currently ranks #88 by market capitalization, with a value of approximately $784 million. The token has declined by over 6% in the past 24 hours, continuing a downward trend that has erased recent gains.

The token selling occurred during a period when the broader cryptocurrency market has been showing mixed performance. Data from CoinGecko indicates that while the global crypto market is up by 0.30% over the past week, Lido DAO has underperformed, declining by 15.60% during the same period.

Recent Oracle Attack and Security Response

The selling pressure follows a security incident that affected Lido just days ago. CryptoNinjas confirms that on May 10, 2025, a hot wallet managed by Chorus One that was used for Lido Oracle operations was compromised. The breach resulted in the theft of 1.46 ETH (approximately $3,800) and prompted an emergency DAO vote to rotate the compromised address.

Lido Finance quickly responded to the incident, declaring the protocol "fully secure and operational" following the breach. The decentralized oracle system, which requires a 5-of-9 quorum for consensus, ensured that the protocol's core functions remained unaffected. According to Blockonomi, the emergency vote to replace the compromised oracle received unanimous support from participating DAO members.

Broader Implications for Liquid Staking and DeFi

The events surrounding Lido DAO highlight both challenges and strengths in the growing liquid staking sector. Despite the oracle attack and selling pressure, Lido remains the dominant liquid staking protocol with over $21.9 billion in total value locked, representing approximately 27% of all staked ETH on the Ethereum network.

Changelly notes that while recent market sentiment toward Lido DAO has been bearish, technical analysis suggests mixed signals across different timeframes. The 50-day moving average on the daily chart is falling, indicating short-term weakness, while the 200-day moving average on the weekly timeframe has been rising since October 2024, potentially supporting a longer-term upward trend.

Price predictions from various analysts diverge significantly, with Coinpedia suggesting LDO could reach as high as $4.92 in 2025, while more conservative estimates from CCN indicate a potential decline toward the $1.50 support level before further downward movement.

What This Means for the Broader Crypto Market

The situation with Lido DAO reflects broader trends in the cryptocurrency industry, particularly regarding security challenges. The oracle attack at Lido is part of a concerning pattern in 2025, with CoinTelegraph reporting that crypto-related hacks have already exceeded $2 billion this year, with April alone accounting for $357 million in losses.

The response from Lido demonstrates how decentralized governance can effectively address security incidents. The rapid initiation of an emergency vote to replace the compromised oracle shows that DAOs can act decisively when needed, providing a real-world test case for governance mechanisms in the DeFi ecosystem.

For investors tracking liquid staking platforms, these events highlight the importance of security infrastructure and treasury management practices. While the selling by team addresses has created short-term price pressure, Lido's position as the market leader in ETH staking remains unchallenged, with stETH continuing to trade at a slight premium above the spot ETH price.

Related Reading on DAO Times

For readers interested in learning more about the tools and infrastructure that power decentralized autonomous organizations like Lido DAO, DAO Times offers a comprehensive guide to DAO tooling. This resource provides an in-depth overview of the various software solutions that enable DAOs to operate effectively, including governance platforms, treasury management systems, and community engagement tools. Understanding these fundamental building blocks can help both newcomers and experienced participants better navigate the evolving landscape of decentralized governance.