Crypto In America DeFi or Not? The $285M Drift Hack & Franklin Templeton’s Big Crypto Push | Jito Labs & 250 Digital
Apr 3, 2026
Chris Perkins, CEO of 250 Digital and Franklin Crypto lead, brings institutional asset management and crypto strategy experience. Rebecca Reddick, COO and CLO at Jito Labs, provides legal and operational DeFi security expertise. They discuss the $285M Drift hack and security failures. They debate decentralization labeling, permissioned versus permissionless networks, and institutional approaches to custody, compliance, and risk.
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Cybersecurity Is Now DeFi's Primary Weakness
- Rebecca Reddick emphasized cybersecurity as the top remaining vulnerability for DeFi despite fewer smart contract hacks recently.
- She referenced the EU-commissioned IBM Promontory report showing on-chain contract hacks declined while Web2-style cyber and social-engineering attacks persist.
Decentralization Should Be Defined By Effective Control
- The debate over decentralization hinges on control: if an entity can unilaterally affect user assets, it's functionally centralized.
- Rebecca argued projects must honestly label centralized features and accept corresponding guardrails or regulations.
Require Full Cyber Audits Not Just Smart Contract Reviews
- Improve operational security across teams, not just smart contract audits, to reduce takeover risk of multisigs and admin keys.
- Auditors should include general cybersecurity reviews covering who holds keys, passwords, social accounts and organizational ops.