On March 12, 2026, a single crypto trade sent shockwaves through DeFi. A user attempted to swap 50,432,688 aEthUSDT for aEthAAVE through the swap widget on aave.com, which integrates the CoW Swap aggregator. The order executed with a price impact of roughly 99.9%, netting the user only about 327 aEthAAVE, worth approximately $36,425.
How the Trade Unfolded
According to Aave's detailed post-mortem, the swap took place outside the core Aave Protocol. The front-end widget routed the order to CoW Swap solvers, which aggregate liquidity across decentralized exchanges. Because the trade size far exceeded available liquidity for the aEthUSDT/aEthAAVE pair, the solver quoted a price nearly 100% below fair market value. Before execution, the interface displayed a strong warning about extreme price impact and required the user to check a confirmation box. Only after that did the swap button become active.
Fund Flow Through Multiple DEXs
The solver first redeemed aEthUSDT for raw USDT via Aave V3, then sent those USDT into the Uniswap V3 USDT/WETH pool, receiving 17,957.81 WETH. That WETH was routed to SushiSwap to buy roughly 331 AAVE tokens. The solver then deposited those AAVE into Aave V3, minting aEthAAVE. The final delivery was about 327 aEthAAVE worth $36,425. Aave noted that a swap fee of roughly $110,368 was also incurred, and offered to return the funds if the user contacts the platform — but as of the report, the user had not reached out.
Aave Shield: Automatic Block on >25% Price Impact
In response, Aave plans to introduce a new safeguard called Aave Shield. This feature will automatically block any swap with a price impact exceeding 25%. Users can manually disable the protection if they wish to proceed with higher-risk trades. Stani Kulechov, Aave founder, shared the post-mortem on social media, emphasizing that the system adds friction while preserving permissionless access — a design intended to prevent catastrophic slippage like this incident.