Mango Markets: Project Update

Currently Interesting

Get Caught Up

• Hyperliquid's permissionless perp markets: Hyperliquid's HIP-3 upgrade now allows anyone to deploy perpetual futures markets by staking $20 million worth of HYPE tokens, removing the need for committee approval 2. The design explicitly draws lessons from past exploits like Mango Markets and GMX, using large stakes, validator slashing, and risk caps as layered safeguards 2. This matters because it represents the industry's attempt to build exploit-resistant infrastructure by design rather than relying on after-the-fact legal recourse.
• The Code Is Law documentary: Released on October 28, 2025, the film examines the moral and legal questions raised by DeFi hacks, featuring Eisenberg's Mango Markets case as a key example of the "code is law" defense 1. It highlights how Eisenberg publicly claimed his actions were within protocol rules, yet was later charged with market manipulation 1. The documentary's release keeps the Mango Markets saga in the public conversation and underscores the unresolved legal questions around smart contract exploits.
• Ongoing legal ambiguity in DeFi enforcement: The documentary and continued industry discussion reflect the fact that courts remain divided on how to apply traditional fraud laws to permissionless protocols 1. This ambiguity is directly relevant to Mango Markets, whose shutdown was driven in part by the legal fallout from the 2022 exploit and subsequent SEC settlement.

Biggest Stories of 2025

• October 28, 2025 — The Code Is Law documentary premiered on Amazon Prime Video, featuring Avi Eisenberg's Mango Markets exploit as a central case study in the debate over whether code can serve as law in DeFi 1.
• May 27, 2025 — A New York judge's decision to vacate Eisenberg's fraud convictions was characterized as a victory for the "code is law" principle, with the court finding Mango's self-executing protocol lacked terms that criminalized his actions 3.
• May 26, 2025 — Analysis of the overturned conviction highlighted that the ruling cited vague platform rules and a lack of evidence that users understood borrowing implied an obligation to repay, underscoring legal uncertainties in DeFi 4.
• May 24, 2025 — A U.S. judge overturned Eisenberg's fraud convictions, citing improper venue since he operated from Puerto Rico and had no direct ties to New York, and acquitted him of three charges including wire fraud 5. Separate coverage noted the judge dismissed commodities fraud and market manipulation charges due to insufficient evidence and the platform's decentralized, permissionless nature 678.
• May 1, 2025 — Avraham "Avi" Eisenberg was sentenced to just over four years (52 months) in prison for possessing child sexual abuse material, a charge unrelated to the Mango Markets exploit 91011. He was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release with mandatory device monitoring 1011.
• February 28, 2025 — Mango Network launched the "Mango OG Sprint Plan #004 Zealy Special Edition," a community-building event running through March 16 with a $3,000 prize pool and anti-Sybil mechanisms 12.
• January 31, 2025 — Mango Network's "OG Sprint Plan #003: Regrow" highlighted user growth from 100,000 to 500,000 as part of its Layer-1 blockchain expansion efforts 13.
• January 14, 2025 — Mango DAO voted to shut down the Mango Markets trading platform following the SEC settlement, which required destruction of the MNGO governance token and a significant fine 14. The platform advised users to close outstanding positions by January 13, with total value locked having plummeted to around $6 million — a 97% decrease from its peak of $210 million in November 2021 15.
• January 12, 2025 — Mango Markets announced it was winding down operations following the SEC settlement requiring destruction and delisting of its MNGO tokens, with borrowing becoming economically unviable due to changes in interest rates and collateral requirements 16. The wind-down followed the October 2022 exploit in which Eisenberg drained $110 million by manipulating the MNGO token price, and internal DAO conflicts in late 2024 over locked MNGO tokens from the FTX estate 16.
• January 7, 2025 — Mango Network launched "OG Sprint Plan #002: When the Fruit Ripe," a community expansion initiative running through January 21 with USDT rewards and an anti-Sybil mechanism 17.