★ Sudden admin-rescue/ACL change without discussion
Meteora's assessment for RD-F-123 — scored yellow on the v1.7.0 rubric. The evidence below is the curator's reasoning for this score.
Evidence summary #
[STAR CRITICAL] The Hurlock v. Kelsier amended complaint (SDNY 1:25-cv-03891, filed 2025-04-19, amended 2025-07-29) alleges defendants 'retained hidden upgrade authority over Meteora smart contracts through a multisig wallet under their exclusive control, allowing them to manipulate pools and freeze trading while portraying the system as decentralized.' [?] This is the insider-admin-use-without-disclosure pattern F123 captures. Facts confirmed: (1) DLMM upgrade authority is Squads v3 PDA (JADaUV8k...) with no on-chain timelock; (2) Ben Chow's resignation was announced unilaterally by co-founder Meow via X on 2025-02-18, not via a governance proposal on proposals.meteora.ag; (3) no corresponding governance forum discussion at proposals.meteora.ag was identified for the alleged M3M3 pool-freeze events. Underlying admin-use-acts are alleged [?] in the complaint and not confirmed by independent on-chain analysis in this assessment pass. Graded yellow: litigation allegation is documented an
Sources #
- URLM3M3 and LIBRA Token Lawsuit: Hurlock v. Kelsier | Burwick LawBurwick Law case page — Hurlock v. Kelsier amended complaint alleging hidden upgrade authority use by Meteora/Chow defendantsretrieved 2026-05-16
- Hurlock v. Kelsier Ventures et al 1:2025cv03891 | JustiaJustia docket confirming SDNY class action case number and parties including Benjamin Chow and Meteoraretrieved 2026-05-16
- Hurlock v. Kelsier Ventures, 1:25-cv-03891 | CourtListenerCourtListener docket Hurlock v. Kelsier Ventures 1:25-cv-03891 — confirming SDNY filing date 2025-04-19 and amended complaintretrieved 2026-05-16
- meow (@weremeow) X post — Ben Chow resignation announcementMeow X post 2025-02-18 — co-founder resignation announced via X without preceding governance forum proposal, confirming absence of formal discussion for a material operational changeretrieved 2026-05-16
Methodology #
Determine whether any admin-rescue function or ACL change was committed to the repo or executed on-chain without corresponding public discussion in issues, PRs, or governance forum.
See the full factor methodology and distribution across all protocols →