Key Takeaways:
- A Solana sandwich bot, “arsc4jbD,” earned over $30 million through MEV arbitrage in two months.
- The bot operates through multiple wallets, using sophisticated strategies to maximize profits.
A prominent sandwich bot on the Solana blockchain, identified by the wallet initials “arsc4jbD,” has generated over $30 million through Maximum Extractable Value (MEV) arbitrage in just two months.
The bot’s sophisticated operations and substantial earnings have attracted significant attention within the Solana ecosystem.
MEV sandwich attacks involve strategically placing transactions around a victim’s transaction to manipulate prices. This method allows the attacker to profit by purchasing the victim’s tokens at a lower price and selling them at market value within the same block.
On June 15, Ben Coverston, founder of cryptocurrency company MRGN Research, highlighted the activities of the sandwich bot “arsc.”
Coverston revealed that the bot primarily operates from a wallet labeled “9973h…zyWp6,” which appears to be a locked-down, cold storage wallet. This wallet holds over $19 million, including $17 million worth of Solana tokens and $1.1 million in USD Coin.
Another wallet associated with the bot, “Ai4z…xkkt,” is highly active within Solana’s DeFi landscape.
This wallet gradually converts SOL tokens to USDC stablecoin through the Jupiter exchange’s dollar-cost averaging service and holds significant positions in Kamino and various liquid staking tokens (LSTs). It reportedly holds over $9.9 million in total funds, mostly comprising non-SOL tokens.
Coverston also identified a third wallet, “BCbrp…vi58q,” which he believes is arsc’s main SOL bank. This wallet uses multiple signers and tippers to execute sandwich attacks.
The activities of MEV bots like “arsc” have not gone unnoticed by regulatory bodies. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is investigating MEV as a potential form of illegal market abuse under the proposed Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation.
In response to the growing problem of sandwich bots, the Solana Foundation has taken decisive action. The foundation recently removed over 30 validator operators from its delegation program after discovering their involvement in sandwich attacks.
Although these validators remain active on the network, their removal from the delegation program aims to protect Solana users from further exploitation.
