Boltz, a non-custodial bridge used to swap between Bitcoin mainchain, the Lightning Network and Liquid, has halted its service indefinitely after what it described as months of automated, AI-assisted attacks on its infrastructure.
The company first took swap services offline at 5:54 a.m. ET on Aug. 3 without explanation. About six hours later, it said the suspension would remain in place until further notice, arguing that repeated probing and several exploits had outpaced the team’s ability to identify and patch issues.
Service shutdown follows months of pressure
In its statement, Boltz said it had seen a steady increase in automated attempts to probe its systems over recent months. The team said it had also dealt with several exploits during that period, adding that each incident was contained but that the broader pattern had become difficult for a team of its size to manage.
Boltz said the pressure worsened in recent days, when it appeared to be facing active targeting from multiple resourceful groups. After reviewing its own security scans, the company said it could no longer responsibly turn swaps back on.
The team framed the situation as part of a broader shift for Bitcoin services built on open-source software, saying the changes require careful analysis and warning users not to expect swaps to resume soon.
Wallet swap rails are affected
The outage cuts off the swap infrastructure used for Lightning and Liquid payments in wallets including Bull Bitcoin and Aqua. Boltz is one of the services that helps route those conversions across Bitcoin-related networks.
The suspension also gives a concrete example of a concern that has been growing among open-source developers: smaller teams maintaining public code while attackers increasingly use AI-based tools to test for weaknesses more quickly.
Boltz says users did not lose funds
Boltz said the exploits resulted in losses for the company, not for customers. It attributed that to its atomic swap architecture, which it said keeps users in control of their coins throughout the swap process.
The company stated explicitly that no user funds were ever at risk. It also noted that, as a fully bootstrapped business, it absorbed the financial impact itself.
Refunds remain available while swaps stay offline
Although swap execution has been suspended, Boltz said its API remains online to handle cooperative refunds for swaps that were already in flight when the service stopped. The team also said unilateral refunds can still be completed without Boltz infrastructure.
The disclosure also changes the context around an Aug. 1 notice in which Boltz disabled EVM-based swaps involving USDT, USDC, TBTC, WBTC and RBTC. At that time, the company cited a bug in its EVM integration and said Lightning, Liquid and onchain Bitcoin swaps were still operating normally. Two days later, those remaining swap services were shut down as well.
Source: thedefiant.io