Sui-native hardware wallet project Suiball has announced it will shut down and refund all pre-order customers after the Sui Foundation reportedly decided that supporting the project carried too much security risk.
Summary
- Suiball announced it will shut down after the Sui Foundation decided that backing the hardware wallet project carried too much security risk following recent industry attacks.
- The project had completed development and entered manufacturing, with its first batch of devices ready for shipment before the decision to close operations.
- Around 80% of preorders were placed on chain, and those customers will receive automatic USDC refunds within the next week, while credit card buyers must provide a Sui wallet address.
- The shutdown follows an October announcement in which Suiball postponed deliveries for additional security audits after discussions with Mysten Labs and the Sui Network team.
In a Nov. 11 announcement on X, the team said the decision followed a series of attacks targeting hardware wallets across the cryptocurrency industry, despite Suiball having completed development and entered manufacturing.
The company was preparing to ship its first batch of devices when the decision was made, ending a project that had spent years developing a hardware wallet specifically designed for the Sui blockchain.
Suiball said the Sui Foundation had determined that the risks associated with backing such a product were currently too high. The team accepted the decision, citing the foundation’s focus on protecting users and the ecosystem.
“After years of intense development and a finished, working product, it’s hard to say that we have to close Suiball down,” the team wrote.
Suiball to refund customers in USDC
As a part of the announced refund plan, customers who placed orders directly on-chain will receive their money back in USDC through an automatic airdrop.
These purchases account for approximately 80% of all pre-orders, according to Suiball. Refunds will be sent to the wallets holding the soulbound NFTs issued when customers reserved their devices.
Eligible customers will not need to submit a claim or complete any additional steps, with the first round of payments scheduled within the next week.
Once the addresses have been collected, the company will conduct a second USDC airdrop to settle the remaining orders.
The team warned customers that it would never request seed phrases, private keys or additional payments during the refund process. Customers were instructed to respond only to emails from [email protected].
Suiball has promised to permanently delete customer information collected for device deliveries, including names, email addresses, phone numbers and shipping details, once refunds have been completed.
The company will formally cease operations after the refund process is finished.
Suiball shutdown follows earlier security audit delays
The closure comes less than a month after Suiball had already postponed shipments to conduct further security testing.
On Oct. 21, Suiball’s founder announced on X that the project was delaying deliveries following discussions with Mysten Labs and the Sui Network team.
At the time, the founder said the company had agreed to commission additional independent security audits before releasing the devices, with the process expected to take several months.
“We’d rather ship late than ship anything we haven’t tested against today’s threats,” the founder said.
The October announcement still indicated that customers would eventually receive their devices after the audits were completed. The November decision has instead brought the project to an end before its first shipment.
Suiball was introduced at SuiFest in Singapore in October 2025 as a hardware wallet built specifically for the network.
Its planned features included native support for Sui assets, Bitcoin compatibility, clear signing and integration with Slush, Sui’s wallet platform.
The product was initially promoted with a discounted pre-order price of $149 against a listed retail price of $229.
Hardware wallet security incidents have raised concerns
The decision follows several security incidents involving established hardware wallet manufacturers in recent months.
In October, hardware wallet manufacturer Keystone confirmed a security breach that exposed customer names, home addresses and purchase information following unauthorized access to its website.
Although private keys and recovery phrases were not compromised, the incident exposed sensitive delivery information belonging to hardware wallet buyers.
Security concerns continued when Trezor warned customers about a suspected malicious implant in a Safe 5 device purchased through former reseller CryptoBilis.
The suspected modification involved an additional circuit board and cellular component that could potentially transmit recovery phrases displayed on the device.
Earlier in August, BitBox patched two serious vulnerabilities affecting its BitBox02 and BitBox02 Nova devices, including a flaw that could have permitted malicious firmware installation.
The company reported no known exploitation of those vulnerabilities.
Suiball has not identified which particular incidents influenced the Sui Foundation’s decision to withdraw its backing.
