MANTRA’s OM Token Plummets 90% Amid Forced Liquidations

MANTRA’s native token, OM, experienced a dramatic crash over the weekend, losing more than 90% of its value. The token, which was trading at approximately $6.30 on Sunday, plummeted to around $0.52 within hours, causing widespread panic and speculation across crypto markets. The rapid fall led to immediate speculation about possible causes, with some community members pointing to potential insider trading or market manipulation. MANTRA stated on social media that the crash resulted from large-scale forced liquidations, denying any connection to the project’s performance or operations. No external hack or technical failure has been confirmed at this time.

As of Tuesday, April 16, OM is trading at approximately $0.77, representing a 30% increase from its post-crash low. The token saw an intraday high of $0.91, indicating renewed buying interest despite lingering uncertainty. In response to the crisis, MANTRA CEO John Patrick Mullin has taken a proactive stance to rebuild trust among investors and the community. Mullin pledged to burn his entire personal allocation of 772,000 OM tokens, representing 0.25% of the team’s share. “I’m planning to burn all of my team tokens, and when we turn it around, the community and investors can decide if I have earned it back,” Mullin posted on social media platform X. This gesture comes amid questions about the token’s supply distribution. Critics have previously suggested that the team holds too much of the token’s float, potentially making the market more vulnerable during price swings. Mullin has directly addressed these concerns, stating, “We do not manipulate the price, and we’ve been transparent about how the token is structured.” He clarified that all team allocations, totaling 300 million OM (16.88% of the 1.78 billion total supply), remain locked under a vesting schedule until April 2027, with full vesting expected to be completed by October 2029.

The market’s response to Mullin’s announcements has been cautiously positive, with the token price showing recovery in the days following the crash. However, not everyone agrees with the CEO’s approach. Crypto Banter founder expressed concerns about the token burn strategy, suggesting it could harm team motivation in the long run. “This would be a mistake. We want teams that are highly incentivized. Burning the incentive may seem like a good gesture but it will hurt the team motivation long term,” he cautioned. In response, Mullin clarified that his plan would initially apply only to his personal token allocation, with the possibility of allocating tokens to a community-controlled dispersal mechanism as an alternative. Jean Rausis, co-founder of SMARDEX, framed the event as a cautionary tale about newer blockchain projects. “This is a reminder that projects launched with aggressive marketing and no history are often the most fragile when pressure hits,” he commented. Rausis compared MANTRA’s situation to Ethereum’s more stable trajectory, noting that established projects tend to demonstrate more resilience during market turbulence.

The MANTRA team is preparing a comprehensive report to provide transparency about the weekend’s events. “We are preparing a full breakdown of what happened starting early Monday morning in Asia. The data will tell the full story—on-chain and off-chain,” Mullin assured investors. Beyond the report, the team has announced plans for a token buyback program and a reduction in supply to help stabilize the project. These measures are expected to be detailed after the release of the post-mortem analysis. The crypto community continues to watch MANTRA closely as it navigates this challenging period. While the initial recovery is promising, rebuilding long-term trust will depend on the transparency of the forthcoming report and the effectiveness of the announced remedial measures. Market participants remain cautious as they await more information and concrete actions from the MANTRA team in the coming days.