OM Token Tumbles 90%: Crypto Chaos or Exchange Shenanigans? 🚨

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What to know:

  • Mantra’s OM tokens took a nosedive, plummeting 90% faster than a chocolate bar in a room full of children. 🍫
  • The Mantra team blamed the crash on “reckless liquidations” by centralized exchanges, not their own doing. Because, of course, it’s always someone else’s fault. 🙄
  • The sudden drop caused over $50 million in liquidations, leaving traders more confused than a cat in a room full of laser pointers. 🐱‍💻

Crypto traders were reminded of Terra’s LUNA debacle as Mantra’s OM token decided to take a swan dive off the financial cliff. No sudden catalyst, just pure, unadulterated chaos. 🎢

OM went from a respectable $6 to a pitiful 40 cents faster than you can say “What just happened?” The low liquidity hours of the crypto market proved to be the perfect time for this financial fiasco. 🌙

“We want to assure you that MANTRA is fundamentally strong,” the team said in an X post. “Today’s activity was triggered by reckless liquidations, not anything to do with the project. One thing we want to be clear on: this was not our team. We are looking into it and will share more details about what happened as soon as we can.” Translation: “We’re as clueless as you are, but we’re working on it.” 🤷‍♂️

Mantra lets users tokenize real-world assets (RWAs) like real estate and commodities, enabling compliant digital investments in tangible assets. Its OM token facilitates transactions and governance. Because who doesn’t want to own a piece of a skyscraper in Dubai? 🏙️

In January 2025, Mantra partnered with DAMAC Group, a UAE-based conglomerate, to tokenize $1 billion in assets, including real estate, hospitality, and data centers. Because why not? 💰

OM was among the biggest market gainers in 2024, rising more than 400% on relatively low public conversation on crypto-related social media – which intrigued traders and investors alike on the strength of the move. 🚀

Meanwhile, co-founder John Patrick Mullin alleged the movement was likely due to exchanges closing OM positions, which impacted all market exposure. “We have determined that the OM market movements were triggered by reckless forced closures initiated by centralized exchanges on OM account holders,” Mullin said in an X post. “The timing and depth of the crash suggest that a very sudden closure of account positions was initiated without sufficient warning or notice.” In other words, “We got played.” 🎭

Sherpas, OMies, and broader crypto community,

First off, the team and I greatly appreciate the support that we have received over the past several hours, which we believe is a testament to the strong support MANTRA has among its investors and community.

We have determined that…

— JP Mullin (🕉, 🏘️) (@jp_mullin888) April 13, 2025

OM-tracked futures recorded over $50 million in liquidations on the long side, a record figure for the tokens. Open interest slumped from $345 million to just over $130 million, indicating a quick exit for unsettled futures bets. Because when the going gets tough, the tough get going. 🏃‍♂️

Some prominent crypto voices aren’t buying that narrative, however, with scores of dismissive replies under Mullin’s posts. Because in the world of crypto, trust is as rare as a unicorn. 🦄

OKX founder Star Xu added in a response to a separate post that flagged over $220 million in token deposits to exchanges before the price crash. “It’s a big scandal to the whole crypto industry. All of the onchain unlock and deposit data is public, all major exchanges’ collateral and liquidation data can be investigated. OKX will make all of the reports ready,” Xu said. Because transparency is key, right? 🔍

It’s a big scandal to the whole crypto industry. All of the onchain unlock and deposit data is public, all major exchanges’ collateral and liquidation data can be investigated. OKX will make all of the reports ready!

— Star (@star_okx) April 14, 2025

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2025-04-14 08:50