Mantra’s OM Token Plummets 99% – OKX Blamed for the Fallout

Since the OM token from Mantra experienced a staggering drop of over 99% in April, the project's team and the crypto exchange OKX have been engaged in a blame game that has affected investors.

Key Takeaways

Mantra’s OM token experienced a significant drop of over 99% in value, leading to a tense blame game between its team and OKX.
OKX accused Mantra of manipulating the token price by borrowing USDT and using OM as collateral.
Many community members questioned OKX's interest in the situation and the motives behind their actions.
Mantra is transitioning to a new Layer 1 protocol and changing its governance token to MANTRA by January 2026.
Despite the challenges, there are more than 36,000 OM holders, and new initiatives like a stablecoin are in the works.

Mantra’s OM Token Plummets 99% – OKX Blamed for the Fallout

In a recent announcement, OKX accused the Mantra team of borrowing significant amounts of USDT, using OM as collateral, which allegedly inflated the token's price. Following this price manipulation, the exchange’s risk management team had to freeze accounts and liquidate a portion of Mantra [OM] after a minor price drop, leading to a significant sell-off across other trading platforms. OKX stated, “There has been no explanation of where those unusually large quantities of OM originated, nor why these groups of individuals held and controlled such a substantial portion of the token supply.”

Mantra

Source: X

The exchange dismissed the accusations from the Mantra team as a “misleading narrative.”

Understanding Public Reactions to OM’s Price Drop

Many users, including Park Yong, questioned OKX's motives, suggesting, “If OKX genuinely viewed $OM as a scam, the response would be simple: delist it, allow withdrawals, and move on.” Yong further added, “Is this really about user protection, or is there internal exposure related to $OM that became uncomfortable once migration timelines came into play?”

For those unfamiliar, Mantra focuses on tokenization and is transitioning to a fully developed Layer 1 (L2) system from Ethereum. This shift involves changing its ERC-20 governance token, OM, into MANTRA. This migration is expected to be completed by January 15, 2026.

With the upcoming migration, OKX has reached out to the Mantra team to assist with the conversion of its OM holdings. Although OKX mentioned that legal actions are in progress, Mantra's CEO JP Mullin denied any such actions, stating, “Neither MANTRA nor myself have any ongoing litigation or legal actions against OKX. This is between them and other larger traders/investors of OM.”

Mantra

Source: X

Mantra’s Significant Gain and Subsequent Loss

During the late 2024 rally, extending into February 2025, OM saw a remarkable 600% gain. Despite a drop in early 2025 due to tariff pressures, the token experienced a further decline of over 80% after OKX froze the team’s accounts amid manipulation allegations.

Mantra

Source: OM price performance (TradingView)

As of this writing, OM is trading at $0.07 and has been facing strong bearish sentiment in the Futures market, according to CoinGlass. However, aside from the price fluctuations, the platform is actively working on new developments, including the launch of a stablecoin, MantraUSD.

Despite the turmoil, there remain over 36,000 OM token holders ahead of the migration. It will be intriguing to see if the migration can help the project overcome the current issues stemming from the OKX and project team fallout.

Final Thoughts

The situation surrounding the OM token serves as a cautionary tale about the dynamics within the cryptocurrency space. As the Mantra project moves forward with its plans, the outcome of the migration and the ongoing disputes with OKX will be crucial for its future.