Mantra's OM Token Crashes 90%, Erasing $540M from Market Cap

On April 13, 2025, Mantra’s OM token faced a devastating crash, plummeting from $6.35 to just $0.37 in a matter of hours. This 90% drop erased over $5.4 billion from the token’s market cap

In a rapid and staggering turn of events, Mantra's OM token has crashed by a massive 90% in just 12 hours, erasing a staggering $5.4 billion from its market cap. The token, which had been trading at $6.35 at midnight on April 12, plummeted to just $0.37 by noon on April 13, leaving traders and crypto enthusiasts in disbelief.

The scale and speed of the fall are stirring panic across the crypto community, drawing comparisons to infamous disasters like the Terra LUNA collapse and FTX implosion. However, Mantra's CEO, John Patrick Mullin, has blamed "reckless forced liquidations" by centralized exchanges during periods of low liquidity. He remains adamant that no wrongdoing was committed by the Mantra team or major investors.

Despite his assertions, skepticism is brewing online, fueled by conspiracy theories and allegations of insider trading. Some users have pointed out suspicious transfers of 43.6 million OM tokens—worth approximately $227 million—to large exchanges from 17 different wallets before the crash.

Among the wallets, two are linked to Laser Digital, a major investor in Mantra. Both Laser Digital and another backer, Shorooq Partners, have denied selling any tokens, but the timing of the transfers has raised eyebrows.

Further fueling the fear and uncertainty, Mantra's official Telegram channel has vanished without a trace, prompting panicked users to fear a rug pull. However, Mullin has stated that the disappearance of the channel was unintentional.

By April 15, OM had recovered slightly to $0.73, but it remains more than 85% below its pre-crash level. The Mantra team is now working on a recovery plan that includes token buybacks and potential token burns.

While OM's crash has shaken confidence, XRP is emerging as a beacon of optimism amid market uncertainty. Data from Santiment shows XRP gaining momentum in the race for spot crypto ETF approval in the U.S.

On April 8, Teucrium launched the first U.S.-based XRP ETF under the ticker XXRP. Although it's not a true spot ETF, the leveraged fund aims to mirror double the daily return of XRP using swaps and European ETPs.

Santiment highlights that XRP currently leads the ETF filing race with 10 active applications. In contrast, Solana has five, while Litecoin and Dogecoin each have three. Prominent asset managers like Grayscale, Bitwise, and VanEck are among the applicants. The SEC is expected to make a critical decision on Grayscale's application by May 22.

A comparison of XRP and Solana shows diverging trajectories. Solana's U.S. market share has dipped from 30% in 2022 to 16%, while XRP's presence has been steadily increasing. However, in terms of trading and social volume, XRP hasn't yet significantly outpaced Solana.

Santiment reports that overall market sentiment is deeply divided. The OM collapse has rattled investor trust just as confidence was beginning to rebuild. Meanwhile, XRP's ETF momentum offers a sliver of hope.

Most cryptocurrencies are still trading below their recent highs. Santiment's MVRV analysis shows many tokens remaining in negative return territory, suggesting ongoing investor caution.

All eyes now turn to the next Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on May 7, which could play a decisive role in shaping crypto's short-term future. As the dust settles on the OM crash and the XRP ETF race heats up, the coming weeks will be pivotal in determining the direction of the crypto market.

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