Did Mantra Just Soft-Rug the Market?

This weekend, the crypto market witnessed one of the most dramatic flash crashes in recent DeFi history: Mantra's OM token plunged 90%, wiping over $5 billion in market cap and triggering $75 million in liquidations—most of which hit unsuspecting retail traders.

And just as fast? OM rebounded over 200%.

At first glance, this looks like another chaotic volatility spike. But zoom in, and something doesn’t add up:

• Large amounts of OM were moved to centralized exchanges right before the crash
• The co-founder blamed "reckless forced closures" from exchanges
• A wallet was quickly posted to "prove" the team didn't dump

All of this sounds eerily familiar. It mirrors the early days of the LUNA crash, where algorithmic design flaws were only part of the story—and insider positioning played a quiet but powerful role.

But here's the difference: Mantra actually has utility.

OM powers a compliance-ready Layer 1 blockchain aimed at real-world asset (RWA) tokenization. It's also used for:

• Governance and protocol votes
• Staking and yield strategies
• Platform access and reduced fees
• Collateral and incentive mechanisms

In short: it’s not a meme coin. It’s a structured, evolving DeFi infrastructure project.

So why the crash?

Some analysts believe this wasn’t a failure—it was a strategic repositioning. Flush out overleveraged positions. Tank the price. Reaccumulate cheap.

In fact, OM’s total supply was doubled in late 2024, shifting toward an uncapped, inflationary model—raising new concerns about long-term sustainability.

Was this simply a high-leverage liquidation event… or was it orchestrated?

📉 This could either be a new long-term accumulation zone... or a bull trap wrapped in utility.

We explore both sides—and what’s likely to come next—in the Premium breakdown.

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