In a recent Ask Me Anything (AMA) session hosted by Cointelegraph, John Mullin, CEO of Mantra, addressed pressing concerns regarding the sharp decline of the OM token. On April 14, Mullin reassured the community that efforts are underway to support the recovery of the Mantra (OM) token, although he noted that details concerning token buybacks and potential burns are still under development.
“We’re still in the early stages of putting together this plan for potential buyback of tokens,” Mullin stated, emphasizing that recovering the OM token is currently Mantra’s “preeminent and primary concern.” As of the session, the OM token was trading at $0.73, slightly higher than its post-collapse low of $0.52 recorded on April 13.
Addressing Allegations Against Mantra
Mullin also took the opportunity to dispel rumors, particularly those alleging that key investors dumped the OM token prior to its collapse. He described these accusations as “baseless” and highlighted that a recent community transparency report clearly details the distribution of wallets holding the OM token. “You have the Ethereum side and you have the mainnet side,” he explained, indicating that the Ethereum-based token is hard capped and has been in circulation since August 2020.
Furthermore, he pointed out that the largest holder of the OM token on exchanges is Binance, a fact readily verifiable through Etherscan records. Currently, the top wallet is held by crypto exchange OKX, controlling about 14% of the circulating supply.
The Future of Mantra’s Ecosystem Fund
Mullin also outlined the goals of the recently launched Mantra Ecosystem Fund (MEF), a $109-million initiative born from collaborations with strategic investors including Laser Digital and Shorooq. The fund, according to Mullin, does not consist solely of OM tokens, but includes diverse dollar commitments and contributions. “We’ll continue to invest and support the ecosystem as part of this recovery plan,” he assured.
The End of the Staking Program on Binance
In discussing transaction dynamics, Mullin confirmed that the recent 38-million-OM transaction to the Binance cold wallet was related to the conclusion of a staking program on Binance. He clarified, “So, they just returned them because the staking program ended.” He further informed listeners that many transactions that garnered community attention following the crash were linked to collateral by an unnamed exchange.
Mullin made it clear that Mantra remains dedicated to handling the situation transparently: “We’re not running from anything. This incident is a very unfortunate situation.” As the recovery plans develop, stakeholders will be keenly watching how Mantra navigates these challenges while restoring confidence in the OM token.
