Mantra is undertaking a massive burn of om to restore trust after a 90% price crash.

Mantra, the real asset tokenization platform, is initiating one of the largest token burn mechanisms in its history. The project plans to burn 300 million units of om, valued at approximately $160 million — a radical measure aimed at restoring market stability and strengthening the staking economy after a catastrophic 90% price drop in April of last year.

Plan to Burn 300 Million om Tokens: Restarting the Staking Economy

The officially announced initiative involves burning up to 16.5% of the total om token supply. This action is intended to increase staking rewards, making the platform more attractive to long-term holders. The bond rate will decrease from 31.47% to 25.30%, which should technically improve the parameters of the project’s economic model.

The burn includes a confirmed tranche of 150 million om (approximately $80 million USD) owned by founder John Patrick Mallin, as well as additional token reserves from “ecosystem partners,” details of which have not been fully disclosed. The process requires cancellation of the placement and is expected to be completed by April 29, when the tokens will be transferred to the network’s burn address.

How the 90% om Crash Exposed Market Vulnerabilities to Aggressive Liquidations

The extreme price drop occurred on April 13 of last year, when om lost 90% of its value in less than a few hours. The loss in value exceeded $5 billion, which was a shock even in the volatile crypto market. The Mantra team linked the crash to “uncontrolled liquidations” on major centralized exchanges, where traders hurried to close positions amid speculative pressure.

This incident revealed a deeper market issue: the risk arising from using aggressive leverage during volatile price movements. In the 24 hours leading up to the major event, over $625 million in liquidated positions were recorded across the entire cryptocurrency market, with losses distributed among long and short positions of thousands of traders.

The Role of John Mallin: Founder Willing to Sacrifice Half of His om to Save the Project

The most symbolic aspect of the initiative is the founder’s personal sacrifice. John Patrick Mallin decided to burn 150 million om from his personal team token allocation received at the network launch in October 2024. This accounts for roughly half of his om share and demonstrates leadership’s willingness to share responsibility for restoring investor trust.

The official team statement read: “The process of withdrawing 150 million tokens from the ‘Team’ and ‘CORE participants’ sections has already begun.” Such an approach is often seen by the market as a positive signal — a demonstration that the project’s leadership believes in the platform’s long-term future and is willing to make material sacrifices.

Real Asset Tokenization Strategy: Why Mantra Believes in Recovery

Despite recent shocks, the fundamental value proposition of Mantra remains unchanged. The platform allows users to tokenize real assets (RWA), such as real estate, commodities, and other tangible valuables, transforming them into digital instruments suitable for the crypto ecosystem. The om token facilitates transactions and management of these assets.

In January this year, Mantra entered into a strategic partnership with DAMAC Group, the largest conglomerate from the United Arab Emirates. The agreement involves tokenizing assets worth $1 billion USD, including premium real estate, hospitality, and data centers. This initiative initially contributed to an increase in om’s price and highlights the potential application of the technology in the real economy sector.

Market Remains Skeptical: Why om’s Decline Continued Despite the Burn

Despite the ambitious recovery plan, the immediate market reaction was disappointing. After the announcement of the large-scale burn, the token’s price fell an additional 3.3% over 24 hours, reflecting a noticeable decline in investor confidence. This paradox — a price decrease following a positive announcement — prompts reflection on market sentiment and long-term holders’ susceptibility to recovery mechanisms.

The history of om shows contrasting movements. In 2024, the token was one of the biggest beneficiaries of the market, rising over 400% amid optimism about the future of the RWA ecosystem. However, the April crisis reversed this trend, and the recovery has been slow.

As of the latest update, the om price is $0.07 with a circulating supply of 1.16 billion tokens and a total market cap of approximately $77.91 million — a significant drop from last year’s peaks. This underscores the scale of the challenge facing Mantra in restoring its reputation and attracting new capital into the ecosystem.

The token burn strategy is a desperate but logical attempt to reframe the platform’s economic incentives. However, the success of this initiative will depend not only on reducing supply but also on restoring fundamental trust in the project’s governance mechanisms and its ability to deliver concrete RWA solutions amid macroeconomic uncertainty and ongoing crypto sector fluctuations.