Community Responds to Mantra's CEO Token Burn Plan, 80% Support Shows Trust

After suffering a devastating 90% price crash on April 13, 2025, the Mantra ecosystem has been struggling to rebuild trust among its community and investors. 

In a bold move to restore confidence, John Patrick Mullin, the CEO and founder of Mantra, proposed burning 150 million OM tokens—his personal allocation—worth approximately $82 million at current market prices. 

This unprecedented act of personal sacrifice has received overwhelming support from the community, signaling renewed optimism in the project’s future. But will it be enough to drive a real recovery?

The OM Token Crash and Fallout

On April 13, 2025, Mantra’s native token, OM, plummeted nearly 90% in value due to what is now believed to be reckless liquidations. The crash wiped out more than $5 billion in market capitalization, sending shockwaves across the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector. 

Rumors of coordinated sell-offs and internal mismanagement began to circulate, with some community members accusing the Mantra team of foul play—claims that have been publicly denied by both Mullin and major investor Laser Digital.

The crash has left OM hovering at around $0.50, and although some short-lived spikes have occurred, sustained recovery has yet to take root.

Read also: Can OM Recover? Looking at Possibilities from the Team's Current Plan

The Token Burn Proposal: A Path to Redemption

In a surprising and dramatic step, CEO John Patrick Mullin announced he would burn 150 million OM tokens, representing a significant portion of his holdings. 

This decision was aimed at restoring faith in the project and sending a clear message to the community that the leadership remains committed to long-term growth and transparency.

To gauge community support, Mullin launched an X (formerly Twitter) poll, which garnered over 8,900 votes, with more than 81% backing the proposal. 

The tokens are currently being unstaked and are scheduled to be permanently destroyed by April 29, 2025, by sending them to Mantra’s official burn address.

Beyond One Man: A Larger Ecosystem Burn in the Works

In addition to Mullin’s personal burn, Mantra is in discussions with ecosystem partners to potentially initiate a second phase of token incineration—another 150 million OM tokens. 

If both burns proceed, a total of 300 million OM tokens—approximately 16.5% of the total 1.817 billion supply—will be removed from circulation.

This significant reduction could have a meaningful impact on OM tokenomics, potentially laying the groundwork for a sustainable price recovery.

Read also: Taking a Look at Mantra's New Dashboard: A Place to Keep Track of OM

Tokenomics Shift: Supply, Staking, and Sentiment

If the burns are executed as planned, the OM supply would shrink to around 1.517 billion tokens. This will also reduce the bonded ratio (the ratio of staked tokens to total supply) from 31.47% to 25.30%. 

Additionally, staked tokens will drop from 571.8 million to 421.8 million, resulting in an increase in staking rewards (APR) for those who continue to hold and stake OM.

This could encourage long-term holding and reduce sell pressure, thereby stabilizing OM’s market performance. Despite these promising metrics, OM’s price has barely moved since the announcement—currently trading around $0.5396, with only a modest 0.1% increase in the past 24 hours.

Some analysts believe that the ongoing unstaking process and general market skepticism are preventing a more immediate price rebound.

Market Outlook: Recovery or Roadblock?

Although the token burn proposal has brought temporary relief and a morale boost, the OM market remains in a fragile state. With 45% of OM supply still locked and about 4 million OM tokens unlocking every few weeks, the possibility of renewed sell pressure remains high.

The psychological impact of the burn may not fully materialize until the action is completed and reflected transparently on-chain. 

Market watchers are cautious, noting that external factors and investor confidence will play a larger role in determining whether OM can recover its pre-crash value levels.

In the long term, however, the strategic reduction in supply coupled with higher staking rewards could positively affect the OM price, particularly if accompanied by stronger utility and project development.

FAQ

1. What is Mantra?

Mantra is a Layer-1 blockchain platform focused on real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and DeFi applications. Its native token is OM.

2. Why is the OM token burn significant?

The token burn, led by CEO John Patrick Mullin, aims to restore community trust and reduce the overall token supply, potentially driving a more favorable supply-demand dynamic.

3. How many tokens are being burned?

Mullin has proposed to burn 150 million OM tokens, and there are plans to potentially burn another 150 million in collaboration with ecosystem partners—totaling 300 million OM or 16.5% of the total supply.

4. When will the burn happen?

The first phase of the burn is expected to be completed by April 29, 2025, as the tokens are currently being unstaked and prepared for transfer to a burn address.

5. Will the token burn impact OM’s price?

While token burns can reduce supply and improve tokenomics, market reaction has been muted so far. Long-term effects will depend on market sentiment, project execution, and external economic conditions.