Major Mantra Investor Laser Digital Moves 43.6M OM Tokens Before Crash

Blockchain analysts have identified significant token transfers by major Mantra investors in the days leading up to the sharp decline of the OM token, raising concerns about potential insider activity and the stability of the project. Laser Digital, a strategic investor in Mantra, reportedly cashed out large portions of OM tokens before the cryptocurrency's collapse on April 13, according to onchain data.

At least two wallets linked to Laser Digital were among 17 wallets that moved a combined 43.6 million OM tokens, worth about $227 million at the time, to exchanges before the crash. Laser Digital is a digital asset business backed by Nomura and announced a strategic investment in Mantra in May 2024. According to Arkham data, one Laser Digital-linked wallet moved about 6.5 million OM tokens to OKX in seven transactions since April 11, while another wallet sent about 2.2 million OM tokens to Binance in a series of transfers starting April 3. The data also indicates that Laser Digital may have started reducing its OM holdings as early as February, with the wallets linked to the firm reportedly receiving a large portion of their OM from crypto trading firm GSR in 2023.

Laser Digital subsequently denied reports alleging its involvement in the OM volatility, claiming that the referenced wallets did not belong to it. “Laser has no involvement in the recent price collapse of $OM,” Laser said in an X post on April 14. “Assertions circulating on social media that link Laser to ‘investor selling’ are factually incorrect and misleading,” the firm added.

Laser Digital was not the only Mantra investor active before the OM collapse. According to Lookonchain data, a wallet associated with Shane Shin, a founding partner of Shorooq Partners, received 2 million OM tokens hours before the crash. The tokens came from a previously dormant wallet that received 2.75 million OM in April 2024. Both Laser Digital and Shorooq are among the investors in the $109 million Mantra Ecosystem Fund (MEF) announced on April 7. “It is important to note up front that Shorooq (its funds and founding partners) and Mantra (management and team members) have not sold OM tokens in the lead up to, or during, this crash,” a spokesperson for Shorooq stated. The representative also emphasized that Shorooq is an equity investor in Mantra, not solely a token investor. “This means that our focus is on the long-term growth of the project,” the spokesperson added.

As OKX and Binance were among exchanges that saw significant OM activity before and during the crash, both exchanges addressed the issue directly. OKX founder Star Xu called the incident a “big scandal to the whole crypto industry.” While Mantra CEO John Mullin attributed the OM crash to one exchange, Binance hinted at “cross-exchange liquidations.” “Our initial findings indicate that the developments over the past day are a result of cross-exchange liquidations,” Binance said in an announcement on April 14. In an update on April 14, OKX said that Mantra’s tokenomics had gone through major changes since October 2024 and flagged suspicious activity across multiple exchanges.