MANTRA token plunges 18% to Record Low as Blockchain halts after Exploit

The MANTRA (OM) token plunged 18.5% to a new all-time low after MANTRA Chain stopped producing blocks following a software exploit.

OM fell from around $0.00506 to $0.004126 at approximately 11:10 p.m. UTC on Thursday, according to CoinGecko data. The token later recovered toward $0.0044 but remained down roughly 10% over 24 hours.

Trading activity also surged, with 24-hour volume jumping nearly 600% to $24 million as traders reacted to the network disruption.

MANTRA Chain Halts After Exploit

The network recorded its last block at approximately 11:13 p.m. UTC, only minutes after OM reached its record low.

MANTRA subsequently announced that it had halted the network and frozen transactions and network endpoints while investigating the incident.

Deposits and withdrawals were also paused on affected exchanges as the team worked to contain the incident.

MANTRA later said the attacker had exploited a vulnerability in an “upstream dependency”  software used by MANTRA Chain but developed outside the network itself.

The team said it had identified the vulnerability and was preparing a patched release.

Validators Remain Offline

MANTRA's validators remain offline while developers prepare and test the fix.

Because validators are responsible for verifying transactions and maintaining the blockchain, restarting the network requires coordination among the operators before block production can resume.

The project is also tracing fund movements and working with cryptocurrency exchanges as it investigates the incident. However, MANTRA has not yet disclosed the specific software involved, how the vulnerability was exploited, or whether funds were stolen.

The team said its assessment of the incident's full impact remains ongoing and that it could not yet confirm the complete scope of the attack. The disruption currently affects the blockchain's public endpoints, validators, bridge operations and MANTRA-managed links used to communicate with other networks.

Did the Exploit Cause the OM Price Crash?

MANTRA has not confirmed whether the sharp decline in OM was directly connected to the exploit.

The timing, however, is notable. OM reached its record low only minutes before the network stopped producing blocks, while trading volume increased dramatically.

Security incidents can produce sharp price reactions as traders reassess the risks associated with an affected blockchain and its native token. For now, the relationship between the exploit and OM's price movement remains unconfirmed.

MANTRA Faces Another Major Test

The latest incident comes after a difficult period for the project.

MANTRA's previous OM token suffered a collapse of more than 90% in April 2025, wiping out more than $5 billion in market value.

The project also entered a new phase earlier this year after Inveniam Capital Partners, which invested $20 million in MANTRA, said it planned to acquire the project. The transaction was expected to close in the third quarter.

The latest exploit therefore creates another significant challenge for MANTRA as it attempts to build blockchain infrastructure for tokenized traditional financial assets.

For OM holders, the immediate focus will be on the scope of the exploit, the recovery of network operations and the project's ability to safely restart the blockchain.

Until MANTRA provides more information about the affected software, potential losses and the restart timeline, uncertainty around the OM token is likely to remain elevated.