- Mantra says OKX listed dates that do not match its official OM migration plan.
- Users are urged to keep OM in self-custody for safety through the migration.
- Mantra reports no contact with OKX since April, which adds pressure to the dispute.
Tensions between blockchain platform Mantra and crypto exchange OKX escalated this week after Mantra’s leadership accused the exchange of releasing inaccurate and “technically impossible” details about the project’s upcoming token migration. The dispute has triggered direct warnings to OM token holders and raised fresh concerns about communication failures between exchanges and token issuers.
CEO Flags “Factual Errors” in OKX Announcement
Mantra CEO John Patrick Mullin issued a detailed statement on Dec. 8, urging users to withdraw their OM tokens from OKX immediately. He said the exchange’s Dec. 5 post titled “OKX to support OM crypto migration” contained “multiple factual errors and misrepresentations” that did not appear in any official Mantra governance proposal.
OKX to support OM crypto migration (Source: OKX)
Mullin challenged OKX’s claim that the OM migration would occur between Dec. 22 and Dec. 25, calling the timeline “technically impossible.” Governance Proposal 26, the authoritative document for the transition, states that migration can only begin after the full deprecation of the ERC-20 OM token.
Mantra set January 15, 2026, as the firm deprecation deadline. This means, according to Mullin, that any migration before mid-January 2026 is categorically not feasible.
Mantra Accuses OKX of Publishing Arbitrary Dates
Mullin also highlighted that OKX listed multiple December 2025 dates that he said had no grounding in official documentation. Proposal 26 notes that the migration’s launch date remains contingent on additional technical review, and Mantra has not issued any fixed implementation date.
The CEO added that OKX’s post reversed the correct sequence of events. The exchange suggested a token split would occur first. However, Mantra clarified that the split and ticker change will only happen after the ERC-20 deprecation is finalized. The split date is still to be announced.
“This publication of demonstrably false information raises serious concerns,” Mullin wrote, stating that the errors indicate either “gross negligence” or “willful dissemination of misinformation.”
Breakdown in Communication After April’s Market Shock
The rift appears linked to a broader deterioration in communication between the two entities. Mullin said OKX has not engaged with Mantra since April 13, the date of a severe OM token crash that saw the asset fall more than 90%, dropping from roughly $6.30 to under $0.50.
However, in an April 30 postmortem, the firm blamed aggressive leverage and liquidation dynamics on exchanges for accelerating the drawdown. Mullin warned at the time that similar cascades could affect any project if leverage policies remain unchecked.
Despite the strain, the firm reported active coordination with all other major exchanges to prepare for the migration. According to the team, OKX is the only exchange that has issued migration statements without prior consultation.
Mantra Urges Users to Migrate Independently
Given the disputed information, Mullin advised OM holders to take direct control of their assets until the transition is complete. Recommendations included:
- Withdrawing OM tokens from OKX immediately
- Using official Mantra channels to bridge and migrate tokens
- Avoiding reliance on “potentially negligent or malicious intermediaries.”
- Following only official Mantra updates for accurate timelines
He said maintaining custody ensures users remain aligned with verified implementation details, avoiding missteps caused by inaccurate exchange posts.
Mullin added that OKX’s unilateral publication of dates created “unnecessary market confusion” and risked undermining investor confidence during a critical structural shift for the OM token.
Once migration begins, OM will move from an Ethereum-based ERC-20 token to a native Mantra Chain token as part of the network’s broader evolution.
