Sonic’s native token has taken a sharp hit following the breakup of a longstanding partnership between Sonic and the trading firm Wintermute. After five years of working together, the relationship ended on May 15, triggering a wave of sell-offs and rising uncertainty in the decentralized finance (DeFi) community.
Triggered by the collaboration termination, Sonic’s token, $S, has dropped over 20% to reach $0.48, before bouncing back to $0.52, with more than 8.40% of loss recorded in a single day. These events have led to concerns about future liquidity management.
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Why Sonic Cut Ties with Wintermute
Sonic’s Head of Strategy formally announced the separation from Wintermute – which resulted with a large token dump by the trading firm. What followed was the sale of nearly 3 million $S tokens over a 24-hour period, a move that added intense pressure to an already volatile market. Earlier, Wintermute had sold another batch worth around $857,000.
All these actions are in line with the end of Sonic’s exclusive market-making agreement with Wintermute. Intel Scout, a tracking service within the Sonic ecosystem, identified Wintermute’s activity as the main source of the token’s downward pressure, noting that the selloff was no surprise given the contractual changes taking place.
The platform has made it clear that its focus is now on finding a new partner – one that will not only assist with centralized exchange liquidity but also take a more hands-on role in supporting decentralized finance features.
Sonic’s Head of Strategy emphasized the next market maker must actively participate in the platform’s broader blockchain applications, including developer relations and community programs.
More Wallets Join the Sell-Off
Beyond Wintermute’s actions, other large token holders also began moving significant amounts of $S tokens. A wallet linked to FalconX, a known digital asset brokerage, transferred 2.3 million $S tokens to Binance during the same time Wintermute executed its sale. This transaction drew immediate attention.
Intel Scout flagged a pattern of sell-offs from various large wallets, sparking widespread speculation across the Sonic community. Observers began debating whether this pointed to coordinated selling, exchange rotation, or something more troubling like price manipulation.
Sonic Token Drops Over 20%
The $S token is now facing a difficult market response. Since the official breakup announcement on May 15, its value has fallen from above $0.61 on May 14 to around $0.48 on May 17, reflecting more than 20% in the last four days. More than half of that decline occurred in a single day after Wintermute’s large-scale sale.
This sell-off also came on the back of Sonic’s earlier successes. After rebranding from Fantom (FTM) in January, the token reached $1 billion in Total Value Locked (TVL) within just 66 days – a significant feat. Momentum was further boosted by a targeted airdrop through a major exchange. But the latest chain of events has halted that growth and placed Sonic’s DeFi stability in question.
Despite this, Sonic still securing a top-five spot in social activity rankings. With 3.95 million mentions and 6,550 engagements, it outpaced Bitcoin, Solana, and Ethereum. High sentiment score indicates strong public support, suggesting that Sonic is becoming a serious contender among Layer 1 coins.
Read also: Sonic Labs Drop USD Stablecoin Plan for UAE Dirham Bet – Here’s Why
