In this article, we explore liquid staking protocol StakeStone's key features, the STO token launch, tokenomics and how to trade STO on Bybit.

StakeStone (STO) is a next-gen omnichain liquidity infrastructure protocol designed to optimize yield and cross-chain liquidity. Its introduction of liquid yield-bearing versions of ETH and BTC — STONE and STONEBTC — enables users to earn sustainable yield while enhancing capital efficiency. This article explores StakeStone’s architecture, core assets, founding team, tokenomics and recent market performance.

 is a decentralized liquidity infrastructure protocol that issues liquid, 

-bearing assets like STONE (Ethereum) and STONEBTC (Bitcoin). Designed for omnichain integration, it empowers users and protocols with composable 

 solutions and efficient cross-chain liquidity.

Launched in 2024, StakeStone was built to address the fragmented and capital-inefficient nature of ETH and BTC staking by introducing secure, flexible and modular primitives. StakeStone’s mission is to maximize on-chain yield while ensuring deep liquidity across ecosystems.

StakeStone was founded in 2023 by a team of DeFi-native builders led by Charles K, a crypto veteran with over 10 years of experience in centralized exchanges (CEXs), hardware wallets and DeFi infrastructure The core team includes Rose Li, Chief Strategy Officer, and Ivan K, Chief Marketing Officer.

The project has secured funding from notable crypto funds, including Polychain Capital, Binance Labs, OKX Ventures, Amber Group, HashKey Capital and Bankless Ventures. These backers not only provide capital but also strategic ecosystem access — positioning StakeStone as a serious player in omnichain liquidity and yield infrastructure.

StakeStone converts ETH and BTC into liquid, yield-bearing assets — STONE (ETH) and STONEBTC (respectively) — through a modular and omnichain framework. When ETH is staked, it flows into the StakeStone Vault and is allocated to the Strategy Pool, and STONE is minted via the Minter.

Yield is generated through strategies such as:

Users can deploy STONE across chains via the 

 (LP) rewards, with optional LP locking for enhanced returns. SBTC is the liquid BTC asset mirroring Bitcoin’s value, with STONEBTC adding a yield layer to BTC and unlocking passive income without sacrificing liquidity.

StakeStone implements key security measures, including the following:

STONE (ETH): Omnichain yield-bearing asset

 derivative. It’s minted when users stake ETH, and is backed by underlying yield from stETH, EigenLayer restaking and additional DeFi strategies.

STONE supports seamless cross-chain bridging, enabling deployment across supported networks and STONE-Fi Pools for additional rewards. Users benefit from passive yield, cross-chain utility, governance participation and on-demand liquidity.

SBTC is a liquid Bitcoin asset that mirrors BTC’s value and enables seamless use within EVM-compatible chains. STONEBTC, on the other hand, enhances SBTC by adding a yield layer, empowering users to earn yield from BTC-based strategies while preserving liquidity.

 utility by unlocking native BTC liquidity and enabling new use cases, such as cross-chain lending and borrowing, LP participation in BTC-based DeFi pools and composable integration across multichain DeFi protocols.

Together, SBTC and STONEBTC aim to position Bitcoin as an active capital layer across Ethereum and beyond.

 of StakeStone, with a total supply of 1 billion. It underpins protocol governance via OPAP proposals, voting-escrowed STO (veSTO) staking and 

Emissions are set to taper gradually until 2031, aligning incentives with long-term ecosystem growth.

According to CoinGecko, as of Apr 24, 2025, 

with a market cap of over $25 million. The token has recently shown strong momentum, rallying 85.4% over the past two weeks. Furthermore, StakeStone’s value could benefit from various catalysts, such as the rise in demand for 

 the STOUSDT Perpetual futures contract in the Innovation Zone, with up to 20x leverage.

 a Bybit account, complete identity verification and fund your 

 using crypto deposits or fiat currencies. 

Intermediate

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StakeStone (STO): Cross-chain liquid staking protocol

The MANTRA (OM) token’s wild crash on Apr 13, 2025, shocked the crypto world. Discover the causes, fallout, and what’s next in MANTRA’s road to recovery.

In the morning and daytime hours of Apr 13, 2025, the MANTRA blockchain's native token, OM, sat at a respectable market cap of $6 billion, making it the third-highest-ranked cryptocurrency in the 

 (RWA) category, the area the platform specializes in. Everything seemed like smooth sailing for the token.

Then, just after 6 PM UTC, the price of the OM token suddenly began to free-fall, declining from nearly $6 to about $0.50 in the space of just two hours.

A project that started the day as one of the top players in the RWA field was now worth 90% less as the evening approached. OM's abrupt, sharp crash immediately caught the market's attention, with speculation of a 

However, MANTRA's CEO, John Patrick Mullin, immediately sprang into action for PR damage control on social media, reassuring the public that the team members weren’t dumping OM tokens at all. Instead, MANTRA's founder and CEO alleged that deliberate actions of some 

 (CEXs) had caused the catastrophic plunge.

As of our coverage date of Apr 23, 2025, this is a developing story. In this article, we’ll establish what actually happened, who's involved and what awaits the OM token in the foreseeable future.

 decentralized network dedicated to RWA tokenization and utilization in compliance with real-world regulatory requirements.

 It features high scalability and low transaction fees. The project is one of the earliest initiatives dedicated to RWA use via blockchain technology. Originally, MANTRA debuted as a 

 (ETH) in August 2020. In October 2024, the project migrated to its own dedicated Layer 1 platform, the MANTRA Chain. The MANTRA blockchain is based on the Cosmos SDK framework, and is part of the wider 

The MANTRA ecosystem's main products include MANTRA DEX, a 

 (DEX); a digital identity (DID) management tool; a compliant token development and management solution; and a comprehensive compliance and permissioning system. MANTRA has also partnered with global powerhouses like Google Cloud, and with DAMAC Properties, one of Dubai's most prominent developers, to propel innovative solutions for 

Starting in late 2024, right after its own dedicated mainnet launch, MANTRA had become a significant player in the RWA corner of 

 (DeFi). By late February 2025, the platform’s native OM token had climbed to a value of nearly $9, with its market cap peaking at around $8.2 billion. Before the fateful events of Apr 13, 2025, OM was the third-highest-capped crypto in the RWA category, trading at $6.27, with a market cap of slightly over $6 billion, according to the CoinGecko portal.

In the evening hours (UTC time) of Apr 13, 2025, OM began to lose its value precipitously, dive-bombing from over $6 to about $0.52 in the space of two hours. The token’s market cap fell to slightly under half a billion dollars — a loss of more than 90%.

CEO John Mullin was quickly online, reassuring the crypto community that no team member had sold their OM holdings, and that this wasn’t a case of the bad ol’ rug pull. Instead, Mullin alluded that after OM tokens were moved to two leading CEXs (Binance and OKX) to use as collateral, the exchanges initiated a cascade of 

 of positions backed by the token. Both exchanges refuted the allegations, and connected OM’s price collapse to its recent unusually high price 

, and significant tokenomics changes made to OM in October 2024 that greatly undermined its value.

As a chain of liquidations took place, the token’s price started to plummet, causing significant panic that quickly led to further price drops. The situation only stabilized closer to the end of the day, with OM’s price remaining under $1. As of Apr 23, it’s trading at $0.5543 — a far cry from its rate of over $6 just two weeks ago.

After investigating, crypto analytics firm Lookonchain concluded that 17 wallets had deposited 43.6 million OM tokens (4.5% of the token's circulating supply) into the implicated exchanges. Two of these wallets are believed to belong to Laser Digital, one of MANTRA's investors. Another investor in the project, Shorooq Partners, is also suspected to be among the 17 wallets. Both Shorooq and Laser Digital have denied the allegations.

Although the price plunge was immediately compared to the 2022 collapse of the 

 (LUNA) blockchain, many analysts point out that the two crashes are fundamentally different. Terra's crash resulted from structural abnormalities in the 

 regulating UST, the project's stablecoin. In contrast, OM's fiasco is suspected to be the direct result of market-driven manipulation by 

, and possibly exchanges. No security breach, disruption to services or data, or other adverse structural events have occurred on the platform.

While this development is unprecedented for the project, MANTRA has been embroiled in other controversies throughout its history. One of these was its 

, first announced in August 2024 and then delayed multiple times. Around 50% of the wallets believed to be bots were cut off from the airdrop list. However, many considered the bot-culling process to have been conducted without much proof.

There have also been reports of vote rigging in the project's governance system in a bid to obscure MANTRA’s centralized model of profit allocation. Additionally, some analysts have accused the project of "forced bridging" to manipulate the market price. Platform users had to migrate their Ethereum-based OM tokens to MANTRA's native OM tokens via 

, which would increase gas fees and allow the project team to control the token's circulation pace.

How is MANTRA (OM) headed toward recovery?

MANTRA’s CEO rapidly reassured users that the team is now working hard to jump-start the token’s recovery. On Apr 14, 2025, Mullin unveiled plans to initiate a buyback scheme, along with the intent to burn all OM tokens held by the project team. The team's supply totals 300 million tokens, representing about 17% of the total supply.

He also denied factually incorrect assertions circulating online that the team effectively controls 90% of OM's supply. Mullin further assured the public that no large-scale selling events by investors have occurred.

As OM’s value has stayed firmly under $1, it remains to be seen how these PR efforts — as well as the planned buyback and burn — will affect the token’s future.

 as a swap pair with USDT, or on the Derivatives market as the 

Naturally, given the ongoing situation with the OM token, buying OM is at your own discretion, as right now the token is truly for the adventurous and brave at heart.

As of Apr 23, 2025, the OM token is trading at $0.5543, 93.8% lower than its ATH of $8.99 on Feb 23, 2025, and 3,138.8% higher than its ATL of $0.01726 on Oct 12, 2023.

Curiously, most crypto price prediction portals are optimistic about the OM token's long-term prospects. DigitalCoinPrice 

 of $1.81 in 2027 and $2.82 in 2030, whilePricePrediction 

It's hard to verify all the allegations flying around regarding the involvement of exchanges and key investors in the MANTRA OM incident. What matters at this stage is that the project team has been quick and proactive in injecting transparency and clarity into the situation.

The free fall in the token's price seems to be over by now. In fact, OM’s decline was over within hours of the incident. Moreover, unlike Terra's LUNA and UST coins, OM hasn't become worthless. All these factors point to potential stabilization and recovery ahead. The question now is: Will the pace and magnitude of the recovery be enough to save the project in the long term? At this early stage after the collapse, few people could answer the question with confidence. We'll eagerly await the developments over the next few weeks to see if MANTRA finds its way out of the woods. 

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MANTRA (OM): Understanding its wild ride and road to recovery

In this article, we explore WalletConnect's features, its native token (WCT) and how you can trade WCT on Bybit Spot and Futures.​

WalletConnect is an open source bridging protocol that facilitates secure connections between digital wallets and 

 (DApps). With over 38 million unique active wallets and 57,000 supported apps, it’s getting noticed by the crypto community. In this article, we explore WalletConnect's features, its native token (WCT) and how you can trade WCT on Bybit.​

 protocol that allows users to connect their mobile wallets to DApps via QR code. This eliminates the need for browser extensions, and enhances security by keeping 

The protocol supports a wide range of wallets and DApps, making it a versatile tool for users navigating DeFi and web3.

 is essentially a decentralized infrastructure that facilitates a uniformed way for users to easily connect their crypto wallets with thousands of DApps. It operates through a network of

 that relay messages, ensuring reliable and secure connections. The network's design emphasizes scalability and resilience, catering to the growing demands of DeFi. 

When a user initiates a connection between their wallet and a DApp, WalletConnect establishes a secure session through a relay server that enables encrypted communication, allowing users to interact with DApps directly from their wallets. 

The network's architecture ensures that messages are transmitted efficiently, maintaining a seamless user experience.​

The WalletConnect ecosystem comprises various stakeholders, including node operators, wallet providers and DApp developers. Node operators play a crucial role by maintaining the network's infrastructure and relaying messages. 

To incentivize participation, the network implements a rewards mechanism whereby node operators earn WCT tokens, based on their performance and contribution. Prominent organizations like Consensys, Ledger and Figment are among the network's node operators, underscoring its robustness and reliability.​

 is the native utility and governance token of the WalletConnect network. It has a total supply of 1 billion, 

Initially, WCT is nontransferable to ensure that tokens remain within the WalletConnect ecosystem, supporting its focus on network functionality and development. Based on discussions within the community, transfers will be enabled based on community consensus and future governance decisions.

Where to buy the WalletConnect token (WCT)

 on Bybit Spot, and as a Perpetual contract with up to 75x 

. Bybit provides a secure and user-friendly platform for buying and selling WCT, allowing users to participate in the WalletConnect ecosystem. 

How to trade the WalletConnect token (WCT) on Bybit

Bybit's platform ensures efficient execution and provides various tools to assist users in their trading journey with ease.​ 

walletconnect wct.png

WalletConnect (WCT): Bridging web3 beyond wallets and DApps

Circle has launched the Circle Payments Network (CPN), a global payment solution designed to streamline cross-border transactions using stablecoins like USDC and EURC for real-time settlement. 

The S&P 500 rose 2.51% as investor confidence improved following President Trump’s support for Fed Chair Powell and hints of easing U.S.-China trade tensions, despite tempered optimism and Tesla’s earnings miss. Gold rebounds toward $3,400 as the US Dollar weakens and investor caution lingers over US-China trade and Fed concerns. Technicals suggest a possible pullback, with focus shifting to upcoming S&P Global PMI data. The Coindesk Indices, which tracks the broader crypto market, rose 7.46%, with Bitcoin and Ether up 4.68% and 7.70%, respectively, in the past 24 hours. Trade these markets and more with up to 500x leverage on Bybit MT5 using this 

Today's top performer is DEEP, up 122.1%, following the launch of DeepBook v3.1 on Sui, which unlocks permissionless pools, enhanced balance management, and cost-efficiency for DeFi.

DeepBook (DEEP), launched on July 12, 2023,  is Sui’s native liquidity layer, using a central limit order book to enable high-throughput, low-slippage, and low-fee trading. 

, introduces several key upgrades: permissionless pools, revamped fee mechanics, and enhanced balance management. These changes make DeepBook more accessible, composable, and cost-efficient for DeFi users. Permissionless pools allow anyone to create custom trading pairs, while the enhanced balance manager supports third-party liquidations and improves protocol stability and user experience.

Check out the latest prices, charts, and data of 

, a global payment solution designed to streamline cross-border transactions using stablecoins like USDC and EURC for real-time settlement. CPN offers faster, programmable, secure, and always-available money movement for financial institutions. It supports services like invoice payments, remittances, treasury services, and payroll payouts. Over 20 design partners, including dLocal, WorldRemit, and BVNK, are contributing to building a more efficient global payments infrastructure.

Yesterday, Bitcoin spot ETFs saw $719.2M in total inflows, with $654.1M from non-GBTC funds and $65.1M from GBTC.

 its incentivized testnet, allowing users to earn $SO tokens by testing its cross-chain lending platform. By supplying and borrowing assets across chains and completing quests, participants earn "Seeds," which will convert to $SO at TGE. Powered by LayerZero, Soul aims to unify liquidity across blockchains.

Beginner

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Circle launches Circle Payments Network for faster, secure global transactions using stablecoins

Options

Trading

Strategies

Learn to buy the dip with limited risk during a bear market with these three options strategies – Cash-Secured Put, Bull Put Spread, and Synthetic Long.

Cash-secured-put-Buy-the-Dip-Bear-Market.png

Bull-put-spread-Buy-the-Dip-Bear-Market.png

Synthetic-long-Buy-the-Dip-Bear-Market.png

If you’re waiting patiently for the start of the next crypto bull market, you're not alone. 

 are frustrating for traders. But identifying when a 

 ends and a new bull market begins can reap huge rewards. And at Bybit, your rewards will get multiplied with options events like the 

Before we dive into how to benefit when prices rise, it's important to understand what a bear market is. Simply put, it's a prolonged period of downward price movements in the market. Bear markets are not new to crypto. We've seen several over the years. All of which offered investors a great opportunity to buy ahead of the bull runs that followed. 

, here are three options strategies you should consider: 

 Low — as long as you intend to buy the underlying crypto asset

You want to buy a crypto asset at a discount

Time-decay works in your favor (positive Theta). Benefits from falling implied 

It’s a simple options strategy where you sell a 

 on a cryptocurrency that you want to own, but only if the price drops to a certain level.

Here’s how it works: First, you select the “strike price” of the put option you wish to sell, which is the same price you're willing to buy the crypto asset. Next, choose the contract's expiration date. 

In return for selling the put, you receive a premium from the buyer, which varies depending on the length of the contract and how close the strike price is to the current asset price. Longer-dated options have 

premiums than shorter-dated options. And put options 

to the current market price have higher premiums than those further below.

 the strike price at expiration, you buy the underlying asset. And if the crypto is 

 the strike price when the contract expires, you keep the premium as profit.

One thing to keep in mind is that with this strategy, you must want to own the crypto at the strike price, and have enough cash to buy it if the price is below the strike price at expiration. That's why it's called "cash-secured."

BTC is trading at $20,000, and you're keen to buy it if the price dips below $18,000. You might set up a cash-secured put expiring in 30 days, that looks something like this.

Sell 0.50 BTC $18,000 put option, receiving a premium of $200 ($200 x 0.5 = $100 credit).

Breakeven point: Short put strike - premium received

You should note that Bybit's crypto options contracts are cash-settled and exercised automatically if they expire in the money, meaning no physical transfer of BTC takes place. Instead, at expiration, your account is credited or debited the profit or loss realized on the option trade.

To complete this strategy, if the short put expires in the money, you must buy spot BTC using the cash you set aside for the purchase. Luckily, Bybit currently offers 

Overall, the cash-secured put option strategy is useful for generating income and potentially buying crypto at a discount. Just make sure you fully understand the risks before implementing this strategy in your portfolio.

Benefits from time-decay (positive Theta), and falling implied volatility (negative Vega)

 is a slightly more advanced options strategy that involves trading two options on the same underlying asset with the same expiration date.

 a put option at a strike price below the current price of the underlying asset. Then, 

The short put is closer to the underlying asset, so it will have a higher premium than the long put, meaning you’ll receive an upfront payment for making the trade. The difference between the premium you receive for the short put and the premium you pay for the long put is your net credit, which is also the maximum potential profit.

 the strike price of the short put option at expiration, you'll keep the net credit as profit. You incur a loss if the underlying asset is 

 the short put by more than the received net credit. The maximum loss occurs if the underlying asset is below the long put at expiration.

Sell 0.50 BTC $19,000 put option, receiving a premium of $500 (0.50 x $500 = credit of $250)

Buy 0.50 BTC $18,500 put option, paying a premium of $225 (0.50 X $225 = $112.50)

Max loss: $387.50 (short put strike - long put strike + net credit)

Breakeven point: $18,887.50 (short put strike - net credit) 

The synthetic long is a high-risk, high-reward bullish options strategy that combines a long call and a short put at the same strike price to help you profit from a rise in the price of an underlying asset without actually owning it.

To set up this strategy, buy an at-the-money 

 at the same price as the underlying asset, and sell an at-the-money put option with the same expiration date to mimic a long position in the underlying crypto asset.

The synthetic long has unlimited upside profit potential above the strike price of the long call and considerable loss potential below the short put. For this reason, it's best suited to intermediate-level options traders with high risk tolerance.

The advantage of this strategy is that it requires less of your buying power than buying BTC outright. 

BTC is trading at $20,000, and you predict it will be above $20,000 in one month. Rather than buying BTC outright, you decide on the following low-cost synthetic long strategy, expiring in 30 days:

Buy 0.50 BTC $20,000 call option, for a premium of $500 (0.50 x $500 = $250 debit)

Sell 0.50 BTC $20,000 put, receiving a premium of $500 (0.50 x $500 = $250 credit)

Breakeven point: BTC price at the time of trade +/- cost.

In this example, the premium paid and the received premium are the same, meaning the cost of the trade is zero (+ transaction fees).

With these three options strategies, you’ll be well-equipped to buy the dip with less risk in the bear market on the Bybit Options market

For beginners, using cash-secured put will help you get paid for buying crypto at a discount or making money if the dip doesn't materialize. The key to this strategy is selling a put option at a price you are happy to buy the underlying asset.

If you're looking for a low-risk bullish strategy with a high chance of profit that won't eat up your buying power, the bull put spread could be a perfect choice. To increase your chance of profit, choose strike prices you expect to expire worthless.

For advanced traders with a big appetite for risk, the synthetic long offers a flexible alternative to buying crypto outright. The beauty of this strategy is that you may even get paid for using it.

Buy the Dip With Limited Risk on Bybit During This Bear Market

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