Sonic (Fantom) news

Sonic Labs announced Friday that three longtime board members—Andre Cronje, Michael Kong, and David Richardson—are resigning as part of a leadership overhaul. The company appointed Matt Visser as CEO and Kosta Kourkoumelis as COO. The three departing members "remain invested in Sonic's success" but will no longer make business decisions. The S token traded at about $0.028, roughly 97% below its January 2025 all-time high of $1.03. Total value locked on Sonic’s DeFi protocols stands at $26 million, down from $1.1 billion peak. This is the second leadership change in nine months; prior CEO Mitchell Demeter and business head Evan Owens resigned in February 2026. Visser said his focus is operational discipline and rebuilding trust, not promising an instant turnaround. Cronje published a separate statement clarifying his technical role, noting he did not design the FTM-to-S migration or support winding down the legacy Opera network. His current focus is his DeFi exchange Flying Tulip.

Andre Cronje and co-founders Michael Kong and David Richardson have resigned from the Sonic Labs board, leaving the CEO role to Matt Visser. The S token has fallen about 40% in the past month and is down roughly 91% from its January 2025 peak, trading near record lows around $0.029. Total value locked on Sonic has collapsed from over $1.1 billion to about $18 million, a 98% drop. The team emphasizes that the project has no venture capital unlocks and a diversified treasury, while critics question the timing of the leadership exits. Technical indicators show the S token trading below key moving averages with an RSI of 32.50, signaling weak demand. The immediate support is at $0.028; a break below could trigger a retest of the $0.0277 record low, while reclaiming $0.033 would invalidate the bearish setup.

The S token, native to the Sonic blockchain, fell 5% to $0.031 after Sonic Labs announced the resignation of three former executives from its board, including former CEO Michael Kong, executive chairman David Richardson, and CTO Andre Cronje. The company stated the departing executives remain invested in Sonic's success and have handed off responsibilities to new CEO Matt Visser and COO Kosta Kourkoumelis. Sonic Labs, which rebranded from Fantom Foundation, is overhauling its leadership amid community dissatisfaction and a 97% decline in the S token since its January 2025 launch. The firm acknowledged the token's poor performance and pledged more transparent governance, clear communication, and the creation of a risk and compliance committee.

Sonic Labs introduced USSD, a US dollar stablecoin built on Frax Finance infrastructure, backed 1:1 by short‑duration US Treasury assets via BlackRock, Superstate and WisdomTree. It can be minted cross‑chain from over 10 blockchains using approved assets such as USDC, USDT, PYUSD, USDB, BUIDL and USTB, and redeemed through Frax. The launch comes as Sonic’s native S token has slumped to an all‑time low of $0.03684, down from above $1 in early 2025. USSD is positioned as a liquidity and settlement layer to support the ecosystem, but analysts note it alone may not reverse the broader usage and fee decline issues facing the platform.

Sonic Labs announced a native stablecoin, USSD, built on Frax Finance’s GENIUS‑compatible frxUSD infrastructure and backed by U.S. Treasury assets tokenized by BlackRock, WisdomTree and Superstate. The token can be minted on more than ten chains via LayerZero and is designed to provide stable liquidity across the Sonic network. USSD can be minted and swapped with Circle’s USDC and redeemed on any chain supported by Chainlink’s CCTP, offering an on‑ and off‑ramp for users. The launch supports Sonic’s vertical integration strategy and its high‑throughput EVM‑compatible Layer 1, with the S token up 4.5% to $0.040.

Sonic Labs, the team behind the Sonic blockchain (formerly Fantom), announced plans to vertically integrate core applications to drive value to its native S token. The strategy involves building or acquiring products that increase S token utility, moving beyond reliance on gas fees alone. The team cited fee compression in the current market and aims to control key infrastructure across trading, credit, payments, and risk markets. This approach will complement Sonic's existing FeeM monetization system and could lead to token buybacks using generated revenue. Sonic noted that other projects like Hyperliquid have successfully implemented similar integrated models. The blockchain remains EVM-compatible and focuses on high throughput, with recent developments including a $25.5 million funding round for a related exchange.

Sonic Labs has pivoted from its earlier emphasis on transaction speed to a business-first strategy under new CEO Mitchell Demeter, announcing upgrades that will bring measurable financial outcomes, such as new EIPs, SIPs, token burns, and a tiered reward system for builders and fixed rewards for validators. The aim is to build sustainable long‑term value for builders, validators and token holders rather than relying on hype. Sonic Labs also opened a New York office to strengthen institutional partnerships and policy engagement, while its token has fallen more than 80% since rebranding, with smart money selling $245 million in the last week. The CEO emphasized that the company’s focus will be on long‑term growth beyond price, creating a solid foundation for the token’s future.

Sonic Labs is looking to introduce a fee monetization system that burns tokens while rewarding builders at the same time.

BeInCrypto highlights Sonic, THORChain, and Sky Network as altcoins to watch for early November 2025, citing upcoming network upgrades or governance decisions that could influence their prices. Sonic’s v2.1.2 upgrade adds fee subsidies and security fixes; with RSI oversold and support near $0.128, the price could rebound to $0.159–$0.176, but a break below could fall to $0.112. THORChain’s V3.12 upgrade may boost liquidity; RUNE at $0.809 with converging Bollinger Bands could break $0.855 toward $0.951, while a fall below $0.765 would confirm weakness. Sky Network’s vote to raise buybacks to 300k USDS and transfer 500m SKY to treasury could lift the token from $0.0545 to $0.0575, or drop below $0.0536 if muted.

Sonic Labs announced new CEO Mitchell Demeter, moving former CEO Michael Kong to CIO, a shake‑up expected to drive adoption and institutional ties as the network rebrands from the Fantom Foundation. The change sent the S token up ~4% to $0.2418. The week also sees Falcon Finance opening wallet registration for its FF token, with claims starting Sep 28 and expiring Dec 28. Ethereum’s Fusaka Upgrade will test its first phase on Holesky Oct 1, followed by Sepolia and Hoodi, aiming to boost scalability. EtherFi plans an analyst call on Oct 1 featuring BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes, potentially spurring interest in ETHFI. Meanwhile, FTX will distribute $1.6 bn to creditors on Sep 30, lifting FTT to $0.9628.