OlympusDAO
Last changed 2026-10-10 · Score recalculated — Rescored under Scoring v2, the published formula (avoid.net/scoring): 18 → 42. Problems weighed by who is responsible: concerns that are not fraud −16, the subject's own conduct −15, incidents the subject suffered −6, problems around the subject, caused by others −3.9; legitimacy credit long-running +8; fact-check adjustments (−10) now shown as page reliability, not in the score. Version history →
Why this score
| Every page starts at | 65 |
| The subject's own conduct | -15 |
| Concerns that are not fraud | -16 |
| Incidents it suffered (e.g. hacks) | -6 |
| Problems around it, caused by others | -3.9 |
| Long-running | +8 |
| Sum | 32 |
Score: 42/100 (kept between 0 and 100)
How scoring works →Summary
OlympusDAO is a decentralized reserve currency protocol launched in March 2021 on Ethereum, issuing the OHM token backed by a treasury of on-chain assets. It attracted billions in TVL during 2021 through ultra-high staking APYs exceeding 7,000% and a viral '(3,3)' game-theory meme, before OHM collapsed more than 99% from its all-time high. The protocol remains operational but is a shadow of its peak, having transitioned toward sustainable lending products while continuing to face unresolved legal claims and a documented smart contract exploit.
Connected Entities
7 entities · 60 linked investigations- OlympusDAO→mentioned with→Chainlink(60%)
- OlympusDAO→mentioned with→Solana(60%)
- OlympusDAO→mentioned with→Ethereum(60%)
- OlympusDAO→mentioned with→SushiSwap(65%)
- OlympusDAO→mentioned with→QuadrigaCX(75%)
- OlympusDAO→mentioned with→Pendle(60%)
- SushiSwap→mentioned with→Ethereum(60%)
- SushiSwap→mentioned with→QuadrigaCX(75%)
- Chainlink→mentioned with→Ethereum(65%)
- Pendle→mentioned with→Ethereum(80%)
- + 1 more
Timeline(13 events)
March 2021
OlympusDAO launches OHM token via Discord offering and IDO on SushiSwap at approximately $4 per OHM. Early Discord participants could purchase 141 OHM each.
CoinGecko Research26 October 2021
OHM reaches an all-time high price range of approximately $1,315–$3,209 depending on data source and rebase-adjustment methodology.
CoinMarketCap / CoinGeckoNovember 2021
OlympusDAO market capitalization peaks at approximately $4.4 billion. Treasury TVL peaks at approximately $866 million in December 2021.
DeFiLlama / Yahoo Finance5 December 2021
CoinDesk publishes 'Olympus DAO Might Be the Future of Money (or It Might Be a Ponzi),' one of the first major media analyses questioning the sustainability of OHM's treasury-backing model.
CoinDesk2022
OHM declines more than 90% from its all-time high. Cascading liquidations of leveraged sOHM positions accelerate the sell-off, with approximately $150 million in OHM liquidated within 30 days.
FX Street / AMBCrypto27 January 2022
Wonderland (TIME), the largest OlympusDAO fork, collapses after the revelation that a core team member, known as '0xSifu,' was Michael Patryn, co-founder of the fraudulent Canadian exchange QuadrigaCX. Rebase token sector suffers broad contagion.
The Cryptonium14 April 2022
Australian investor Jason Liang files suit in U.S. District Court for Connecticut against OlympusDAO co-founders, alleging fraud and the disabling of smart contracts that prevented redemption of 4 million pOHM tokens worth over $20 million.
CoinDesk21 October 2022
Bond Protocol smart contract exploit drains approximately 30,437 OHM (~$300,000) from OlympusDAO bond markets via an input validation flaw in the Fixed-Expiry Teller redeem function.
Halborn / Decrypt21 October 2022
The Bond Protocol exploiter returns all stolen OHM funds to OlympusDAO within hours under an undisclosed arrangement.
Decrypt31 January 2023
Bankless Times reports the Liang v. OlympusDAO lawsuit remains active, framing it as a test of decentralization as a legal defense against investor claims.
Bankless TimesMarch 2023
OlympusDAO transitions away from fixed high-APY staking emissions toward zero, adopting a sustainability-focused model centered on protocol-controlled lending products including Cooler Loans.
OlympusDAO ForumJuly 2024
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois enters summary judgment against Sam Ikkurty (CFTC action), finding he ran a Ponzi scheme that invested 90% of $83.7 million in customer funds in OHM. The ruling classifies OHM as a commodity under the Commodity Exchange Act.
CFTC / The Block30 April 2025
OlympusDAO launches a sUSDS lending vault on Morpho in collaboration with Gauntlet, allowing the protocol to generate yield on idle treasury reserves using Pendle Principal Tokens as collateral.
Messari / OlympusDAODecision Log
- slot 455539229 · hash 9Q2MdUS7WR7d3HduwD9SMgJQ8KgJW6vAyaqmpV6tFbzG
- slot 455362765 · hash 3dEFZJczHM3ktiVP6QR66T4CksA3mXGdHLyYVb7J2Pj7
- slot 443520325 · hash zhJRG1tqKEwJodh7HAsgF9dqKPjX2i13ZpcA1Q13WK3
- slot 443520296 · hash 9r9stoRTbZuPn5RrY9SrXvqewKuh5oDezDaTgHHbUSYN
- slot 423161025 · hash 6z2AwMMxRKenfRuEezio9gN9QSgBTj9XvmFdyFbmZdkf
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (5 decisions). 19 of 22 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-sonnet-4-5
generated: 5/30/2026, 12:58:46 PM
last updated: 10/10/2026, 6:42:54 PM
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