Full story
Board exits and price slide
Sonic Labs said three founding board members, including Andre Cronje, resigned on June 19 as the S token traded 97% below its January 2025 all-time high of $1.03, around $0.028.
“Table of Contents Sonic Labs is undergoing significant organizational changes as its native token experiences continued decline”
The leadership overhaul replaced the board-led structure with Matt Visser as CEO and Kosta Kourkoumelis as COO, as the network pivoted to what the project described as professional executive management.
CryptoRank said the S token fell 9.5% in 24 hours after the resignations, while also stating the token was down about 91.3% year-over-year.
Crypto Briefing tied the governance change to a collapse in on-chain activity, saying total value locked on the Sonic network cratered to approximately $20 million from $1.14 billion in May 2025.
The Defiant reported that Sonic’s S token traded at about $0.031 and that the token was down roughly 97% from its January 2025 record of $1.03.
Cronje’s explanation and governance
In response to community criticism, Andre Cronje said, "I stand behind the technology and technical decisions I led," while adding, "I was not the author or decision owner of the migration, airdrop, tokenomics, or legacy-network decisions described above."
Crypto.news reported that Sonic Labs said the resignations included Michael Kong, David Richardson, and Andre Cronje, and that the departing executives would no longer make business decisions for the organization.
The Blockonomi account said the company acknowledged both the token’s performance and community sentiment had deteriorated, and quoted Sonic Labs saying, "the token is down" and "community sentiment is down."
Crypto Briefing described Sonic Labs’ official messaging around the transition as emphasizing "transparency," "risk and compliance oversight," and "community-focused decision-making."
The Defiant added that Visser prioritized "operational discipline and earning back trust, in that order," rather than a roadmap reveal.
What’s at risk next
Sonic Labs’ governance shift is unfolding alongside a sharp liquidity and activity gap, with Crypto Briefing saying total value locked fell from $1.14 billion to approximately $20 million and that the token’s own freefall tracked the decline.
“Sonic Labs board reshuffles as S token trades 97% below peak Andre Cronje and two other founding board members step down as the network pivots to professional executive management amid a dramatic collapse in token value and on-chain activity Three founding board members of Sonic Labs, including the project’s most recognizable name, Andre Cronje, resigned on June 19 as part of a sweeping governance overhaul”
The Blockonomi report said the S token made its market debut in January 2025 during the transition from Fantom to Sonic, and that it had shed approximately 97% of its initial value.
The Defiant reported that Sonic said it would be judged as a team over the next 100 days, while also stating the three departing board members "will no longer make business decisions for the organization."
Startup Fortune said the board’s planned burn would eliminate 32.69 million unclaimed S tokens after an October 15, 2026 deadline, with Sonic Labs saying the burn function eliminates those balances outright.
Crypto Briefing said the 400 merged pull requests on GitHub in 2026 were a data point to watch, but also framed the gap between $20 million in TVL and $1.14 billion as one that no governance restructuring alone could bridge.
