The crypto world is embattled in a rather harsh environment of late, experiencing immense highs back in November of 2021 and no sooner hitting an extreme downs well as the new year settled in. Over the course of 2022, things have spiraled out of control through the downfalls of cryptocurrency companies like Celsius, Three Arrows Capital, and Luna, to name but a few of the biggest culprits sending prices onto the floor.
More than most tend to follow Bitcoin as if it's the main temperature of the overall crypto industry. In Nov, the price of Bitcoin was over $68,000, but by January, it hit $35,000, proof alone of the extreme volatility inherent in such assets. But for those that are heavily situated in the space, whether it be on the blockchain side, the metaverse side, or even simply the DeFi side, crypto is here to stay and is only going to improve long-term.
Enter Jay Hao, CEO of OKX, a cryptocurrency exchange and digital wallet platform that boasts some serious security. As many in the industry fear the worst, OKX stands tall in the face of adversity and is anticipating gains in the field via new adopters and returning investors. Its wallet platform is of high praise, while the firm continues to push NFTs without constraint. Even the Luna crash proved to be a lesson learned, highlighting OKX's profound risk protection tools as its customers remained safeguarded from TerraUSD's disastrous depeg.
I was privy to a quick conversation with the mind behind the exchange and welcomed his observations on the nature of the crypto industry as well as where next OKX intends to prosper.
Tech Times: Question on the foundation of OKX: what did OKEx mean, and why did you drop the name?
Jay Hao: OKX is moving forward into a more decentralized future where digital assets intersect with other newly-created experiences. The "X" represents the unknown and yet-to-be-explored possibilities in the financial and virtual realms.
OKX is building so much more than a centralized exchange. It is, therefore, time for us to evolve our brand to reflect what we stand for and what we are building towards. We want to venture with our users into the possibilities that are ahead of us. Finance (DeFi) and gaming (play-to-earn) are just the starting points.
We have therefore dropped the E and dialed up the X to begin paving that path. We hope this change will help our users on their journey through our expansive platform.
TT: What makes your exchange stand out from the likes of Coinbase or Crypto.com?
JH: We are not just for crypto experts. Our aim is to "Make Crypto Mainstream." We build new communities and see the role of a crypto exchange as a custodian for crypto's reputation and appeal to the masses. We empower people to learn, trade, game, and explore everything crypto within an expansive ecosystem of wealth creation opportunities.
OKX is the second largest by spot and futures trading volume and one of the original crypto exchanges. OKX also offers a broad range of derivatives products and trading systems like portfolio margin mode and options trading, which others do not.
Beyond the OKX exchange, the OKX Wallet is our portal into the world of Web 3.0, metaverse gaming, NFTs, and the decentralized economy.
As for security, OKX is one of the safest crypto trading platforms in the world and has never been hacked.
OKX also offers some of the lowest trading fees in the industry.
Related Article: CryptoWatch: Bitcoin Dominates, DeFi Market Logs Big Losses, and Terra 2.0 is Launched
TT: What kind of security do you leverage? I just mentioned crypto.com, and it is considered the best due to its security. Are there any interesting cybersecurity parameters you use on OKX?
JH: Firstly, OKX has never been hacked. I believe this speaks volumes for our security measures. Now, to go in depth into our security features, OKX has built a proprietary trade monitoring model to combat market manipulation and illicit behavior. We decided to build our own system because we found current third-party tools to be lacking when it comes to identifying a broad range of manipulative behavior types in the crypto space. Some examples of the behavior OKX's internal tools would flag include users engaging heavily in wash trading and self-matching.
We also employ Hacken to run third party penetration tests for our system and we are verified. Our bug bounty program by Cert.live continuously tests safety and resiliency. It is also verified by Hacken.
TT: How big is NFT collection and trading on your platform?
JH: OKX has more than 1 million NFTs that are displayed and tradeable on its platform. Around 300,000 NFTs have been traded so far in 2022 alone.
TT: Do you work in tandem with metaverse companies, like Everdome, for increased adoption of such digital assets?
JH: Yes. OKX partnered with Everdome in May of this year. In addition to acquiring a significant land holding in Everdome, OKX is working with the Everdome team to bring their partners and others into the metaverse to create experiences that surprise and delight.
TT: What are your thoughts on the current climate in the digital asset industry?
JH: The recent conspicuous insolvencies and near-insolvencies in the industry have taught us that many investors who entrust their funds to market makers or hedge funds don't have control, or even visibility, over how their money manager is trading. These firms provide questionable risk management and transparency and, in some cases, this has even led to investor funds being used to answer margin calls. This is why we launched the OKX Custody Trading Sub-Account so we can provide much-needed control and transparency and help everyone in the industry.
We have seen a domino-like effect following on from the LUNA incident, which is impacting companies with unsustainable, high-yield business models.
TT: Did OKX do any business with 3AC, Luna/TerraUSD, or Celsius at all? Why or why not?
JH: OKX has strict risk management and does not have any special margin agreements with any trading firms.
Like all the major exchanges, we were listing Luna/UST and CEL. Many crypto investors lost a lot in the LUNA crash, but OKX users were protected from losses as our risk protection system was triggered to protect hundreds of millions of dollars in user funds. OKX was the only major exchange to protect its users in this way during the LUNA crash.
TT: Do you think there is extended utility in stablecoins?
JH: I think a regulated stablecoin backed by fiat within the banking system is the future of crypto payments.
TT: What is the most important thing you would tell a potential client before they signed up for OKX?
JH: If this potential client is new to crypto, I would tell him or her to make use of all the learning opportunities we offer on our platform and to take advantage of our Demo Trading feature to get to know how trading works. Crypto is volatile, and OKX encourages its retail customers to diversify their investments so they are not over-exposed and look at investments with a long-term view. Acting responsibly and educating on investment is key for crypto. We hope to see an increase in people onboarded to the platform and the crypto markets, alongside helping them make better and more responsible investment decisions.
If this potential client is more advanced, I'd tell him or her that OKX is the safest crypto trading platform. OKX has never been hacked, and we have already proved with the LUNA crash that we have the best risk protection systems to protect our users' interests. In addition to that, we offer some of the lowest trading fees in the industry and a large variety of trading tools for all investor profiles.
TT: What are some cool upcoming projects, products, or features on the horizon for OKX?
JH: Firstly, OKX is embarking into Web3 and the metaverse in a big way. In addition to partnering with Everdome, the OKX Wallet is OKX's Web3 portal for people looking to explore the world of DeFi, NFTs and the metaverse. Keep an eye out for future metaverse partnerships in the future too...
Secondly, OKX is looking to ensure that people trade responsibly by providing more and better educational resources. In addition to its extensive and free OKX Learn platform, OKX has some special things coming up that will allow users to dive further into crypto learning...
While I can't say too much at this point, OKX will also soon be bringing in new ways for users to trade in a simplified and streamlined manner.
