EKMH Innovators Interview Series
An interview series spotlighting global tech influencers, disruptors, visionaries, and of course, innovators.
OKEx, one of the world’s largest spot and futures digital asset exchanges, is fully committed to enhancing customer experience as the market evolves over the long-term. Headquartered in Malta, OKEx currently offers more than 400 token and futures trading pairs to millions of customers in 150+ countries. With diverse trading products ranging from spot trading, fiat-to-token trading, margin trading, and crypto derivatives, the Exchange also aims to help traders, miners and institutional investors optimize their investment strategies.
After the recent Delta Summit, Head of Operations Andy Cheung highlighted OKEx’s new Self-Regulated Organization (SRO) to develop global compliance standards for cryptocurrency exchanges and urge exchanges and market participants in the global crypto-trading community to join hands in this initiative.
”At the nascent stages of the blockchain industry, every crypto exchange should be aligned to protect investors and traders, and to foster innovation in the cryptocurrency ecosystem,” commented OKEx on its website. “Together, exchanges can more effectively set standards to usher in financial security for millions of people. OKEx invites other exchanges to join the company in establishing standards for market-making, listings, and delistings of digital assets, and other items critical to the growth of the entire industry.”
The SRO will be an independent, membership-based organization that is neutral and open to exchanges of all sizes and jurisdictions. Member exchanges will work together to define and adopt standards to promote digital asset adoption globally, educate governments and regulators, and develop metrics and criteria for trading, listings and reporting.
I recently caught up with Cheung to discuss new developments at OKEx, regulatory pressure and global anti-money laundering legislation, the advantages of global experience and his vision for OKEx’s growth. Our interview follows.
EKMH: OKEx is in the midst of reinventing itself into a very western style exchange. Tell us about this process, why OKEx decided to shift gears and what to expect from this new, more traditional stock exchange.
Andy Cheung: We’re a group of strong believers in the blockchain-empowered economy, and we believe that blockchain technology is an important part of a fair and transparent financial ecosystem. Decentralized financial systems can work together with traditional markets by lowering operational costs and meeting needs that traditional markets can’t cater to. As more and more investors, enterprises, and governments take interest in cryptocurrency, it’s important for industry leaders like OKEx to develop fully fledged financial instruments with reasonable price strategies that meet the needs of the global economy. We want to comply with regulations in various jurisdictions to create a fair, transparent crypto trading ecosystem for all.
EKMH: What edge on Binance and other exchanges do you expect OKEx to gain with this evolution? What have you learned from the challenges you and the team faced/face making these changes?
Andy Cheung: Issues with traditional market misconduct and manipulation appear to be a cat and mouse game with a long history, and it’s a major industry challenge. It’s important for us to set up clear compliance to provide credibility and trust to the marketplace, and to cultivate a fair and transparent trading market. It’s essential for OKEx to connect with other industry players to uphold industry standards and act as role models in the market, while tackling issues that are unique to crypto. We believe this will ultimately encourage crypto adoption.
OKEx Head of Operations Andy Cheung at the Delta Summit
EKMH: Please share some current OKEx stats, i.e. current 24 hour volume, customer base and location, new products and applications. What’s your vision for growth?
Andy Cheung: OKEx has over 10 million users in more than 120 countries. We are one of the top exchanges in the world with the largest trading volume. OKEx offers fully fledged financial instruments with a reasonable price strategy for crypto traders. From spot trading to derivatives trading, our comprehensive product portfolio provides traders with high flexibility to justify their investment strategy. Alongside our EU expansion, we have started to plan our roadmap in South Africa, and we aim to promote blockchain adoption throughout several regions.
EKMH: How does OKEx deal with crypto fluctuations and changing investment/ investor dynamics?
Andy Cheung: In the crypto industry, price fluctuations are expected. Traders should have a full understanding of their risk tolerance before any investment. OKEx often publishes blog posts introducing different tools you can adopt in your crypto-trading analysis. OKEx develops products to help traders perfect their investment strategies. For example, USDT margin trading will be deployed soon - stay tuned! The South Korean arm of OKEx recently had to delist and will no longer support the trading of Monero (XMR), dash, zcash (ZEC), horizen (ZEN) and super bitcoin (SBTC) after 10 October.
EKMH: Please discuss regulatory pressure and global anti-money laundering legislation and its effect on global exchanges. How does OKEx self-monitor?
Andy Cheung: OKEx cooperates with regulators and maintains a close eye on local jurisdictions so that we remain compliant and keep consumers safe. We regularly review the tokens that are listed and trading on OKEx, and evaluate tokens by several factors. Occasionally, we delist tokens based on a variety of these factors. We welcome legislators’ increased attention on cryptocurrency, as we believe this can lead to a more fair and open ecosystem for crypto traders. We also self-monitor using the latest technology, including AI, to stay aware of how our exchange is being used.
EKMH: What’s a day in the life of an OKEx Head of Operations?
Andy Cheung: You seldom see me without my mobile throughout the day. However, when I get back to the office, I think it’s important to have direct communication with my colleagues and to get to know the status of projects and any challenges that are being faced. I want to make sure I am there for the team and providing support. In a fast-paced industry like crypto, communication is happening all around the globe at all times, and I work hard to stay up to date.
EKMH: What’s been your personal experience with crypto? When did you enter the space?
Andy Cheung: I bought my first Bitcoin in 2013, when a lot of my tech-savvy friends introduced me to cryptocurrency. My first impression of Bitcoin was that it was just digital money, and with my heavy workload I wasn’t able to dig deeper into the technology. Then one day, I was alone in a cafe in Chicago waiting for a conference to begin when I got the Bitcoin white paper from a friend and started to read. I didn’t consider myself enough of a “tech geek” to read white papers, but I decided to give it a go before the conference started. That’s when I got hooked on blockchain technology.
In 2017 I brought my startup experience to help get OKEx off the ground. I still won’t say I’m a tech person; I’m still earning more about the technology every day through conversations with our engineers and developers. I do have a lot to contribute in terms of management and business development of the company. I’m proud of where we are at right now, less than two years after launching.
EKMH: How has your international experience and your ability to speak English, Cantonese, Mandarin and Afrikaans given you career advantages?
Andy Cheung: My international experience has helped shape the way OKEx approaches new markets. OKEx has a very diverse culture that sparks innovative ideas, which helps us engage global markets. We are still expanding internationally and building a team of experts from each field, including marketing & communications, product engineers, research analysts, legal, and so on. We believe that being fully engaged internally and drawing upon external resources is the key to running a healthy operation.
EKMH: Which books and/or podcasts will you bring on your next long flight?
Andy Cheung: Normally you will see me working from my phone, but taking a long flight offers a moment of silence. If I bring a book with me on my next trip, Zero To One will be it. Written by Peter Thiel, it shares his experience with Paypal, and his way of thinking of entrepreneurship inspired me in how I would like to shape OKEx. This also represents my personality; I’m fascinated by revolutionary technology and innovation, which gives me the passion to lead businesses to success.
*Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this series are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities they represent.
Search below and access thousands of interviews, articles and predictions in the EKMH Innovators Interview Archive… Be a part of the conversation.