OKX affiliate Aux Cayes FinTech pleaded guilty in the United States to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and agreed to approximately $505 million in penalties and forfeiture over historical AML and customer-access failures.
SourcePublic company, workplace, funding, and market signals
Updated Aug 5, 2026
OKX (legally Aux Cayes FinTech Co. Ltd., formerly OKEx) is a privately held global digital-asset and Web3 technology company. It operates a centralized crypto exchange, institutional trading and custody, payments, and an on-chain ecosystem used by more than 100 million customers according to its careers site; its own homepage separately states more than 70 million users, so user figures vary by source and definition.
Primary product
OKX crypto exchange and Web3 platform: spot and derivatives trading, P2P, trading bots, earn products, institutional APIs/custody, and a multi-chain Web3 wallet.
Founded
2017
Headquarters
San Jose, California for the Americas; Dubai for the Middle East; corporate/legal records also identify Victoria/Mahé, Seychelles.
Team size
4,000+ (official careers site); third-party estimates range roughly 2,800–5,000.
Work style
Flexible
Industry
Financial services / fintech
Sub-industry
Cryptocurrency exchange, digital assets, blockchain infrastructure, Web3 and crypto payments
Offices
Business model
Stage
Private, corporate minority investment-backed
Total raised
$200M
Latest round
Corporate minority investment by Intercontinental Exchange · Mar 2026
Latest amount
$200M
Corporate minority investment by Intercontinental Exchange
Mar 2026 · Intercontinental Exchange
Leadership
Star Xu
Founder and CEO
Erald Ghoos
CEO, OKX Europe
Gracie Lin
CEO, OKX Singapore
Yuri Mushkin
Global Chief Risk Officer
Linda A. Lacewell
Global Chief Legal Officer
Jonathan Brockmeier
Global Chief Compliance Officer
Mark Wetjen
Global Head of Policy and Regulatory Affairs
Haider Rafique
Chief Marketing Officer and Global Managing Partner
Andrew M. Cuomo
Board member
OKX describes an international, multicultural, ownership-oriented culture centered on “WE before Me,” “Get things done,” and “Do the right thing,” with global exposure, mentoring and learning. The company emphasizes decentralization, security, compliance and building products for crypto/Web3 adoption.
Work style
Flexible
Compensation
The official careers site promises competitive salary/compensation and benefits but does not publish a standardized company-wide salary band. Role- and location-specific third-party postings provide compensation signals; treat them as non-authoritative.
Benefits
Pricing
Primarily usage-based fees: tiered maker/taker trading fees, spreads/conversion charges, derivatives and P2P fees, plus product-specific custody, payment or service pricing. Exact rates vary by jurisdiction, product and volume.
Differentiators
Technology
Customers
Competitors
Estimated revenue
Approximately $50 million annual revenue according to a third-party company directory; confidence low because OKX is private and the figure is not company-reported.
OKX affiliate Aux Cayes FinTech pleaded guilty in the United States to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and agreed to approximately $505 million in penalties and forfeiture over historical AML and customer-access failures.
SourceOKX Europe acquired a MiFID II-licensed company in Malta to support regulated European derivatives operations.
SourceGlobal restructuring of the institutional business caused job losses; CoinDesk reported approximately one-third of the institutional sales team exited, while OKX said it was not a mass layoff.
SourceOKX suspended crypto services in India while addressing local regulatory requirements.
SourceIntercontinental Exchange invested in OKX at a reported $25 billion valuation; the strategic relationship and planned US products remain subject to regulatory approvals.
SourceTechCrunch · Jun 2026
OKX launched OKX AI, an agent marketplace using wallets, stablecoins and on-chain reputations, accessed through Onchain OS.
Reuters · Mar 2026
ICE made a minority investment valuing OKX at $25 billion and agreed a strategic relationship covering crypto prices, futures and tokenized equities.
CoinDesk · Jan 2026
Institutional-business restructuring led to sales-team job losses as OKX shifted toward a more traditional institutional coverage model.
OKX · Aug 2025
OKX described new legal, compliance and policy leadership and reported more than 120 legal and 475 compliance professionals as of June 2025.
U.S. Department of Justice · Feb 2025
A Seychelles-based OKX affiliate pleaded guilty and agreed to penalties and forfeiture totaling approximately $505 million.
335 jobs at OKX