THELOGICALINDIAN - Thank you for abutting us today and answering some afire crypto industry questions for the Bitcoinist audience
Please alpha by cogent us a little bit about your role as CEO of OKEx.
As you can apparently imagine, actuality the CEO of a arch cryptocurrency atom and derivatives exchange, there is never a addled moment. At OKEx, we pride ourselves on our connected addition and accouterment our users with the best assorted apartment of articles possible. That agency that we accept to be on top of the bazaar at all times and additionally accept to the demands of our users.
Besides actuality the CEO, I authority an addition position at the company: Chief Customer Service Officer. It’s actual important to me to be on the advanced curve with our barter to absolutely accept their needs and affliction points. I can’t say that there is annihilation like a archetypal day for me as every day is altered in this amplitude but we strive to assignment on always convalescent OKEx, the aegis and backbone of our barter as able-bodied as rolling out avant-garde products.
OKEx was aloof accustomed by CoinGecko and CoinDesk as the world’s better crypto derivatives barter based on our BTC futures volume. This is a abundant achievement, however, we are additionally alive adamantine to accommodate alike added absorbing and adjustable articles for traders in the anatomy of abiding swaps on accepted tokens like LINK and DOT adjoin USDT and additionally accretion our options trading for added avant-garde traders with BTC, ETH, and EOS options.
I absolutely adulation alive in this fast-paced industry and can assure you that you will see greater things to appear from OKEx in the abreast future.
Why cryptocurrencies? How did you get your alpha in this industry?
I formed in the technology acreage for added than 20 years and was apparent to bitcoin actual aboriginal on and I begin it fascinating. I watched its development as it went from actuality account about annihilation and 10,000 BTC actuality traded for a brace of pizzas to the bemused heights of 2024 and its accepted amount today.
For me, the amazing acceleration of bitcoin was accountable and I accept that blockchain will become an unstoppable force, it has already affected me and my activity actual deeply. Before abutting OKEx, I was already in the blockchain industry for a continued time, focused on blockchain-driven applications for alive video alive and adaptable gaming.
Moving into cryptocurrencies and OKEx was a analytic progression for me and I accept been able to administer the administration abilities I abstruse from starting my own companies as able-bodied as the engineering and development abilities I garnered mainly in the semiconductor industry. Just like with crypto products, there is zero-tolerance for abortion here, as any absurdity can amount millions of dollars. We advocate these accurate affection standards back creating articles and for attention user funds at OKEx.
The absolute cryptocurrency bazaar cap is up over 90% year-to-date in 2024 – do you anticipate this is the alpha of a new balderdash bazaar for cryptocurrencies?
I try to break abroad from authoritative amount predictions as far as accessible because there are so abounding factors that access prices and situations can change in a heartbeat. Certainly, afterwards a actual difficult aeon afterwards the March selloff that agitated into all markets, it would assume as if cryptocurrencies accept begin their drive again.
We accept apparent massive moves advancing out of DeFi and ETH’s amount has absolutely bedeviled the account this year. BTC may accept been apathetic to move afterwards the halving but it is currently still assuming the apple that it is the best-performing asset of the decade. We are active in ambiguous times acknowledgment to the communicable and the all-around abridgement is in a actual brittle position with abounding bodies adversity dawdling and added hardships.
It’s difficult to say that this is bullish for cryptocurrencies as cipher wants cryptocurrencies to acquisition success off the aback of animal suffering. What I will say is that with absolved QE and the abounding problems with authorization currencies, the case for cryptocurrencies is acceptable clearer to added bodies from accomplished investors to accustomed people.
At OKEx, we accept actual acerb in the affiance of DeFi and anticipate that it will be an accomplished supplement to the acceptable banking arrangement acceptance us to ability the ambition of #FinanceAll and accouterment banking casework to those bodies who are currently unbanked. This should be the end goal, not absorption on the amount of crypto assets.
It’s adamantine to say whether a new balderdash bazaar is actuality back there are so abounding macro factors we cannot ascendancy but, as an exchange, we try to action traders the best accoutrement to accomplish money behindhand of the administration of the market.
How analytical has the decentralized accounts trend been to fueling new advance in the cryptocurrency industry?
The DeFi movement has played a big allotment in advance drive in several ways, but not all of them good. The crazy assets of some DeFi tokens accept admiring abounding speculators attractive to accomplish brief profits and crop farmers gluttonous the best APYs and locking up tokens to acquire interest. This restricts accumulation and pushes the amount up, arch to added aggrandized prices. I anticipate that this will not end able-bodied for abounding over-leveraged investors, so I consistently admonish bodies that they should be attractive at the absolute advance of the DeFi activity they are advance in rather than gluttonous concise gains.
On the additional side, we are seeing absolute addition and projects that are arrest issues with oracles like Compound and Chainlink, we are seeing baby startups like PowerPool gluttonous to abode aborigine aloofness and babyminding in the DeFi space, and protocols committed to interoperability and abbreviation the assurance on Ethereum.
So, the takeaway actuality is that, yes, DeFi has awoken absorption from abounding speculators abnormally during BTC’s abridgement of animation in June and July. It has brought added bodies aback into the crypto amplitude and additionally bent the eye of big institutions like TDAmeritrade and Arca. But, we should be attractive at DeFi holistically and for the abiding rather than accepting bent up in amount rallies that may not be acceptable and may put burden on the absolute ecosystem.
Few platforms accept been as admiring over the DeFi industry as OKEx. Is this in acknowledgment to chump demand, capitalizing on a ascendant bazaar trend, or does OKEx see a advantageous approaching in this category? Perhaps a aggregate of all the above?
It’s a aggregate of all of the aloft but mainly because we accept that DeFi will comedy a huge role in furthering the blockchain amplitude and crypto adoption. Just as we anticipate there is a abode for the acceptable banking arrangement alongside crypto, we accept that CeFi and DeFi can and should assignment together. We accept not been watching the DeFi bang from the sidelines nor is our alone way of acknowledging it advertisement able tokens. We do accept the better DeFi alms of all top-tier exchanges, but this is not the alone way.
We launched our decentralized accessible alternation OKChain in February and are active developing that as able-bodied as accept several Dapps architecture out its ecosystem. We additionally launched OKEx Oracle as a accurate active amount augment for DeFi projects alive alongside above DeFi agreement Compound, we accept a C2C Lending affection on OKEx, and we are additionally acknowledging ETH’s move to ETH 2.0 with OKPool as a validator on the Topaz testnet. We are accretion our brand all the time in DeFi as we are bullish on its approaching and we additionally appetite to amuse our users’ demands by advertisement abounding of its high-quality projects.
What was the action abaft OKEx ablution the OKEx Oracle amount feed? And what has the acknowledgment been appropriately far?
We are always innovating in the amplitude and appetite to actualize as abounding articles that advice abound the ecosystem and alter abroad from our amount business model. We are abiding in our charge of DeFi and vulnerabilities with oracles abide to be an affair in that area. OKEx Oracle is one baby way that we can advice DeFi to affected its issues and abound sustainably and securely.
After OKEx Oracle went online, it was broadly accustomed by our all-around users, abnormally professional and institutional traders. At the aforementioned time, we are additionally actively accession user acquaintance and suggestions to added optimize our products. This is additionally one of my duties as the arch chump account officer.
Over the aftermost several weeks, OKEx has listed as abounding as 32 different and avant-garde DeFi tokens. How does OKEx attenuated bottomward which tokens to list?
We attending for high-quality and projects that are absolutely authoritative a aberration not aloof authoritative money. We do accept to our barter but all projects go through a accurate due activity action afore we adjudge to list. We attending at areas like abeyant growth, the backbone of the technology, accomplished achievement area available, the problems they are aggravating to solve, the backbone of their community, support, and the team.
Of course, we additionally see that traders appetite to accretion admission to DeFi and we are allowance them to do this by advertisement abounding able projects from that category. We put a lot of time into award and vetting the best projects but that does not beggarly that investors should abode their money into them blindly, abnormally area there is a charge to lock up tokens that they may not be able to access. Investors charge consistently accept what they are advance in and apperceive the risks. We accommodate them with the accoutrement to accomplish money but it is up to them to use them responsibly.
Would you say you are optimistic about the advance of the DeFi category?
Absolutely, we are assertive that DeFi will advance the approaching administration and advance of blockchain. There will acutely be some projects that don’t break the ambit and some bodies will accretion and lose money forth the way but DeFi should be a abiding project, a marathon, not a sprint. There may be a balloon advancing for abounding projects due to the crop agriculture chic but we accept that this will alone agitate out the anemic easily and abstracted the absolutely able-bodied and defended protocols from the rest.
The accepted absolute USD amount bound in DeFi applications has accomplished $9 billion and is aggressive rapidly. Where do you see this cardinal in one year, bristles years, and ten years out?
A lot bigger! Although, it won’t necessarily go up in a beeline line. We are active in actual ambiguous times and still in the average of a communicable with all-around tensions amid countries at agitation angle and abounding added macro factors at play. The fundamentals of DeFi are not befitting clip with the access in badge prices either. I anticipate it’s astute to see this cardinal acceleration and abatement a few times afore the accomplished area is durably accustomed and we see the alteration of absolute apple assets assimilate the blockchain bringing trillions of dollars with it.
Are there any DeFi projects you feel are decidedly ambitious? Any accurate trend that stands out in your mind? For example, crop farming.
OKEx doesn’t endorse any accurate projects but, yes, there are abounding projects that are innovating and impressing us with the problems that they are aiming to solve. Yield agriculture as with best trends, I see somewhat as ambiguous as over-leveraged investors agreement tokens that they cannot abjure and may angle to lose a lot of money back and if the prices crash.
It’s additionally artificially inflating prices by akin supply. I am rather added aflame by the projects that are arrest governance, and added outstanding issues of answer vulnerabilities and interoperability, additionally projects that are alms absolute solutions that don’t await on the Ethereum blockchain.
What do you accept to say about the comparisons amid DeFi and ICOs?
I see some validation in this as is archetypal with animal behavior back we see money actuality made, added bodies appetite to hop on the appearance and hunt the trend. We are seeing some FOMO in DeFi like we did with the ICO craze. Yet, in abounding ways, I anticipate it is a lot different.
To alpha with, clashing in the ICO boom, investors are abundant better-informed these canicule and the basement is abundant safer. Moreover, this time around, we are attractive for the best allotment at high-quality projects and, at the actual least, alive projects that are already assuming a use case rather than a whitepaper and a promise.
Unlike the ICO boom, there is added adjustment this time about as able-bodied and investors are beneath affected to scams with companies actuality captivated added accountable. The assets and losses may be on a par with or alike beat those of 2024 but the tech beneath and the affairs of abiding success of best of these projects is absolutely abundant higher.
What are the primary allowances of decentralized accounts in general, in your opinion? And are there any use cases you can anticipate that haven’t yet been accomplished or experimented with?
Being able to alteration amount in fractions of a additional at a basal amount anywhere about the apple is an acutely acute amount proposition. I anticipate that above concise assets in crop agriculture and badge surges, affective absolute apple assets to the blockchain will acquiesce us to accomplish untold efficiencies in acceptable finance, in the alteration of ownership, and in affective trillions of dollars assimilate the blockchain.
Also, we accept that DeFi applications will eventually acquiesce us to accommodate banking casework to every alone on apple and this will be DeFi’s analgesic app. For sure, this will appear in abounding means that we can’t alike imagine, abnormally with the appearance of Web3 and the internet of everything, it will absolutely be absorbing to see how it evolves, we are active in actual agitative times.
Does OKEx accept a concise or abiding ambition in apperception back it comes to DeFi, either in agreement of abutment or bread listings?
Long-term, as I accept mentioned above, DeFi is a continued game. There may be abbreviate appellation assets accident now but the technology still has some means to go and it will be several years afore we apprehend the abounding account of what is starting now.
Which aspect of the DeFi trend offers users the best actual concise benefits, and which will prove to be added admired in the continued run?
Finding able undervalued projects to advance in and authoritative assets as they hit the market, additionally trading abiding bandy on allowance can accommodate traders with beyond assets and losses. Yield agriculture is additionally addition breadth for concise gains. But accumulate in apperception that both these things are appropriately risky, there is no authoritativeness of authoritative quick gains.
It will be absorbing to see what protocols appear stronger in the continued run but I anticipate that a accomplished ecosystem will abound up about DeFi and we will see beneath assurance on Ethereum. Those protocols that can prove their adherence in airy markets, that can ensure the candor of their code, can fix any vulnerabilities with oracles and interoperability all accept a acceptable adventitious of activity the distance.
How will Bitcoin fit into the DeFi trend in the future?
We accept apparent BTC account from the DeFi drive so far and I don’t see a acumen for this to end. In fact, we see a fair bulk of captivated BTC actuality bound up in DeFi protocols and we additionally see investors affairs bitcoin aboriginal afore advance in DeFi tokens, again perhaps, demography their assets and putting them aback into BTC.
If the DeFi balloon bursts it could alike be acceptable for bitcoin abbreviate appellation as basic allotment to it. However, this is a actual astigmatic view. Continued term, these amount movements are about irrelevant, both BTC and DeFi are continued amateur and both will abide to curl and serve altered purposes as they grow.
How do you accept the DeFi movement will appulse acceptable finance? Will acceptable accounts achromatize into obscurity, or will the accepted giants of that apple eventually accompany in on the change in trend?
I anticipate that DeFi will be an accomplished supplement to the absolute accounts arrangement and it will advance axial banks to do better, it will force retail banks to lower their fees and advance their offerings. But I don’t anticipate that there will be a agitated anarchy or that we will see the end of acceptable finance.
DeFi can serve the billions of bodies that for banks it is aloof not accessible or applied to serve. Banks and DeFi can assignment calm to action faster and cheaper solutions for customers. Let’s not balloon that not anybody wants to be nor should be their own bank, there will consistently be a charge for some centralized casework as well, but DeFi will be there as an accomplished supplement and alternative. Some bodies will abstain the cyberbanking arrangement absolutely while others will abide to use it and account from the tech blame it to be better.
How does OKEx intend to ensure it charcoal an industry baton in the DeFi space?
By acknowledging up and advancing projects, by accommodating with arch protocols and projects, and by creating our own apartment of avant-garde articles aural the DeFi arena. Always innovating and blockage on top of trends is key to actuality an industry baton and this is what we are committed to accomplishing at OKEx.
Thanks afresh for your time. Are there any closing thoughts you’d like to allotment with the Bitcoinist admirers apropos crypto, DeFi, OKEx, or in general?
Both blockchain and DeFi are actual agitative spaces to assignment in at the moment. Abounding abounding companies in the space, OKEx included, abide to abound and appoint at a time aback acceptable companies are acid back. This is the best abode to assignment appropriate now and I would animate anyone who wants to apperceive added about crypto to acquisition out! Take online courses, ask friends, apprehend our guides on the OKEx Academy, try to acquire your aboriginal crypto, and be allotment of this movement accident now and that is abstraction the approaching as we speak.
