Away from the noise: Star talks about the long-term trends in Crypto and OKX's next steps

On January 24, 2026, OKX founder and CEO Star attended the "New Year's Eve Dinner" event via video link, sharing his latest thoughts with sincerity. The OKX "New Year's Eve Dinner" is a special event for industry builders hosted by OKX to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

Here is the full text of Star's speech (organized):
Year after year, we hope to continue this event. I look forward to continuing our journey together with all the influencers, KOLs, and partners in the next decade of the crypto and blockchain industry, growing and achieving together.

Let me share some of my thoughts from the past year.

Seeing Trends in Industry Evolution

I have spoken on many occasions about how to view the crypto and blockchain industry. Since the birth of Bitcoin in 2008, this industry has gone through fifteen or sixteen years. Back then, we viewed Bitcoin more as "funny beans" or game coins. At that time, we did not truly understand what blockchain was, nor did we know how this industry would develop in the future, where regulation would go, or to what extent applications would reach—no one knew.

As the industry evolved, Bitcoin could initially only do the simplest thing based on blockchain: issue tokens. Later, Ethereum emerged, claiming that blockchain technology could not only issue tokens but also support various applications "like mini-programs," positioning itself as "the operating system of blockchain."

In recent years, everyone has worked hard, including us at OKX, playing an important role in the Ethereum ecosystem. Today, Ethereum has indeed become the main platform for DApps, with many financial-grade applications built on it. At the same time, Ethereum is continuously evolving towards high performance, and many high-performance chains, such as Solana, have emerged in the market. We at OKX are also exploring our own path; although X Layer is still in its early stages and not mature enough, I believe it will achieve great success in the future.

As the industry develops to a certain stage, it is receiving increasing attention from regulatory agencies. Initially, starting in 2017, regulatory agencies tended to suppress the entire industry, but after several years of development, I have noticed some core trends are changing.

The first trend is that regulatory agencies are gradually recognizing that equating "Bitcoin with money laundering tools" is not valid. Any financial system can be abused; the key is that it can be abused, so governance and management are needed. In blockchain activities, illegal behaviors actually account for a very small part; it is more like a global, open, fair, and transparent financial system.

The second trend is that more and more young people—those born in the 90s, 95s, and 00s—have grown up hearing the story of Bitcoin. My child asked me what Bitcoin was many years ago. The understanding of "how to keep assets safer" is changing across generations. People of my age might say that large banks and mature financial systems are safer places to keep money, with more modern and user-friendly products. But when you talk to the younger generation, many of them feel that using tools like OKX Wallet or Coinbase Wallet to manage assets is safer and more convenient because of the transparency and verifiability on the blockchain, and the experience is getting better and better.

When it comes to products like stablecoins, people worry about potential rug pulls. Take USDG as an example; if it operates under the regulatory frameworks of the EU, Singapore, and potentially the US in the future, then logically, the possibility of such risks is very low. Looking further into the custody issue: in a self-custody model, if you back up your private key, you can import your assets into any other wallet—you can take your assets away at any time; we have no ability to take your assets. The custody part mainly refers to the custody provided by the exchange system. OKX has weathered many storms over the years, and whether it is our corporate governance structure, board governance, or the increasing number of compliance licenses we hold globally, I believe we are becoming more and more formal and taking on more responsibilities.

In this context, the industry has experienced very intense collisions over the past four to five years. On one hand, some people question or even oppose cryptocurrencies; on the other hand, more and more people are starting to use Bitcoin or other crypto assets. In this process, crypto is moving towards a brand new era.

More importantly, crypto is aligning with "future trends." Starting from the US, the trend of crypto entering the mainstream has extended worldwide: countries and regions such as the UK, EU, Japan, and Singapore are beginning to view crypto as an important direction to face, build, and incorporate into governance frameworks in the long term, even gradually rising to a "national level" competition and layout.

Adhering to Long-Termism and Protecting the Reputation of the Crypto Industry

So, what I want to say to everyone is: adhere to long-termism.

What have you missed in the past, and how will you act in the future? The first thing to answer "what to do in the future" requires you to trust the industry, company, and institutions, discard the noise, and return to the trend itself. Standing on the trends I just mentioned:

First, technological development has evolved from being able to only issue tokens at the beginning to being able to create DApps in the Ethereum era; and now, it can support various more complex, financialized, and larger-scale applications such as RWA (real-world assets on-chain).

Second, there is a change in population structure and generational concepts. More and more young people are beginning to believe that crypto is safer, more trustworthy, and has a brighter future than traditional methods in certain aspects.

The third trend is that governments and regulatory agencies around the world are beginning to systematically promote the development of this industry and related industries.

Based on these three major trends, you must make a clear plan for your next five to ten years. This plan cannot be swayed by daily market emotions or various noises. What harms you is not the opportunity, but the noise. Life must have a basic foundation; I strongly urge everyone to establish their own long-term strategy. I truly believe that if you start to think seriously and take action now, you will thank your present self many years from now.

You will find that everyone who comes into this world has their own opportunities. The saying "I was born with talent" often means that it is not that you cannot do it, but that you are disturbed by too many irrelevant voices. You should choose your "vehicle" based on the three points I just mentioned. Once you have chosen a strategy, you must learn to "turn off"—block temptations, ignore short-term fluctuations, and even forget about this money for a period of time.

I hope to instill a belief in everyone: as a member of the blockchain industry, have faith in the industry itself.

Next, I want to talk about the second thing, which is based on the development stage of the entire industry. If you have Bitcoin, Ethereum, or even larger positions, you must cherish and protect this industry. Because today's crypto is completely different from the past. Over the past few years, our industry has been questioned, belittled, and even faced extreme suppression. In addition to the development stage of the industry itself, another important reason is that some so-called "industry leaders" have irresponsibly described this industry with frivolous and exaggerated language, seriously misleading the public.

When we use terms like "hundred times" and "all in" to describe our industry every day, you need to think carefully about how the government and regulators will view you. By defining your career with "betting everything" and "fantasies of getting rich," you are essentially harming this industry, belittling it, and destroying the long-term value of the assets you hold. This is essentially "turning the table on yourself and smashing your own bowl."

On the other side of the world, you see a completely different picture: stablecoin legislation is advancing, representatives of the crypto industry are entering the White House to sign bills, and numerous crypto companies are listing on the NYSE and NASDAQ. In many countries and regions, crypto has long entered the mainstream, and industry practitioners are gradually standing on the same level as cutting-edge industries like AI and autonomous driving, gaining the respect they deserve.

I want to say that if you are only making money in this industry but not gaining respect, then such success is very fragile. Wealth, if lacking social recognition and institutional support, can easily be denied and liquidated. Respect is not something others bestow upon you; it is something you earn yourself, and the respect for this industry also requires each of us practitioners to maintain it together.

What we are engaged in is a technology-driven industry that uses technology to eliminate unfairness and allow more people to enjoy better financial technology services. Whether it is enterprises or you as KOLs and influencers, you are essentially participants, builders, and beneficiaries of this industry. Since we are a community, we need to work together to maintain the industry's reputation and earn long-term, sustainable respect.

Jokes can be made occasionally, but if extreme and emotional terms are repeatedly used to describe trading and the industry itself, you need to think: how will regulators view this? How will users and the world view this? Therefore, whether it is leading enterprises, industry organizations, or KOLs, each has its own responsibilities. Leading enterprises must have the responsibility of leading enterprises, KOLs must have the awareness of KOLs, and platforms also have their responsibilities. Since we are all participants in the industry's dividends, we should work together to maintain the industry's reputation to earn long-term, sustainable respect.

OKX's Three Major Business Directions for 2026

Next, I want to talk about some overall plans for OKX in 2026. These plans are also based on several core judgments I have repeatedly mentioned: technological development, application development, and the evolution of the regulatory and political environment.

First, in terms of trading and services, we hope to provide more diverse, friendly, and convenient exchange services within the global compliance regulatory framework. Whether it is crypto, stocks, or other asset forms in the market, we will continue to expand our service boundaries under the premise of legality and compliance, giving users more choices.

Second, we aim to bring more assets on-chain. We already have xBTC, and in the future, there will be more "X" series products covering cross-chain assets, RWAs, and even stocks and other real-world assets. We hope that through OKX's X Layer and Web3 wallet, they can become a unified carrier for multi-assets, serving as a gateway for users to enter the world of on-chain assets.

Third, we have OKX Pay payment services. This product, launched last year, received mixed reviews; we also acknowledge that it is still relatively rough, and we will continue to upgrade it in the future. Currently, we have connected with local banking systems in several countries and regions, including Brazil, Europe, and Singapore. Even in some areas where we cannot temporarily provide card services, we hope to allow ordinary users to manage assets and make daily payment needs, such as transferring to friends or merchants, without complex operations through a more user-friendly Web3 wallet. Our goal is to provide entry-level services that allow ordinary users to easily manage digital assets.

Overall, in 2026, OKX will focus on these three directions: compliant trading services, multi-asset on-chain infrastructure, and payment and wallet experience.

In addition, there is a very important part, which is our partners, including everyone present. I have made a clear request to the company: OKX must get closer to its partners. We will continue to maintain a low profile, but being low-profile does not mean being distant. Whether you are a KOL, partner, market maker, or channel partner, we will respect you more and explore more win-win ways together.

We will continue to optimize the KOL Program and Affiliate Program while building a more professional customer service and account manager system, providing one-on-one communication channels. Any suggestions you have for OKX—including criticisms or areas where you think competitors are doing better—are welcome at any time. For actionable issues, we will respond and improve within a clear SLA mechanism; even for long-term principles and core business logic, we will continue to listen and discuss better solutions with everyone.

Finally, I want to talk about X Layer and OKB. From a compliance perspective, OKX only operates with licenses in mainstream countries and regions, and we are subject to strict regulations, with many institutional red lines that cannot be crossed; from the perspective of long-term business operations, we do not agree with the "killing the chicken to get the egg" model. We are not inherently opposed to MEME. MEME is essentially a community-based token, and if the community is healthy and transparent, we welcome cooperation. However, we will not engage in projects that are highly centralized, obviously unfairly designed, and require the platform to "collaborate to create hundred times myths."

But it is clear that the construction of X Layer and OKB will never stop. X Layer is one of OKX's core infrastructures. In the past, we did not invest enough in the Web3 direction, but since last year, we have elevated it from the periphery to a core position. X Layer is our long-term strategic foundation; currently, its TVL may only be a few hundred million dollars, but our goal is 5 billion, or even 10 billion. In the future, whether it is exchange users, payment users, or wallet users, there will be a large number of applications built on X Layer.

As for OKB, as an ecological token and gas token, it has a clear and long-term positioning. There is no question of OKX abandoning X Layer or OKB. With the development and growth of OKX itself and the entire crypto and blockchain industry, I believe that both X Layer and OKB will continue to be core strategic components of OKX for the long term.

We will continue to invest in ecosystem and infrastructure development without stagnation. Regardless of whether we go public in the future, technology and long-term value will always be our core.