Crypto Exchange OKX Unveils  Regulated Operations in Australia

Crypto exchange OKX unveiled Australia operations 12 months after announcing its pursuit of regulatory approval into the country. 

The Seychelles-headquartered OKX unveiled the Australian-focused services that will run under the locally regulated entity. The unveiling of Australian operations aligns with its expansion via the Asia-Pacific region. 

When addressing a media event in Sydney, OKX president Hong Fang revealed on Tuesday, May 14, that Australia appears to be an underrated market. 

Fang added that Australia offers a good dynamic and customer mix. The market features good fundamental customers like investors who are educated, sophisticated, and interested in technology. 

OKX broke the news of launching the locally regulated entity in Australia, indicating it was the leading global crypto exchange that offers AUD on spot trading pairs. 

Fang hailed Australia as offering a dynamic customer base for the newly unveiled firm. While the traders appear sophisticated and highly interested in crypto, they are yet to take the first step. 

OKX hinted in March last year that it would open an Australian office, citing the considerable appetite for crypto. OKX considered Australia to be a key growth market. 

OKX moved the Australian-focused services on March 20 to run under the onshore entity OKX Australia Pty Ltd, shifting it from the Seychelles-based firm. The onshore entity, OKX Australia Pty Ltd, runs the crypto exchange alongside the fiat services side, leading OKX Australia Financial Pty Ltd to handle the derivatives and margin products.

OKX Complies with Australian Laws

OKX is devoted to complying with Australian laws that mandate that local users satisfy the suitability assessment. The users must meet the wholesale client outlined under the Corporations Act 2001.  

Fang downplayed the regulatory hurdles to praise the Australian regulators, citing their open and transparent engagement. 

Compliance with the Australian laws mandated OKX to halt copy trading and delist some tokens and yield-bearing products. The platform has only left withdrawal-only services for the unsupported tokens since March 20.

Fang was noncommittal on details involving OKX’s payment and banking partners. The executive indicated that OKX does not foresee concerns with their partners as witnessed in rival crypto exchange Binance in Australia. 

Fang indicated that OKX undertook pre-feasibility work upfront and evaluated the concerns before unveiling for over 12 months. She explained that OKX unveiling the operations affirms that the team is comfortable entering the market. 

The expansion into the Australian market yields scale for OKX, which currently ranks third-largest globally by transaction volume. A review of CoinGecko data shows OKX realized $2.135 billion, only trailing Binance’s $15.187 billion and Bybit’s $3.330 billion volume over the past 24 hours. 

OKX Enters Argentina

OKX’s global expansion is on course, with the crypto exchange realizing a major milestone through entry into Argentina. The firm announced in February that it officially unveiled Web3 services in Argentina. 

OKX hailed expansion into Argentina as critical, given the country’s ranking among the leading crypto markets within Latin America. The OKX executive profiled the country as realizing accelerated adoption, thus representing an exciting milestone in its global launch. 

OKX observed during the February announcement that consumer demand for digital assets is surging as innovations evolve at a stunning pace in Argentina. OKX cited Argentina’s established crypto foothold and swift evolution, making it an exciting market.

OKX announced a localized Argentina platform that guarantees the full suite of trading services. It reiterated that its global expansion seeks to offer a trusted and secure platform to its international user base, which is now estimated to be above 50 million. 

OKX Rebranding in Global Expansion

OKX announced rebranding to better customer experience as it eyes expansion in Europe. The localization also witnessed in Australia-specific platforms aims to enhance the offerings to satisfy the local needs of the European crypto community. 

Besides Australia and Argentina, OKX is reporting increased activity through geographical moves. Although it announced the closure of the India operation, citing local regulations, March featured expansion in other jurisdictions. OKX secured a license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to run as a primary payment institution (MPI) for its local subsidiary, OKX SG.