# Mingxing (Star) Xu

> Mingxing 'Star' Xu is the Chinese engineer and founder-CEO of OKX. After learning how to scale a consumer platform as CTO of Docin, he founded Okcoin in 2013 and helped build its international successor, OKX, into a crypto and financial-infrastructure company serving more than 120 million customers. His current agenda joins two ideas that usually quarrel: regulated, institutional-grade markets and user-controlled self-custody.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at OKX
- **Organizations:** OKX, Okcoin, Docin, Yahoo China
- **Nationality:** Chinese
- **Education:** Bachelor's degree in Applied Physics, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Postgraduate study; did not complete the program, Renmin University of China
- **Known for:** Built OKX into a global crypto and blockchain-infrastructure company serving more than 120 million customers by 2026., Expanded OKX from exchange trading into self-custody wallets, payments, onchain tools and developer infrastructure., Secured a 2026 strategic investment and partnership with Intercontinental Exchange at a $25 billion OKX valuation.

## Career timeline

- **2006** — Left postgraduate study and worked at Yahoo China.
- **2007-2012** — Helped build Docin, a document-sharing platform, and served as chief technology officer.
- **2012** — Bought Bitcoin after first encountering it the previous year.
- **2013** — Founded Okcoin; the trading platform launched that summer.
- **2017** — Launched the international exchange later known as OKX.
- **2022** — OKEx rebranded as OKX, reflecting a broader exchange-and-Web3 product strategy.
- **2025** — OKX expanded in regulated markets; its Seychelles entity pleaded guilty in the United States to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and agreed to more than $500 million in forfeiture and fines.
- **2026** — Intercontinental Exchange invested in OKX at a $25 billion valuation and took a board seat as the companies announced a broad market-infrastructure relationship.

## Achievements

- Built OKX into a global crypto and blockchain-infrastructure company serving more than 120 million customers by 2026.
- Expanded OKX from exchange trading into self-custody wallets, payments, onchain tools and developer infrastructure.
- Secured a 2026 strategic investment and partnership with Intercontinental Exchange at a $25 billion OKX valuation.
- Led the company through licensing frameworks in the United States, Europe, the UAE, Singapore and Australia.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Announced the first version of OKX Pay for selected markets, framed as a payments product for the company's global user base.
- **2026-06** — Introduced Exchange OS, an X Layer protocol upgrade intended to let developers and institutions deploy markets using OKX infrastructure.
- **2026-06** — Outlined expanded European payment and card products following a European Payment Institution license.
- **2026-03** — OKX entered a strategic relationship with Intercontinental Exchange, which invested at a $25 billion valuation and received a board seat.

## Links

- Website: https://www.okx.com/learn/author/star
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/star-xu-6a72aa56
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/star_okx

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/mingxing-star-xu
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-26