OKX raises funding at flat $25 billion valuation with Circle, Ripple and Standard Chartered
Crypto exchange OKX has completed a strategic funding round at an unchanged $25 billion valuation, drawing capital from Circle, Ripple, Standard Chartered's SC Ventures, and quantitative hedge fund Qube Research & Technologies.
Crypto exchange OKX completed a fresh strategic funding round at an unchanged $25 billion pre-money valuation, bringing in stablecoin issuer Circle, Ripple, Standard Chartered's venture unit SC Ventures, and London-based quantitative hedge fund Qube Research & Technologies (QRT), according to Bloomberg reports and company confirmations. The amount raised was not publicly disclosed. The financing serves as an extension of a round from March, when New York Stock Exchange parent Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) committed roughly $200 million at the same valuation.[1][4][5]
OKX Chief Executive Officer Star Xu stated that the exchange took on the new investors for strategic alignment rather than a need for capital. The participating firms already operate within OKX's broader financial architecture: Circle's USDC is integrated across the exchange, Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin is offered via OKX's unified order book, and Standard Chartered serves as third-party custodian for BlackRock's BUIDL fund used in OKX's institutional collateral network. QRT also acts as an institutional liquidity counterparty on the platform.[1][4]
The fresh investment coincides with OKX expanding its institutional and retail footprint beyond pure crypto trading. The exchange's joint venture with ICE, known as OKXICE, recently published plans to list 63 tokenized U.S. equities under an SEC innovation exemption for round-the-clock trading against stablecoins. Concurrently, OKX launched OKX Money, a standalone consumer application intended to enable users to hold, transfer, and spend dollar-backed stablecoins via virtual and physical payment cards.[1][4]
Key facts
- OKX secured a strategic investment round at an unchanged $25 billion pre-money valuation from Circle, Ripple, Standard Chartered's SC Ventures, and Qube Research & Technologies.
- The funding extends a round from March in which NYSE parent ICE invested about $200 million at the identical $25 billion valuation.
- The total amount of capital raised in the extension round was not disclosed.
- OKX CEO Star Xu stated the exchange did not need the financing and chose the partners for long-term strategic fit across stablecoins, payments, and market infrastructure.
- Standard Chartered acts as custodian for BlackRock's BUIDL tokenized fund in an institutional collateral framework developed with OKX.
- OKXICE, a 50-50 joint venture between OKX and ICE, posted an Oct. 4 notice detailing plans to offer 63 tokenized equities under an SEC exemption.
- OKX launched OKX Money, a standalone application allowing users to fund accounts across more than 50 currencies and spend USDG, USDC, or USDT.
Sources · 5 sources
- UN
UnchainedArticle ·
Circle, Ripple and Hedge Fund QRT Back Crypto Exchange OKX at $25 Billion Valuation Stablecoin issuer Circle , Ripple , Standard Chartered’s investment arm SC Ventures and London-based hedge fund Qube Research & Technologies (QRT) have put new money into crypto exchange OKX at a $25 billion valuation , Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. The new money adds to a round OKX raised earlier this year, according to Bloomberg. On March 5, NYSE parent Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) announced a strategic investment in the exchange at the same $25 billion valuation. ICE did not publish its terms, and Bloomberg put the check at roughly $200 million . ICE’s release said it would receive a seat on OKX’s board. Get Unchained’s crypto news in your inbox with the free Unchained Daily newsletter . Tokenized Stocks in View The new capital arrives as OKX and ICE prepare to trade tokenized U.S. equities through OKXICE , the 50-50 joint venture they announced in June . OKXICE published a notice dated Oct. 4 listing 63 stock tokens , among them Tesla, Microsoft and JPMorgan, that it intends to offer under the innovation exemption the SEC granted Sept. 17, which allows onchain trading of tokenized stocks for five years. The tokens would trade around the clock against one of three stablecoins, one of them Circle’s USDC . The notice does not give a launch date. Who Is Backing OKX Bloomberg said the round brought in existing OKX partners alongside QRT. OKX named Standard Chartered a third-party custodian for its institutional business in October 2024. QRT became independent of Credit Suisse in 2018. Bloomberg reported that the quant firm runs a crypto fund called Moebius , with roughly $1 billion under management as of 2025, and has invested in algorithmic trading software maker Tread.fi . “QRT’s investment reflects our confidence in OKX and the long-term growth of digital assets and 24/7 markets,” Thomas Eaton , QRT’s quantitative trading director, said in a statement. For OKX, the raise “focuses on strengthening OKX’s long-term market infrastructure,” Haider Rafique , the exchange’s global managing partner, said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg. Related Listen: The Chopping Block: Dragonfly’s $650M Fund + Crypto’s Great Resignation + OpenClaw vs Crypto Twitter The post Circle, Ripple and Hedge Fund QRT Back Crypto Exchange OKX at $25 Billion Valuation appeared first on Unchained .
Open source - FC
Frank Chaparro 🇸🇬@fintechfrankPost on X ·
Bloomberg is reporting that OKX has raised fresh funding at a $25 billion valuation. Circle, Ripple, Standard Chartered’s SC Ventures and hedge fund Qube Research participated in the raise, which extends a March round in which NYSE parent ICE invested roughly $200 million at the same valuation. OKX did not disclose the size of the new investment.
Open source - TB
The Block@TheBlockCoPost on X ·
NEW: Crypto exchange OKX has raised new funding at a $25 billion valuation from Qube Research & Technologies, Circle, Ripple, and Standard Chartered's SC Ventures, Bloomberg reported. OKX did not disclose the amount raised, which extends a March funding round at the same valuation.
Open source - CR
CryptoSlateArticle ·
Ripple and Circle backs OKX as it targets the next wave of stablecoin users OKX brought Circle , Ripple and Standard Chartered’s venture arm onto its cap table as the crypto exchange broadens its push into stablecoin-based financial services. On Oct. 6, the exchange's Chief Executive Officer, Star Xu, confirmed that the company completed a strategic investment from Circle, Qube Research & Technologies, Ripple and SC Ventures by Standard Chartered at a $25 billion pre-money valuation, extending a March round led by Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange. OKX did not disclose how much it raised in the latest transaction. The valuation was unchanged from March, when ICE invested about $200 million. The new round instead adds shareholders whose businesses overlap with OKX’s expansion into stablecoins, payments, institutional liquidity and tokenized assets. Xu said the exchange chose the new investors for their strategic fit rather than because it needed additional financing, pointing to its longer-term ambitions across payments and financial infrastructure. He stated: “We didn’t raise capital because we needed it. We chose to bring in strategic partners who share our long-term vision for stablecoins, payments, institutional markets, and the next generation of financial infrastructure.” Stablecoin firms move onto OKX’s cap table The investor lineup gives OKX closer ties to companies already supplying infrastructure across its platform. Circle issues USDC, which is integrated across OKX. Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin is available through the exchange’s unified order book, while QRT is a major institutional counterparty that provides liquidity and risk capacity. Standard Chartered, meanwhile, acts as custodian for BlackRock’s BUIDL tokenized Treasury fund used in an institutional collateral framework developed with OKX. Those relationships make the fundraising more than a conventional capital injection. Ripple said the investment could deepen cooperation with OKX across stablecoins, payments and institutional markets, while Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire described the transaction as an extension of the companies’ existing relationship around USDC and onchain market infrastructure. QRT’s participation adds an institutional trading component. The quantitative investment manager already works with OKX on liquidity and new markets, while SC Ventures gives the exchange another link to a global bank as crypto companies compete to bring traditional financial assets and payment flows onto blockchain networks. The composition of the round also helps explain why OKX accepted new investors without securing a higher valuation seven months after ICE bought in. The company is effectively adding partners positioned across several layers of the financial stack it wants to build, from stablecoin issuance and custody to liquidity and payments. OKX Money targets users beyond crypto trading That expansion moved into consumer payments on Tuesday with the launch of OKX Money , a standalone app designed to let customers save, send and spend dollar-backed stablecoins. According to OKX, users in participating markets can fund accounts using more than 50 supported currencies and hold USDG, USDC or USDT . The app combines stablecoin balances with global transfers and virtual or physical cards, while OKX says it charges no foreign-exchange fee or conversion markup when customers make purchases in another currency. Eligible customers can also earn up to 10% annually on qualifying USDG balances without staking or lockups, while a loyalty program offers up to 10% cashback on eligible card purchases. Availability, rates and features vary by market and customer eligibility. The target market extends well beyond existing exchange users. OKX said roughly 70% of the people it wants to reach through Money have never used a crypto application, prompting the company to keep the underlying blockchain infrastructure largely out of the user experience. That puts OKX into a different competitive arena from the exchange business that built its global customer base. Stablecoin providers, crypto platforms and fintech companies are increasingly competing for consumers who want dollar exposure, cross-border transfers and card payments without necessarily wanting to trade digital assets. OKX is initially focusing on participating markets where currency volatility, banking access and foreign-exchange costs can make holding or spending dollars difficult. The company said it will expand gradually rather than make the service immediately available across all of the more than 30 jurisdictions where it operates under regulatory frameworks. The commercial test will be whether OKX can turn an infrastructure advantage and a large crypto customer network into everyday financial activity. Winning users who have never touched crypto requires different distribution, compliance and customer-support capabilities from running a trading venue. That challenge also raises the stakes for the new investors. Circle and Ripple want broader stablecoin distribution, QRT benefits from deeper institutional markets, and Standard Chartered has been expanding its exposure to digital-asset infrastructure. OKX now has to show those relationships can generate payment volumes and customer adoption beyond the trading activity that built the exchange. The post Ripple and Circle backs OKX as it targets the next wave of stablecoin users appeared first on CryptoSlate .
Open source - CT
Coin TelegraphArticle ·
OKX exchange raises fresh capital at $25B valuation OKX raised an undisclosed amount at a $25 billion valuation as an extension to March’s investment round led by the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange.
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