OKB (OKB) is the native token of the OKX cryptocurrency exchange ecosystem, historically issued as an Ethereum ERC-20 token deployed on 2019-04-26 at contract address 0x75231f58b43240c9718dd58b4967c5114342a86c.
Since an August 5, 2025 upgrade, OKB's designated native chain is X Layer, OKX's own Ethereum Layer-2 network built on Polygon CDK using zero-knowledge rollup technology, where OKB serves as the exclusive gas token. A legacy implementation also exists on OKT Chain, and the original Ethereum version is being gradually phased out.
OKB's utility is tied to X Layer, OKX's proprietary Ethereum Layer-2 network, where OKB has served as the exclusive gas token since August 2025.
Holders also receive up to 40% trading-fee discounts on OKX and can access passive-income products through OKX Earn. As of 2026-08-31, OKB's market capitalization was approximately $2.35 billion, with price momentum rated bullish in the 86th percentile among large-cap tokens.
OKB functions primarily as a utility token rather than a formal governance token, since no on-chain voting mechanism has been documented for it.
Holders use OKB to pay gas fees on X Layer, OKX's Ethereum Layer-2 network, where it has been the exclusive gas asset since August 2025. OKB also unlocks up to 40% trading-fee discounts on the OKX exchange and eligibility for passive-income products through OKX Earn.
OKB's maximum and circulating supply are both permanently fixed at 21,000,000 tokens as of 2026-08-31.
Net emission is now fixed and non-inflationary; no new OKB can be minted.
OKB launched in 2018 as OKEx's (later OKX's) native exchange token, distributed to platform users rather than sold through a conventional public token sale.
Initial supply was reported at up to 1 billion OKB, with 700 million allocated to the OKX team and OK Blockchain Foundation under a 1-3 year lockup. This differs from the 2019-04-26 on-chain deployment of OKB's tracked Ethereum ERC-20 contract, and from OKX's 2017 founding, one year before OKB's token generation.
OKB's designated native chain since August 2025 is X Layer, OKX's own Ethereum Layer-2 network using zero-knowledge rollup consensus, built on the Polygon Chain Development Kit (CDK).
OKB was originally deployed as an Ethereum ERC-20 token, and a legacy implementation also exists on OKT Chain.
OKX (formerly OKEx) was founded in 2017 in Beijing by Star Xu (Xu Mingxing), who remains founder and CEO as of 2026.
Jay Hao joined as OKX CEO in November 2018 before later departing, with Star Xu currently serving as CEO. CertiK Skynet lists the OKB team's identity as 'Not Verified.'
OKB is issued by the OK Blockchain Foundation, historically associated with the OKEx/OKX exchange group, whose corporate structure spans multiple jurisdictions.
An OKEx Malta entity was established in 2017, while the Seychelles-registered operating entity, Aux Cayes FinTech Co., pleaded guilty in February 2025 to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business in the US, paying roughly $505 million in fines and forfeiture. In March 2026, Intercontinental Exchange (parent of the NYSE) took a minority stake in OKX at a $25 billion valuation, gaining a board seat.
OKB has no documented formal on-chain governance mechanism, such as token-weighted voting or a DAO structure.
Marketing materials state that holders can 'influence key decisions through governance and community participation,' but no specific voting process or proposal system has been located. Control functions in practice with OKX and the OK Blockchain Foundation as centralized issuer: the August 2025 contract upgrade removing minting/burning capability was a unilateral issuer decision rather than a token-holder vote.
OKX's most significant recent OKB-related change was the August 5, 2025 upgrade that fixed OKB's supply at 21,000,000 and made it the exclusive gas token of X Layer.
CertiK Skynet gives OKB a security score of 92.69 (AA rating), though CertiK states OKB itself has not been directly audited by CertiK, noting one third-party audit is available.