OKB is the native token of the OKX exchange and the gas token of X Layer, an Ethereum Layer 2 network that OKX built. OKB has a fixed supply of 21,000,000 tokens, and it is used for network fees, staking to deploy markets on OKX's infrastructure, and ecosystem incentives. CoinStats lists the price at $110.54, 51.67% below the all-time high of $228.74.
Core technology and blockchain architecture
OKB is not a standalone Layer 1 blockchain. It is issued as a token on several networks, including Ethereum, OKEx Chain and Sora, and it is the sole gas and native token of X Layer. X Layer launched on mainnet on 16 April 2024 as a zkEVM validium built on Polygon's Chain Development Kit. Optimism announced on 9 December 2025 that OKX had migrated the network to the OP Stack. OKX's developer documentation describes X Layer as an EVM-equivalent chain with a trusted sequencer.
The original OKB token is an ERC-20 on Ethereum. OKX has stated that the Ethereum version will be gradually phased out, and withdrawals of OKB to Ethereum L1 have stopped.
Primary use cases and real-world applications
- Gas payments: All X Layer fees are paid in OKB.
- Venue staking: Exchange OS, announced on 26 May 2026, lets builders deploy spot, perpetual or outcome markets. Deployers must stake OKB in the X Layer Staking Contract before creating a venue.
- Wallet incentives: OKX Wallet's Boost X Liquidity Phase 1 campaign ran from 19 September to 19 October 2026, with 20,000 USDT of its 200,000 USDT reward pool allocated to OKB.
Who is behind OKB and where is it based?
OKB is issued by Aux Cayes FinTech Co. Ltd., the company that operates the OKX exchange, according to the OKB whitepaper. OKX Learn names Mingxing "Star" Xu as the founder of OKB, and he is described as the founder and CEO of OKX. The sources do not name individual OKB developers, and they do not confirm a separate OK Blockchain Foundation as the current issuer.
Xu founded Okcoin in Beijing in 2013, according to Investopedia. The exchange known as OKEx launched in 2017 according to most sources and was rebranded as OKX in January 2022. OKX says the OKB token was announced in late 2017 and launched in 2018 as an ERC-20 token on Ethereum.
The sources give different locations. Aux Cayes is registered in Seychelles, according to the US Department of Justice and OKX's terms of service. The whitepaper lists a registered address in Sliema, Malta, and OKX Europe Limited holds a MiCA authorisation from Malta's regulator. Offices are also listed in Singapore, Hong Kong, the UAE and the United States. No single headquarters is confirmed.
On 24 February 2025, Aux Cayes pleaded guilty in US federal court in New York to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. The company agreed to pay penalties totalling more than $504 million.
Tokenomics
Total supply and circulating supply are both 21,000,000 OKB. The supply was reduced in August 2025 through a one-time burn. The Block reported that 278,999,999 OKB were burned in total, reducing supply from 300 million to 21 million. OKT trading on OKX ceased on 13 August 2025, and OKT held in user accounts converted to OKB.
On 18 August 2025, the OKB smart contract was upgraded to remove minting and manual burning functions. Tokens sent to a blackhole address are now burned automatically by the contract. OneKey reports that X Layer transaction fees do not burn OKB. The sources do not provide a breakdown of OKB distribution by holder category.
Consensus mechanism and network security model
OKB has no consensus mechanism of its own. Its security depends on the networks where it is issued, and on X Layer's design. OKX's whitepaper describes X Layer as an optimistic rollup, in which a sequencer orders transactions and posts them to Ethereum as blob data. The developer documentation describes a 7-day challenge period for fraud proofs.
L2BEAT classifies X Layer under "Others" rather than as a rollup. The stated reasons are that fewer than five outside parties can challenge its state, and that its contracts can be upgraded with no delay. Chainstack reports a planned Hybrid Proof, which is not yet live.
Key partnerships and ecosystem integrations
- Chainlink: On 7 February 2025, X Layer joined the Chainlink Scale program, adopted Data Feeds and began integrating CCIP.
- Exchange listings: Kraken opened OKB trading on 3 April 2026.
- Exchange OS partners: GSR, Chainalysis, xStocks, Nansen and Optimism are launch partners for Exchange OS.
- Aave: Governance discussion on deploying Aave v3 on X Layer began in September 2025.
Competitive advantages and unique value proposition
The main differentiators are the capped supply, with no minting function, and OKB's direct link to the OKX exchange and its products. Chainstack, citing DefiLlama, reports about $161.9 million in total value locked and $1.49 billion in stablecoins on X Layer as of 21 October 2026. These are third-party figures and should be checked against DefiLlama directly.
Development activity and roadmap
OKX's published 2026 roadmap lists Exchange OS in Q2, open market deployment in Q3, and protocol upgrades and optimisation in Q4. OKX announced a $100,000 developer contest on 8 September 2026, with a hackathon scheduled for 17 September 2026. X Layer paused block production for about one hour starting 27 October 2025 during a mainnet upgrade.