OKX has added Circle, Ripple, Qube Research & Technologies (QRT) and SC Ventures as investors at a $25 billion pre-money valuation. The round extends the stake Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) took in March, and each new backer already works with OKX across stablecoins, liquidity and custody.
OKX announced Tuesday that Circle, Ripple, QRT and SC Ventures have invested in the exchange at a $25 billion valuation. The exchange said the round extends the stake ICE took in March, describing the new figure as pre-money, before the fresh capital is counted.
Each backer already works with OKX
None of the four investors is new to the exchange. QRT, a multi-strategy investment manager, already supplies liquidity and risk capacity as an institutional counterparty. Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin trades across OKX's unified order book, having gone live on more than 280 OKX trading pairs in April, including against XRP.
According to CryptoPotato, Ripple's SVP of Stablecoins Jack McDonald said: "Our investment reflects our conviction in what they're building." Standard Chartered's link runs through BlackRock's BUIDL tokenized Treasury fund, which OKX, BlackRock and the bank made available as trading collateral for VIP and institutional clients on April 28.
Ripple's stake also fits a broader pattern. In August, the firm invested in ZILO and Licuido, two firms focused on digital capital market infrastructure, as it keeps expanding into institutional finance and tokenization.
Tokenized stocks and a dollar app follow days later
The investment round landed two days after OKXICE, the joint venture between OKX and ICE, filed with the SEC to offer 63 tokenized NYSE stocks to US users on October 4. Those tokens must carry the same dividend and voting rights as the underlying shares, and listed companies have 30 days to opt out before trading can begin.
OKX also launched OKX Money on Tuesday, a standalone app for saving, sending and spending dollar stablecoins that lets users fund accounts in more than 50 currencies and hold USDG, USDC or Tether's USDT. Qualifying customers can earn up to 10% a year on eligible USDG balances, with no staking or lockup required, though those rewards are available only in select regions for now.
Sources: CryptoPotato, U.Today
Trading involves risk.