OKX Pay: Opening a New Era of Next-Generation Crypto Payments

Star

A letter from OKX CEO Star:

Today, we are officially launching the first version of OKX Pay to our over 100 million global users. As the industry's first payment application that truly achieves the integration of non-custodial and compliant solutions, OKX Pay will be embedded within the OKX App, currently available in select markets, with full rollout expected within the coming months.

OKX Pay is an important step toward our vision of "integrating crypto into daily life." Next, let's explore how OKX Pay realizes this vision. Imagine this: effortlessly achieving non-custodial control, conveniently completing payments, while also earning passive returns; having a Web3 payment application with as smooth an experience as Web2 applications.

First, let's review the development of custody and payments. Self-custodial wallets have existed since the beginning of the industry. "Not your keys, not your coins" is a great philosophy. However, due to overly complex user experience, using self-custodial wallets smoothly remains a challenge. For example, once private keys are lost, the associated crypto assets are permanently lost.

According to estimates, out of Bitcoin's total supply of 21 million coins, approximately 3 to 4 million have been permanently lost, representing about 14%-19% of the total; at the current price of approximately $90,000 per coin, this amounts to roughly $195-260 billion.

Common causes of asset loss:

• Losing or forgetting seed phrases or private keys

• Hardware wallet failure without backup

• Accidentally sending assets to the wrong chain (e.g., sending BTC to an ETH address)

• Device or hard drive damage (e.g., the landfill story with 8,000 Bitcoin)

• Smart contract vulnerabilities or accidentally sending tokens to burn addresses

The crypto payment field also faces challenges. In the early days, people attempted to use Bitcoin for payments. Remember Laszlo Hanyecz's story of using 10,000 Bitcoin to buy pizza? At today's prices, that's equivalent to approximately $900 million.

Today, although we have a mature stablecoin ecosystem with USDT and USDC, barriers remain to easily using stablecoins to transfer money to friends or make payments at POS terminals, just like using bank cards or traditional payment apps. Additionally, because crypto wallets lack KYC verification, crypto payments struggle to integrate into the mainstream financial system.

Some institutions in the industry currently use centralized wallets to address this issue. However, in our view, this approach remains insufficient to drive mass adoption of crypto payments.

Through OKX Pay, we hope to enable users to use their crypto assets more conveniently while maintaining non-custodial control. Our solution is unique. Let me introduce our approach in detail:

**1.** Our wallet adopts a multi-signature approach: one is the user's Passkey signature, and the other is signed by OKX:

• If you forget your password, you can easily recover your wallet through the ZK email recovery feature

• No need to write down private keys on paper or save them in hardware wallets—Passkey is sufficiently secure

• Fund security is guaranteed—no one can access your funds without your authorization

**2.We are committed to making crypto payments as simple as sending messages. **OKX Pay will focus on stablecoin payments, initially supporting USDT and USDC, with more stablecoins to be gradually integrated in the future. Advantages include:

• Easily transfer money to anyone worldwide in just a few steps

• Can transfer to individuals or to groups at once

• Zero fees for all transactions on X Layer

• Near real-time settlement with no transfer limits (subject to compliance and risk control).

3.We are launching a new feature called passive returns —your deposits will automatically earn returns. Key advantages include:

• Deposits can earn returns through low-risk on-chain protocols

• No manual operation required—the system automatically finds quality protocols and completes staking operations

• Deposits can be withdrawn anytime without lock-up periods

• Eliminates the ongoing management required by most staking solutions

The core of OKX Pay is achieving a non-custodial experience without users having to manage their own private keys—this has always been a significant barrier preventing many from participating in the crypto space. At the same time, OKX Pay is equipped with industry-leading compliance and risk control systems.

In terms of compliance, OKX Pay protects users and assets through mechanisms including KYC, AML, and Multisig. Meanwhile, without user authorization, OKX cannot access any funds.

If users forget their password, there's no need to worry—OKX Pay can be recovered through AA and ZK Email features, making wallet recovery as convenient as resetting a bank account password.

In terms of transaction experience, OKX Pay relies on the X Layer public chain, with zero transaction costs. X Layer is OKX's ZK-based Layer 2 network built using Polygon's CDK technology. From launch, users can also automatically earn returns on held funds through the "Smart Earn" feature.

Building the Future

OKX Pay is far more than just a payment product—I firmly believe its potential and significance are extraordinary.

OKX Pay and X Layer together form core infrastructure. We firmly believe that all financial institutions will need to offer non-custodial versions in the future, covering payment and remittance functions. Financial institutions will be able to develop and deploy dApps, allowing their customers to use OKX Pay. As more people become accustomed to using crypto assets for transactions, demand for such services will inevitably surge. We are fully prepared—OKX Pay provides a fast, efficient, compliant, and secure experience to meet this demand.

In the future, all financial institutions will provide non-custodial services within compliance frameworks, including payments and remittances. OKX Pay and X Layer are building the infrastructure for this future, and we expect hundreds of millions to embark on their crypto and Web3 journey.

The crypto industry is accelerating toward the mainstream, and OKX Pay will be an important driving force in this transformation.

*OKX Pay is not currently available in all jurisdictions.

Disclaimer

This article may contain content about products not available in your region. This article is intended to provide general information only and does not accept responsibility for any factual errors or omissions herein. This article represents only the author's personal views and does not represent the views of OKX. This article is not intended to provide any advice, including but not limited to: (i) investment advice or investment recommendations; (ii) offers or solicitations to buy, sell, or hold digital assets; or (iii) financial, accounting, legal, or tax advice. Holding digital assets (including stablecoins) involves high risk, may fluctuate significantly, and may even become worthless. You should carefully consider whether trading or holding digital assets is suitable for you based on your financial situation. For questions about your specific situation, please consult your legal/tax/investment professional. The information appearing in this article (including market data and statistics, if any) is for general reference only. While we have taken all reasonable care in preparing these data and charts, we accept no responsibility for any factual errors or omissions expressed herein. © 2025 OKX. This article may be reproduced or distributed in its entirety, or excerpts of 100 words or less from this article may be used, provided such use is non-commercial. Any reproduction or distribution of the entire article must also prominently state: "Copyright © 2025 OKX. Used with permission." Permitted excerpts must cite the article name and include attribution, such as "Article Name, [Author Name (if applicable)], © 2025 OKX". Some content may be generated or assisted by artificial intelligence (AI) tools. Derivative works or other uses of this article are not permitted.

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