After the crypto exchange OKEx reopened the withdrawal service for users, nearly $110 million have been withdrawn in a few hours.
Outflows from OKEx to Non-Exchange Wallets
The crypto exchange made the withdrawal facility functional at 8:00 UTC, and within 15 minutes, 2,822 Bitcoin have outflowed out of the platform. Based on the data provided by analytics firm CryptoQuant ,83% of the first batch of Bitcoin was sent to wallets, which are not linked to any crypto exchange. Till 9:00 UTC, the total number of withdrawn Bitcoin reached 4,000 (approximately $68 million).
But the interesting thing is that the inflows into the crypto exchange have also jumped which leveled the Bitcoin reserve over the platform. According to Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant, the inflows over OKEx were in the form of users’ deposits.
The rate of withdrawal jumped at the time when the price value was going down over various cryptocurrency trading platforms.
The news of the reopening of the withdrawal service was mentioned in the official statement announced on November 26. After the functionality of the long-awaited facility, the users who fear to put capital in an exchange wallet transferred their crypto assets to non-exchange wallets, which are more secure and safe.
The company dismissed the withdrawal of crypto assets in October because Star Mingxing Xu, founder of OKEx, was arrested by the Chinese police. He was taken into custody for an investigation related to the exchange. Recently, OKGroup stated in an announcement:
“The relevant investigation by public security authority in the PRC has temporarily come to an end and Mr. Xu has now returned to his normal business functions.”
Later, Xu explained that the investigation was about the shell company rather than about his personal thing. He purchased the company in 2018 where he is now offering his services as a non-executive director.
Incentive Programs
Due to the suspension of withdrawals and investigation of its founder, the trading volume and rush of users over the platform have decreased significantly. To cover the shortage of users and to increase the trading volume, the company has introduced various incentive programs for customers. According to OKEx’s official announcement:
“OKEx is expected to open withdrawals at 8:00 (UTC) on November 26, 2020. Our users should refer to the announcement “OKEx reveals user compensation and loyalty rewards for after withdrawals reopen” regarding user loyalty reward campaigns.”