OKX valuation set at $25 billion before new cash

OKX says four of its business partners have invested in the exchange: Circle, Ripple, Qube Research & Technologies (QRT) and SC Ventures by Standard Chartered. OKX set a $25 billion pre-money valuation, its value before counting the new cash, in a release and an X post at 16:45 UTC on Oct. 6, 2026. CEO Star Xu says the round gives OKX capital to keep growing and to tokenize real-world assets. For XRP holders, the stake matters because OKX says Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin is available across its unified order book.

The $25 billion leaves out the new cash

Pre-money means the value of a company before the new investment arrives. The $25 billion is the number OKX set for itself in its own announcement.

The post-money valuation, the figure after the deal, equals $25 billion plus whatever the four investors paid. Neither OKX's release nor its X post gives the round size or a single stake as of Oct. 7, 2026. That leaves the post-money figure open.

OKX calls the new money an extension of the round led by Intercontinental Exchange, the parent of the New York Stock Exchange. OKX announced ICE's strategic investment in March. ICE has not confirmed the structure OKX describes.

OKX sold the securities in private transactions, unregistered and under exemptions (Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act and/or Regulation S). An exemption is a route for a private sale, not an SEC approval of the deal.

Ripple buys into an exchange that already carries RLUSD

Ripple is the investor that matters most for XRP holders. OKX says Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin is already available across its unified order book. Ripple buys in as a partner whose product the exchange already carries.

Jack McDonald, Ripple's senior vice president of stablecoins, is quoted in OKX's release:

“Our investment reflects our conviction in what they’re building and opens the door to deepen our work together across stablecoins, payments and institutional markets”

McDonald frames the stake as a starting point for deeper work. The step to watch is a named RLUSD product or agreement on OKX.

Each investor already works on one layer of OKX's business

OKX says each of the four investors already works with it on stablecoin issuance, liquidity, collateral or custody. Circle's tie runs through USDC. Jeremy Allaire, Circle's co-founder, chairman and CEO, is quoted in the release calling the investment a deepening of the existing USDC relationship with OKX.

QRT brings the trading side. OKX describes the global multi-strategy investment manager as a major institutional counterparty that provides liquidity and risk capacity at scale. Thomas Eaton, QRT's quantitative trading director, cited confidence in OKX and in the long-term growth of digital assets and 24/7 markets.

OKX says Standard Chartered serves as custodian for BUIDL, the tokenized Treasury fund at the center of a collateral framework launched with OKX and BlackRock. Alex Manson, CEO of SC Ventures, tied the partnership to the need for trustworthy infrastructure, including custody built for institutions.

Star Xu, OKX's founder and CEO, said the round gives OKX capital to keep growing and to tokenize real-world assets. He places the four partners in a larger plan:

“The exchange was our starting point, and we are evolving into a broader global financial technology platform.”

That platform is the CEO's stated aim. OKX says each of the four already supports one layer on OKX: stablecoin issuance, liquidity, collateral or custody.

The next signal is a dollar amount

The first marker is a disclosed amount. A filing or statement that puts a dollar figure on the round or on one stake would make the post-money valuation computable.

The second is a product. A Ripple or Circle announcement of a specific OKX offering would turn the quotes in the release into a business step.

The third sits with ICE. Bitcoin Magazine reported that OKXICE, the joint venture of OKX and ICE, filed with the SEC to launch a tokenized securities platform for around-the-clock trading of U.S. stocks. The report places the filing on Sunday and gives no calendar date. Approval would be a separate SEC decision.

Until a party publishes a figure, the $25 billion stays the only number in the deal, and it comes from OKX.