OKX CEO: Accounts Confirmed in Illegal Activity May Face Service Termination

TLDR:

• OKX may terminate accounts confirmed to be involved in high-risk or illegal fund activity.
• High-risk deposits can trigger AML reviews lasting 15 days or longer before any decision.
• Xu flagged Telegram escrow deals and Huiwang-linked channels as major compliance risks.
• OKX paid over $500 million in US AML penalties last year amid rising sector scrutiny.

OKX may terminate services for accounts confirmed to be involved in high-risk or illegal activities, founder and CEO Star Xu said this week.

Xu made the statement while addressing a user question about deposits arriving from sports betting platforms. He explained that such transfers can trigger extended anti-money laundering reviews lasting 15 days or longer, during which account functions and funds may face restrictions before any final decision is made.

CEO Confirms Service Termination for Confirmed Violations

Xu addressed the policy directly on the social platform X on Wednesday. He responded to a user who asked how OKX treats funds moved from betting platforms into exchange wallets.

In his reply, Xu wrote that “for accounts confirmed to be involved in high-risk or illegal activities, we may terminate services.”

According to Xu, that outcome applies only after a confirmed violation, not during a routine check. He separated this from the standard review process, noting that reviews alone “may last 15 days or longer,” with functions and funds restricted in the meantime. Termination follows once a case is confirmed rather than suspected.

Xu named the channels most likely to raise this risk. He wrote that funds “obtained through channels including but not limited to guaranteed transactions in TG groups, Huiwang and its variants” may carry higher compliance risk. He tied both channels directly to the type of account activity that could lead to termination.

Huione Guarantee, the network behind “Huiwang,” processed over $27 billion in transactions before regulators intervened in 2025. The US Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network severed the network from the American financial system that October.

Successor platforms such as Tudou Guarantee have since absorbed much of that displaced activity, based on reporting on Chinese-language laundering networks.

Xu closed his post by asking users not to use OKX accounts “for money laundering, fraud, illegal fund transfers, or other illegal activities.”

Termination Policy Follows Wider Compliance Pressure

OKX’s termination stance follows growing regulatory attention across the exchange sector. A recent CertiK assessment found that anti-money laundering enforcement now ranks above securities violations as the top compliance risk facing crypto platforms. Exchanges are under pressure to act on confirmed violations rather than issue warnings alone.

OKX paid more than $500 million in AML-related penalties in the United States last year. That penalty appears to inform the exchange’s willingness to end service for repeat or confirmed offenders. Terminating accounts tied to illicit fund sources reduces exposure to further regulatory action.

Xu has acknowledged that some legitimate users get flagged during fraud and AML checks. OKX faced backlash in July 2025 after customers reported accounts frozen without clear cause.

That incident raises questions about how the exchange distinguishes confirmed violations from false flags before deciding on termination.

OKX had already flagged wallets linked to Huione Guarantee for review last year, saying it could freeze funds or deactivate accounts tied to the network.

Whether the termination policy holds up against legitimate account holders remains an open question going forward.

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