Crypto Exchange Tokens Reclaim Trust

Crypto exchange tokens have rebounded from their lows during FTX’s bankruptcy and have even reached new all-time highs during the recent bull market. For example, Binance’s native token, BNB, is currently trading at $352, representing a 32% increase since FTX’s bankruptcy in November 2022. BNB is also trading higher than its previous highs in June 2023, despite ongoing investigations by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and a lawsuit by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against Binance.

Exchange tokens, which are issued by centralized exchanges themselves, offer users various benefits such as trading advantages, payment for gas fees, participation in decentralized finance, and governance activities on the exchange’s platform. One such token is OKX exchange’s native token, OKB, which has seen a significant gain of 132% from its FTX lows and a total increase of 3,227% since its launch in May 2019. On January 25, the OKB token experienced a major flash crash that wiped out approximately $6.5 billion in a short period of time. Fortunately, the token fully recovered and reached new all-time highs. The flash crash was caused by a brief market sell-off leading to leveraged liquidations within the OKX platform.

Similarly, Bitget exchange’s BGB token has reached all-time highs of $1.03 with a yearly gain of 159%. Last September, the exchange announced a $100 million fund called “EmpowerX” for investments in blockchain, AI, and Web3 projects. The managing director of Bitget, Gracy Chen, expects more investments, mergers, and acquisitions as the centralized exchange landscape evolves due to regulatory changes.

FTX’s FTT token has seen a significant decline, losing over 90% of its value compared to its pre-bankruptcy highs. Although FTX plans to fully repay customers, excluding bankruptcy fees, the exchange itself will not restart. Bankruptcy lawyer Andy Dietderich explains that the costs and risks of resurrecting the offshore exchange are too high for any investor to commit the necessary capital or for a buyer to emerge.

Despite the challenges faced by exchange tokens, such as regulatory scrutiny and flash crashes, many tokens have managed to recover and even achieve new all-time highs. This demonstrates the resilience and potential of the crypto exchange ecosystem during the ongoing bull market.