DeFi token Synthetix (SNX) gets listed on OKEx crypto exchange

Decentralized finance (DeFi) tokens are making their way to centralized exchanges, blurring the lines between competing ideologies in the world of crypto.

Crypto exchange OKEx announced today the listing of Synthetix’ SNX token. The Synthetix DeFi protocol facilitates the issuance and trading of synthetic assets like cryptocurrencies, stocks, gold, and other real world assets using ERC20 tokens.

The listing comes as DeFi takes the crypto world by storm—growing from a $1 billion industry to $3 billion within two months—potentially drawing in new users and institutional uptake as the market continues to boom.

Founded in 2018, the Synthetix platform unlocks on-chain exposure to any asset, allowing users to lock SNX tokens to mint tradable ‘Synth’ assets like synthetic Bitcoin (sBTC) or synthetic USD (sUSD). The protocol allows users to gain exposure to assets without actually holding them, reducing friction for transfers and improving censorship resistance.

Synthetix's SNX token is currently trading for around $3.30 and is up nearly 4% on the day. Its price has increased by more than 75% in the last 30 days.

Malta-based OKEx shares a founder with the OKCoin exchange in Chinese investor Star Xu. OKEx is focused on professional traders, offering futures and derivatives products as well as trading markets for dozens of digital assets. In terms of Bitcoin futures trading, OKEx is second only to Huobi, pulling in roughly $1.35 billion in daily volume, according to data from Skew analytics.

By contrast, OKCoin offers about half a dozen tradable assets and provides additional instructions and guidelines for less experienced crypto users to get started trading. OKEx is currently ranked #17 in total volume by CoinGecko, while OKCoin is ranked #60.

"We are very glad to see so many high-quality DeFi applications like Synthetix standing out in 2020 and have long been paying attention to and promoting the development of DeFi,” OKEx CEO Jay Hao said.

“When listing any new token, in addition to considering the project's compliance, team, and other conventional perspectives, the project's utility and user expectations are also important indicators. SNX ticks all of these boxes and OKEx is pleased to support popular projects like it.”

The growth of DeFi has become the standout story in cryptocurrency circles in recent months, making it impossible for industry incumbents like centralized exchanges to ignore their emerging decentralized competitors. 

In addition to OKEx, SNX can be traded on Bianance and Poloniex, both top 10 exchanges in terms of total volume on CoinGecko. OKEx lists several other DeFi tokens as well, including lending protocol Compound’s COMP and open finance platform Celo’s CELO tokens.

“OKEx believes that this is just the beginning of the DeFi era,” Hao said.