What is OKB?

OKB is the cryptocurrency of OKX, one of the large crypto exchanges, and the token used to pay fees on X Layer, the blockchain OKX runs. It began as an exchange perk token and has been turned into a network token with a fixed supply. Background on the company itself is in what is OKX.

What is OKB crypto?

OKB was issued by OKEx, the earlier name of OKX. A 2020 press release from the OK Blockchain Foundation says 300 million OKB were in circulation when buybacks began, and that 700 million unissued tokens were burned in 2020, after which no more would be issued. The exchange started buying back OKB and burning it on May 4, 2019, and ran those burns in regular rounds.

What is the OKB token used for?

On the exchange, the 2020 release listed uses such as trading fee discounts, access to token sales on OKEx Jumpstart, savings products and payments at some merchants. Exchange perks can change, so the current OKX fee schedule is the place to check.

The bigger role today is on-chain. OKB pays transaction fees on X Layer, and Cointelegraph reported that OKX's wallet, exchange and payment products were being tied into that network in 2025. This mirrors how BNB works for BNB Chain, though the two networks are run separately.

What is OKB on X Layer?

X Layer is an Ethereum layer 2, a network that processes transactions off Ethereum's main chain to cut costs. According to OKX, its mainnet launched on March 30, 2024, built on Polygon zkEVM technology. An upgrade completed on August 5, 2025 raised throughput and lowered fees, Cointelegraph reported, and on October 27, 2025, OKX moved X Layer to Optimism's OP Stack.

Cointelegraph also reported that OKX asked holders of the Ethereum mainnet version of OKB to migrate to X Layer. At the same time OKX retired OKTChain, its older Cosmos-based network. OKT trading stopped on August 13, 2025, and OKT balances were converted into OKB until January 1, 2026.

How did the OKB burn work?

A token burn sends tokens to an address no one can spend from. On August 13, 2025, OKX announced a one-time burn of 65,256,712.097 OKB drawn from past buybacks and treasury reserves, leaving a fixed total supply of 21 million. Decrypt reported that the OKB contract would be upgraded to remove the ability to mint more tokens, and that any OKB later sent to the burn address would be destroyed automatically.

A smaller supply does not on its own set the value of a token, since demand matters too. OKB's usefulness is also closely tied to OKX as a company, including its legal and regulatory standing.

Crypto prices are volatile and a token can lose most of its value.