OKX Permanently Burns 279M OKB Tokens Worth Over $26B

OKX Burns 279M OKB, Supply Cut to 21 Million

Crypto exchange OKX burned close to 279 million OKB tokens in a large supply shock that has left the coin with only 21 million in circulation.

This is one of the largest deflationary events in crypto history, with a current market price of more than $26 billion.

The decision comes as part of a larger tokenomics redesign to increase the long-term value, utility, and adoption of OKB throughout the OKX ecosystem.

Massive Burn Reduces OKB Supply to 21 Million

According to on-chain data published August 14, OKX burnt 278,999,999 OKB tokens as planned in an update to its tokenomics. This lowered the total supply to 21 million, compared to the initial 300 million.

The company has already stated that it was going to remove approximately 65.26 million tokens acquired through historical buybacks. The overall burn was much more than anticipated.

The smart contract is also updated so as to eliminate minting functions and prevent manual burning of tokens in the future. Such a shift marks OKX as an ecosystem that is dedicated to a transparent and unalterable supply model.

Price Reaction and Market Volatility

The price jumped to over $120 and then retraced to $95, with the trading volume remaining elevated. The on-chain market cap of the token is currently hovering at $2 billion.

The OKX reserves changed the OKTChain tokens to OKB and then performed the move, which made its ecosystem focused on a single main token. This makes its blockchain structure simple and enhances utility.

$7.6B Burn Preceded Supply Reduction

Before the 26B mega burn, OKX had already taken out of circulation a total of $7.6 billion worth of OKB in a separate 65.26 million burn. This initial step reduced the circulating supply by half and triggered a rally of more than 100% to over $140.

The trading volume increased by more than 13,000% and hit $723 million hours after the announcement. Transfer was done with reserve tokens, sending them to a wallet address that is no longer accessible to permanently withdraw the supply.

The two-part burn mirrors Binance's strategy with BNB, using large supply reductions to trigger stronger market interest. Analysts believe the strategy will increase the integration in the trading market, DeFi, and ecosystem services.

More so, the internal exchange metrics indicated that the coin turnover ratio increased by 0.03 to 0.093 after the announcement. It is an indication of an increased trader interest and liquidity as speculation mounts over token scarcity.

Adoption Strategy Shifts to X Layer Blockchain

In addition to the token burn, the exchange affirmed that it would move the operations of OKB to its native X Layer blockchain. The migration involves the increased speed of transactions, reduced Gas fees, and an outright shift of the tokens out of Ethereum.

The tokens, running on Ethereum can now be exchanged for X Layer versions and make the ecosystem easier to operate under a single native infrastructure. OKTChain will be replaced by the new X Layer in full and will continue to operate until January 1, 2026.

According to the exchange, the success of this move will be based on the adoption of X Layer and the increase in the utility of OKB. The actions, coupled with the technical upgrades is a reminder of growing blockchain functionality.

At the same time, by adopting a capped coin and shifting to a scalable chain, OKX will help enhance its ecosystem sustainability in the long term. The company presents this as one of the key steps towards its endeavour on transparency, scarcity and decentralisation.