Chinese bitcoin exchange OKCoin is moving into new frontiers.
At the North American Bitcoin Conference taking place in Chicago, Illinois, the company announced plans to launch USD-based bitcoin trading (along with litecoin) in the near future — a move they’ve been planning for quite a while now.
The exchange is poised to host their servers for customers in the United States outside of China, and will also be providing English-language customer service and support.
“The international site will be skewed very heavily to international users in the user experience. The customer credibility – we need to establish that over time, but I think that’s going to come in a superior product,” said Mr. Changpeng Zhao, OKCoin CTO, in a conversation with bitcoin news website CoinDesk.
In order to enhance the experience, OKCoin will be separating their USD-friendly website from their current site, designating OKCoin.cn for their business in China, and OKCoin.com for their business elsewhere.
Bitcoin remains popular in the People’s Republic of China, but exchanges are realizing that with the possibility of declining interest, they have to play around with their business models in order to remain profitable.
The move into USD in itself will carry some challenges for the company as well. With strict regulations in place, it won’t be easy, but if the number of already-operating bitcoin exchanges that deal in USD prove anything, it’s that the endeavor is possible.
No indication is available as to when OKCoin plans to launch their USD-based trading platform, but we’ll have more information for you on that when it becomes available.