OKX CEO Fires Back in Justin Sun Asset Freeze Clash—’Compliance First’ Amid Crypto Wild West

OKX’s chief doubles down on exchange policies as Tron founder’s frozen funds spark industry debate.

Subheader: When ’Decentralized’ Meets Regulation—Who Blinks First?

The CEO’s defense highlights crypto’s eternal tension: libertarian ideals vs. the compliance departments that keep exchanges alive. Meanwhile, traders shrug—another day, another nine-figure custody spat in an industry that still thinks KYC is a sandwich.

Justin Sun Says OKX Ignored Freeze Request

In a now-deleted post, Sun stated that the exchange had been contacted via official email but had not responded, leaving him with “no other way” to reach OKX’s compliance team.

“These stolen funds do not belong to me; I’m acting to protect the community,” Sun claimed.

Star Xu dismissed the allegations. “OKX has a consumer protection policy governed by law,” Xu wrote on X.

“We can’t freeze a customer’s funds based on your personal X post or oral communication. As the CEO of HTX, I think you should understand this.”

Dear Mr H.E. Justin Sun, our LE cooperation team just checked the email including spam box, we haven’t received any request related with this case. Can you give us the screenshot to show when the enforcement agency send the request to us? @justinsuntron https://t.co/QIPFUbOqbi pic.twitter.com/lkHZWvk6fm

Xu added that OKX’s law enforcement (LE) cooperation team reviewed its email accounts, including spam folders, and found no official request related to the case.

“Our LE cooperation team just checked the email, including the spam box; we haven’t received any request related with this case,” he said.

Xu also posted a screenshot of Sun’s original deleted message and challenged him to share evidence of the alleged freeze notice, including the time and source of the request.

The incident adds to a growing list of social media hacks in the crypto space.

On March 15, Yu Hu, founder of crypto AI platform Kaito, had his account hijacked to spread false warnings about compromised wallets—shortly after attackers opened a short position in KAITO tokens.

Similarly, on Feb. 26, the Pump.fun X account was compromised to promote a fake governance token.

In another instance, UK MP Lucy Powell’s X account was hacked on April 15 to promote a scam token.

Crypto Hacks Surge in 2025 as Losses Top $1.74 Billion in Four Months

Hackers stole over $92.4 million from crypto projects in April 2025 alone, according to blockchain security firm Immunefi.

The figure represents a 27.3% year-over-year increase and more than double the losses reported in March.

April’s attacks occurred across 15 incidents, with two major exploits accounting for the bulk of the damage.

UPCX, an open-source platform, lost $70 million in a single attack, while decentralized exchange KiloEx was hit for $7.5 million.

Other affected projects included Loopscale, ZKsync, Term Labs, and Bitcoin Mission, each experiencing losses exceeding $1 million.

Cumulatively, the first four months of 2025 have already seen $1.74 billion in crypto losses—more than all of 2024, which totaled $1.49 billion.

Immunefi previously noted that Q1 2025 was the worst quarter for hacks in crypto history, driven largely by massive breaches of centralized exchanges Phemex and Bybit.