OKCoin secures $10 million in funding, aims to become China's largest exchange

Even with official bitcoin policy in China ranging from skeptical to hostile, venture capitalists and angel investors don’t see to be very concerned about the future of cryptocurrency in the country. This week, Chinese exchange OKCoin announced it had raised $10 million in investment funding from Ceyuan, Mandra Capital, VenturesLab and other VC groups.

The investment in OKCoin isn’t a huge surprise, as the exchange claims to be the largest in China by trading volume. CoinDesk estimates that OKCoin handles 50,000 BTC transactions per day, as well as perhaps a millin trades in litecoin. During the peak of trading late last year, OKCoin claims to have had trading volumes as high as 300,000 BTC and 13 million LTC per day.

Bitcoin demand in China is huge, and the current uptick in litecoin value is almost certainly attributable to competing exchanges BTC China and Huobi trading in the “bitcoin silver.” With all three companies vying for the status of “largest exchange,” the company with the deepest pockets and best investor support will have a clear advantage.

Unlike BTC China and Huobi, however, OKCoin has plans to expand into other countries in Asia. The company has hinted at moving into Singapore, the US and Hong Kong once those regions create clear regulations for virtual currency trading.