CZ: Early Departure from the OKCoin System due to Cultural and Value Misalignment, Only 8 Months in Position

On February 11, Binance founder CZ joined Chamath Palihapitiya on the *All-In* podcast to share his early career experiences—including stints at Blockchain.info (now Blockchain.com) and OKCoin—along with his deep insights into the Bitcoin industry and value-driven choices from its early days. When joining Blockchain.info, CZ noted the team had just three people then, with him serving as VP of Technology. The team later grew to 18, but a CFO-led management restructuring shifted the corporate culture, prompting CZ and several developers to leave voluntarily. Key takeaways from his time there: learning remote work, getting paid in Bitcoin, and driving user growth to ~2 million via "guerrilla" marketing (like a 150-page post on BitcoinTalk.org). After leaving Blockchain.info, He Yi recruited CZ to OKCoin. The initial offer was a 5% equity stake, but BTC China countered with 10%—prompting OKCoin to match the offer within three hours. CZ ultimately joined OKCoin in Beijing as CTO, taking on broader business responsibilities. CZ revealed the main reason for leaving OKCoin was misaligned culture and values: "Mostly, it’s a culture and values mismatch. Some practices I couldn’t agree with. For example: when running promotions or fee discounts, ads made it seem everyone could benefit, but in reality, you had to apply actively—it didn’t auto-apply. Small details like that made me uncomfortable." He left in early 2015. The interview highlights CZ’s sharp observations of the early Bitcoin industry, plus his focus on corporate culture and user experience—foundations for the values that later defined Binance.