Editor's Note

In a day where the cryptocurrency market has surpassed a market cap of trillions of dollars and is accelerating its integration with traditional finance, the role of exchange platforms is undergoing a profound transformation. They are no longer just intermediaries matching buyers and sellers but are increasingly becoming comprehensive gateways that integrate trading, information, education, and strategies.

This year marks the eighth anniversary of MEXC, and the platform has put forward a new brand concept of "Infinite Opportunities." Within this strategic framework, how does MEXC understand the direction of product innovation? How is AI technology reshaping the trading experience? In the face of the entry of traditional financial giants, where does the moat of native crypto platforms lie?

With these questions in mind, BlockBeats interviewed MEXC's Product Director Vivien Lin. Vivien has a dual background spanning traditional investment banks (Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank) and crypto trading platforms (Bybit, BingX), and now leads MEXC's global product strategy. In a nearly one-hour conversation, she provided systematic and candid insights from product design philosophy, AI application paths, asset expansion strategies to industry endgame prospects. The following is the full interview, edited and organized.

Brand Concept and Product Foundation — Understanding "Infinite Opportunities"

Rhythm BlockBeats: This year marks MEXC's eighth anniversary, and you have put forward the new brand concept of "Infinite Opportunities." What is the thinking behind this?

Vivien Lin: We say "Infinite Opportunities" because we are currently at what I believe is a once-in-a-century turning point. On the one hand, the integration of crypto and traditional finance has become very practical, becoming part of traders' daily routine. This opportunity is not only for crypto trading platforms but also for all users, crypto traders, and traditional financial participants.

However, I want to emphasize that "Infinite Opportunities" does not mean that we want to list more and more assets or make the product features extensive and complex. On the contrary, we should be smarter and wiser in choosing our focus — in every focused product and business area, providing users with more trading opportunities, and using the platform's efforts to shorten the distance between assets, trading opportunities, and users.

Rhythm BlockBeats: Speaking of narrowing the distance, MEXC's "Zero Fee" strategy is very unique in the industry. How was it conceived at the time?

Vivien Lin: Zero fees are indeed a strategic decision by MEXC that sets it apart from many peers and is highly competitive in the industry. It brings benefits to users on two levels: first, it reduces the actual cost of transactions, and second, it lowers the psychological threshold for trading.

In traditional finance, fees and slippage are often high. However, at MEXC, building on the zero fee foundation, we also place great emphasis on liquidity, slippage, and the overall trading experience, hoping to further reduce users' comprehensive costs and usage thresholds during the transaction process. Zero fees, low trading thresholds, low psychological thresholds, combined with abundant liquidity, this set of strategies makes MEXC a very user-friendly trading platform for retail users. We now have over 40 million users globally, and this is inseparable from our early commitment to this strategy.

Listed Token Logic and Asset Boundaries — From User Enthusiasm to the Vast Ocean of RWA

Rhythm BlockBeats: In terms of asset admission, MEXC has strict standards. How do you define whether an asset can be listed? Especially considering high-risk assets such as meme coins.

Vivien Lin: We do have very strict spot and derivatives listing standards, which are adjusted based on market conditions. But broadly speaking, two things are most important.

The first is user enthusiasm. The number of users often reflects the popularity of an asset. The more popular the asset, the more diversified the holders and traders, leading to more robust market participation and a healthier price discovery mechanism.

The second is liquidity. As a trading platform, we care about whether market makers are willing to make a market for this token and whether we can have a hedging mechanism. Poor liquidity means that users trading this asset on our platform will face large slippage, resulting in a poor trading experience.

Both of these aspects are included in our evaluation system. Our delisting process also focuses on these two dimensions—the number of active traders and whether the liquidity can still support it as a mainstream asset. Only if it meets these standards will we continue to keep it on the platform.

BlockBeats: This year, the integration between crypto and traditional finance has become increasingly close, and MEXC has also listed many traditional financial products, such as US stocks and commodities. What are the future plans for product category expansion?

Vivien Lin: Our strategic intention has always been to understand users—what they need, what trading opportunities are available to them, and how to help them better understand the market.

We have identified a trend: users no longer differentiate between crypto assets and TradFi assets. What they care more about is whether the asset itself has value and whether they can profit from price fluctuations. Previously, people were more concerned about the "narrative," but since last year, the market has undergone significant changes—users are more willing to trade gold, silver, and stocks because they believe that those companies have a real fundamental basis and feel more secure. In the past, in the crypto space, they did not have such trading channels.

So starting this year, MEXC has launched Real Stock (spot products) and TradFi Perpetual (futures products), allowing users to obtain the leverage and asset price exposure they want at very low cost and minimal slippage. We have now listed over 350 RWAs, including indexes, individual stocks, as well as commodities such as gold, silver, and crude oil.

However, having multiple assets is just one aspect; more importantly, it's about how to help users understand these assets. Stocks, commodities, and crypto assets have completely different underlying logics and analytical methods. Previously, users may have had to search everywhere, but now, with the help of our AI product line — AI News, AI Strategies, and productized solutions that can explain "what this token/company does" — we are systematically reducing the user's learning curve. Once you understand, we will also provide you with handy trading tools, such as AI Strategy Builder and Maxi AI Bot. You can ask in the chat box, "What is SpaceX," and it will tell you what this company does, where the risks are, and how the current volatility and price range look. If you find it convincing, you can even set stop-loss and take-profit orders in the chat box — supported by a full set of strategic technologies.

Customization and User Segmentation — The "Subtle Polish" of the AI Era

Rhythm BlockBeats: Facing users with different needs — from native crypto users to newcomers transitioning from the US stock market — does MEXC customize its product design?

Vivien Lin: We do have customizable features, but it is challenging for them to become mainstream in product design, as if everyone customizes, the product will turn into a stack of functions. Our general direction is to first identify the types and profiles of users.

In the past, the industry used to offer a basic version and a professional version, but in today's product philosophy, such differentiated treatment is no longer the best solution. Technological advancements have given us new possibilities — with AI, our analysis of user profiles has become more timely, objective, and precise.

When a new user registers, I don't know if they are a novice or an experienced trader, so I provide them with a panoramic view. As they begin to ask questions and browse pages, I gradually understand — this might be a high-risk preference user, and that might be a novice. Once the understanding deepens, the information they see when entering the platform will start to change.

For example, when searching for BTC, for a novice user, we would tell them where today's price is, recent movements, and other simple and easy-to-understand information. For an experienced trader, I might directly discuss options trend changes, volatility changes, or even recommend a quantitative strategy. This is the layered service that AI provides in the background.

Rhythm BlockBeats: You have particularly emphasized the role of AI in the product. Where is MEXC currently focusing its AI application?

Vivien Lin: Our AI layout is divided into three levels: what users can perceive, what users cannot directly perceive, and what is related to R&D efficiency.

At the level of what users can perceive, some products have obvious AI features, such as Maxi AI Bot and AI Strategy. However, more AI functions have already been silently integrated into almost every use case. For example, in the past, searching for BTC would only show you the perpetual contract price and spot price. Now when you search for BTC, you will see three key overnight news, a participatory event, deposit interest rates, current trading range, and price range—you don't need to click around the entire page to find information, as this single search entry gives you a complete briefing.

At the level of what users cannot directly perceive, our internal operations, maintenance, and customer service are our "internal customers." In the past, MEXC had thousands of activities in a year, and the operations team spent most of their time configuring these activities, with no time to observe and think about the market. Now, with the help of AI, we can compress the activity configuration time to within 10 minutes, allowing everyone to spend more time understanding the market and users.

Additionally, AI + big data has made user profiling very clear. When a user enters the app, we can provide AI recommendations on his trading intent, the type of user he is, and which activity tools are more suitable for him. This greatly reduces the cognitive gap between senior operations and newcomers, ensuring that all front-end users receive the same high-quality service.

At the R&D efficiency level, AI is also helping us build a more solid product foundation and enhance the efficiency of product research and development. This is a tough battle, but one that must be fought.

AI Development Path—From Assistant to Copilot, and then to the Financial Operating System

BlockBeats: How will AI directly impact users' trading decisions in the future? Will there be a day when AI can help users actively capture trading opportunities?

Vivien Lin: I think AI's development at the exchange level will go through three stages.

The first stage is AI Assistant—this is the more familiar chatbox form, where you can ask it anything you don't know, acting as an encyclopedia and Q&A knowledge base.

The second phase is AI Copilot—this is what we are currently working on. It is a shadow-like presence that observes and assists you. You can give it repetitive tasks, such as "help me monitor the market and alert me when the price reaches a certain level." Or, when you are puzzled by why "I have made so many trades but still not profitable," you can have AI track all your trades and alert you promptly if it detects a change in your trading decision pattern compared to when you were profitable in the past. This is the second step—a very understanding "shadow-like entity."

The third phase is the Financial Operating System—this is our future vision, but there are still technological hurdles to overcome. At that stage, in the morning, you tell the Bot, "My goal today is to make $1000, help me find strategies, execute them if found, and come to me if there are any issues." Then you can go and enjoy your life.

We are now essentially standing between the second and third steps. The technological hurdles come from two aspects: one, the computing power and algorithms of AI need a significant boost; two, at the performance level, we are researching Harness technology, intelligently deciding which problems to run with local models and which must call for large models to enhance feedback efficiency and cost control. MEXC's product and R&D always need to plan a step ahead, so we have spent a lot of time researching Harness. Once the technological bottleneck is broken through, we can quickly make significant strides in this area.

BlockBeats: So, AI will eventually completely change the interaction of trading platforms?

Vivien Lin: Yes. In the future, trading platforms may no longer require users to face a dozen or twenty pages. Users may prefer to see a simpler interface and complete everything on one page. We are already experimenting in this direction through intelligent search—you type in BTC, and it will show various functions, activities, products—this is actually accumulating experience for the future "unified gateway."

Quantitative Strategy and Product Pride—Let Users Stand on the Shoulders of Masters

BlockBeats: During your tenure as a product director, was there a particular product feature launch that made you especially proud?

Vivien Lin: If it's at MEXC, I am very proud of our team's AI Strategy.

I used to work in traditional finance doing quantitative trading for some time, so I understand very well how meticulous the thought process and hands-on coding effort are for a trader to write a robust (bug-free) strategy. Now, even though we have AI Coding to shorten the coding time, the AI Strategy we provide on our platform addresses two issues at the same time:

First, users can place orders in natural language—"Buy for me when the MACD reverses, and sell for me when it reverses again." The AI will enrich and elaborate on such a simple instruction, then connect to the order interface, ultimately turning it into an executable command.

Second, our product team has invested a lot of effort in studying the techniques of historical investment masters, extracting their core skills, and proactively developing over twenty quantitative strategies that I consider quite good. Those without experience in building quantitative strategies can at least start by "following in the footsteps of the masters," making some parameter changes based on predecessors' work to quickly achieve their first experience in quantitative trading.

In terms of innovation, industry leadership, and the dedication of the entire team behind it, I truly want to give a shoutout to the product team.

Traditional Finance vs. Crypto Finance—Mutual "Feeding" or Independent Development?

Rhythm BlockBeats: With a background in both traditional investment banking and crypto trading platforms, what aspects of traditional finance are worth learning from for the crypto industry?

Vivien Lin: The two most memorable aspects of traditional finance for me are:

First is sensitivity to risk. When I was a trader at a bank, leveraging had a very strict risk management process. Both company and exchange regulations constrain you—it's difficult for an ordinary person to obtain meaningful leverage. This professional training makes me question myself repeatedly every time I need to use leverage: Do I really need this leverage? How should I set my stop-loss and take-profit? I have to consider all explicit and implicit costs. This sensitivity to risk is already ingrained in my DNA.

Second is reverence for regulation and the market. In the crypto industry, regulation is a process that everyone must face and constantly negotiate. Faced with user demands and regulatory environments in different global markets, as a product department at headquarters, how do we make the product architecture more "atomic," provide unified technology and product infrastructure, and allow regional teams to quickly assemble localized product experiences based on local user needs and regulatory requirements—this is very critical.

Of course, traditional finance also has areas to improve. For example, while it takes 6 months to 1 year for a product to launch in traditional finance, in the Crypto world, the iteration cycle is in weeks or even days. When the team is moving too fast, I may need to pull them back a bit — "Are we addressing immediate needs, or are we planning for the future?" On the other hand, we can also bring the complexity of traditional financial products to the Crypto world and use the "Crypto speed" to iterate and launch rapidly.

Rhythm BlockBeats: Now traditional financial platforms are also expanding into the crypto space, such as Nasdaq potentially launching 24/7 trading by the end of the year. What is your view on this "two-way permeation"?

Vivien Lin: Two years ago, I was asked a similar question, about DEX and CEX eating into each other, what would be the outcome? As we have seen, neither of them has dominated the other but has delved deeper into their core strengths. DEX is more free, with a more diverse user base; CEX provides users with a sense of security and trust, along with rapid iteration based on the underlying technology.

Now, in the "struggle" between TradFi and Crypto, I still don't see this as a process of one eating the other. In fact, there is a vast unexplored territory in the middle. Traditional brokers entering Crypto face dual regulations, and the intermediate product area they can work on is not as substantial. And Crypto exchanges expanding into traditional finance also face many challenges.

MEXC's approach is different from many other trading platforms. For example, Real Stock, we directly connect to traditional finance as a compliant licensed broker, providing users with a 1:1 stock underlying exposure and experience. While most other solutions focus mainly on Tokenization. This sets MEXC apart from other exchanges — we are making greater efforts to allow users to truly experience the same feeling as traditional finance.

Conversely, the weapons traditional finance uses to attack Crypto are different from ours. For example, a zero-fee strategy is almost impossible in TradFi. Additionally, traditional financial institutions are better at serving institutional users, with retail users being their weakness. But for a native Crypto company like MEXC, retail is our specialty — we understand better what retail users want, the leverage they need, the services they require, and what's on their minds. This deep understanding of customers will always help us build a cognitive moat.

Global Market and Future Outlook — After 40 Million Users

BlockBeats Interview: MEXC Service is available in 170+ markets worldwide. How do you approach localization for users from different countries with varying habits?

Vivien Lin: Our market and operations team has a very unique market expansion and community operation methodology tailored to the preferences of users in each country. From a product development perspective, our focus is more on laying a solid foundation and staging the platform adequately—providing a unified product and technical solution at a global level, modularizing configurable modules, allowing regional teams to combine products and operational experiences that align with local user habits and regulatory requirements.

BlockBeats Interview: What changes have you observed in user demand in recent years? In which direction do you think it will evolve in the future?

Vivien Lin: I entered the industry around 2020, a period when NFTs were thriving. For a long time, the cryptocurrency and traditional finance sectors found it challenging to align at the regulatory level, and users lacked assets with fundamentals and genuine cash flow. Therefore, we saw wave after wave of conceptual trends and gameplay.

However, a fundamental change occurred last year—users truly gained exposure to assets with strong company fundamentals. TradFi Perpetual provided everyone with a very convenient and cost-effective leverage financing method. These developments have provided native crypto users with better assets and tools.

Looking ahead, I believe that the discussion will no longer revolve around "Crypto users trading in traditional finance" or "Traditional finance users entering Crypto," but will shift towards: What kind of platform can seamlessly connect me to all assets? And what kind of platform can help me find the type of asset that aligns with my investment preferences among thousands of assets?

For example, when there was a sector rotation to the AI storage concept some time ago, we checked if we or our competitors had it. Later, when the focus shifted to pharmaceuticals, we ensured the integrity of our pharmaceutical stocks. We will promptly make additions based on market trends, development directions, and the pace of our asset expansion.

While supplementing assets, we are also working on the tooling aspect. For instance, we have already positioned CCLI (Command-Line Interface) for Bot users in advance and prepared AI Strategy and Maxi AI Bot for human traders. In the future, the key is to find a simpler, more unified entry point—once users come in, they may not want to see another twenty pages. Currently, our intelligent search is accumulating experience for this "unified major entry point."

BlockBeats Interview: Lastly, what are your expectations for MEXC's future development? Can you envision a day when you can compete with traditional financial giants?

Vivien Lin: The number of users is hard to predict, but we are currently serving over 40 million users globally, and this number continues to grow every month. With the integration of crypto and traditional finance, the user base will definitely reach a massive scale.

However, numbers only tell part of the story. The other part of the story lies in: Are we able to serve all these users in the vast universe of the crypto world satisfactorily? This will be a tough battle - Do our professional capabilities match market demand? Can our technical infrastructure support 100 million users and 2 million concurrent transactions?

These questions require wave after wave of product managers to continually improve, enhance market awareness, respect, and most importantly, technical prowess to smoothly realize our vision.

I am very confident about the future. The day when AI significantly assists in trading decisions is not too far away.

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