OKX announced on April 1, 2025, that Mauricio Beugelmans had left the exchange as chief legal officer, in its own post naming Linda Lacewell his successor1. CoinDesk had reported his exit a day earlier, on March 31, 20252.
Three of OKX's 7 leadership moves on the record came in 2025, its busiest year
Leadership moves CryptoLately has verified at OKX, by year
- 2025: 3
- 2024, 2026
Moves: The Moves Ledger, CryptoLately's record of verified leadership moves, Oct. 3, 2016 to Oct. 2, 2026.
Read the chart as a table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 2 |
| 2025 | 3 |
| 2026 | 2 |
20 executive exits on the record in 2025
Executive exits CryptoLately has verified, by year; 2026 through Oct. 2, 2026
- 2025: 20
- 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2026
Moves: The Moves Ledger, CryptoLately's record of verified leadership moves, Oct. 3, 2016 to Oct. 2, 2026.
Read the chart as a table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 6 |
| 2020 | 1 |
| 2021 | 9 |
| 2022 | 9 |
| 2023 | 8 |
| 2024 | 11 |
| 2025 | 20 |
| 2026 | 27 |
The move
Beugelmans gave his own account of the exit by email to CoinDesk. “I left OKX to pursue another opportunity within the crypto industry, which I will share publicly at the appropriate time,” he said. “It was a privilege to scale and lead such a talented team of legal and compliance professionals for the past 3 1/2 years at OKX.”2
CoinDesk reported the departure came one month after OKX's February 2025 settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice. “Just last month, OKX paid over $500 million in penalties and forfeited fees in a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice which stated that the company had facilitated more than $5 billion in 'suspicious transactions and criminal proceeds,'” the outlet wrote2. A source familiar with the matter told CoinDesk that "Beugelmans' exit was related to the recent DOJ settlement". OKX missed CoinDesk's deadline for comment on the original story, the outlet said.
OKX's legal office before and after
Beugelmans had led OKX's legal and compliance team through a crowded stretch. That period covered the DOJ settlement and the licensing push into the UAE, Singapore and Malta, CoinDesk reported2. The same stretch covered a subpoena the Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued to OKcoin, the exchange's American division, on February 24, 2024. OKX's own post, published April 1, 2025, named Linda Lacewell his successor1. OKX said she would "bolster our global regulatory presence" as it expanded into Europe and the UAE.
What came next
Beugelmans resurfaced in the crypto industry on March 11, 2026, nearly a year after OKX announced his departure on April 1, 20253. CoinDesk reported that he had co-founded a new firm called Shredpay, taking the role of chief executive. Two more former OKX executives joined him. Melissa Muehlfeld, the exchange's former global general counsel, took the role of president. Peter Chang, OKX's former vice president of product, became chief technology officer. Shredpay builds a decentralized finance connectivity platform for U.S. retail and institutional users. Its ratings grade protocols on smart contract security, liquidity depth and other factors, CoinDesk reported. “DeFi seems opaque, but it's not about the technology, it's about information asymmetry,” Beugelmans told the outlet. "Users often can't easily distinguish between battle-tested protocols and exit scams."
Sources
- OKX, "OKX Appoints New CLO as It Enters New Markets," OKX, April 1, 2025, https://www.okx.com/en-us/learn/okx-apppoints-new-clo-as-it-enters-new-markets
- Ian Allison, "OKX Chief Legal Officer Mauricio Beugelmans Leaves the Exchange," CoinDesk, March 31, 2025, https://www.coindesk.com/business/2025/03/31/okx-chief-legal-officer-mauricio-beugelmans-leaves-the-exchange
- Ian Allison, "Former legal executives from crypto exchange OKX unveil DeFi connectivity, risk-rating service," CoinDesk, March 11, 2026, https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMisgFBVV95cUxOOXIwWWkyNHNNdFZXZEJEU0RZa0dQd1V3WFNMc1hzdXhBekYtd0ctazJWc25tOTBtQmVyTWkzbXNkM1ZxblhEdjRvanVQZU5QQ3pGYUR2aHdZdU5wUW5wMFBkWVZFdUp6TDIyajlJM2ZyTVVqdHdzVjdUNTBIcnI5aUl5X29KM1NvVWs0b1p4VWtvallnMi1ZTUlEWUFkbjB1UFM2UlMycEFIdnM5blRZN3l3?oc=5