Michael Gan is the Co-Founder and current Chairman of KuCoin, a centralized crypto exchange based in Singapore.

Early Life & Education

Michael Gan started coding when he was 8 years old, and by the time he turned 16, he had already established his first startup. ^[1]

Gan pursued an engineering degree in Computer Science at Chengdu University of Technology in China. ^[1]

Career

Michael Gan was one of the initial users of NetEase's free personal site hosting service in 1998. In 2009, he took on the role of the main developer and co-founder of Missyi Inc., an app focused on image sharing and editing. Subsequently, he joined Alibaba Group's Ant Financial as a technical expert in AI. ^[1][2]

KuCoin

Michael Gan and his team began exploring ways to mainstream blockchain technology in 2011, gradually envisioning a user-friendly exchange platform.

He was an early adopter and ventured into mining Bitcoin in 2012 during his university years, shortly after learning about its existence. He got his first Bitcoin by registering a crypto forum When prices increased and reached about $100, he traded BTC on Mt.Gox, which was the largest cryptocurrency platform during that period. ^[3]

I remember I got my first Bitcoin in about 2011, by registering a crypto forum. And when the price of Bitcoin starts to pick up and reached about $100, I bought hundreds of BTC on Mt.Gox and of course those coins have gone with Mt.Gox at last. My friends and I used Mt.Gox a lot as it is the biggest exchange at the time but to be honest the overall experience is not satisfactory at all, that’s also a reason that we want to create a new exchange that can offer a user-friendly trading experience.

By 2013, they had assembled a skilled team and built KuCoin's technical infrastructure. Confident in their readiness, they entered the cryptocurrency exchange business in 2017.

Recognizing the need for a platform showcasing legitimate projects amid the proliferation of ICOs, KuCoin was established as 'The People's Exchange.' Launched in September 2017, KuCoin quickly exceeded growth expectations, underscoring its commitment to user-centric principles and evolving into a complete crypto ecosystem including services such as KuCoin Spotlight, KuCoin Futures, KuCoin Trading Bots, KuCoin Pool, and KuCoin Labs.^[4][5][6]

As the development of TPS and cross-chain transaction, I believe DEX will get increasingly popular but I don’t think it will replace centralized exchange. Users will have different requirements regarding convenience and security, so in the future, the centralized and decentralized exchange will have their own user base.

On May 17th, 2022, KuCoin underwent internal restructuring, appointing Michael Gan as Chairman of KuGroup, overseeing KuCoin Global, KuCloud, and KuChain & KCS Ecosystem. Johnny Lyu, formerly the exchange's co-founder and vice president, assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer.^[7]