In October 2018, following the launch of our premium video interview series "Facing the Giants," BroadChain teamed up exclusively with 36Kr's strategic media partner Odaily | Planet Daily to launch "Bull & Bear Insights." This in-depth online interview series aims to help the crypto community navigate prolonged bear markets with grace, through candid conversations with veterans who have weathered multiple market cycles.
Guest for Episode 4:
Ruixi Wang, Founder of Hoo Wallet (Hoo虎符钱包). An early Bitcoin adopter, prominent blockchain investor, EOS "RAM King," and one of China's pioneering blockchain figures, he has been featured multiple times on China Central Television (CCTV).
In 2013, he founded the Bitcoin navigation site BtcMini. He served as CEO of Chengdu BitSpring in 2014. By 2016, he had fully acquired算力吧 (Suanli Ba) and simultaneously founded the BATPool mining pool, serving as its CEO.
Over five years, he has invested in and incubated over 70 blockchain projects, building a comprehensive ecosystem that spans the industry's upstream and downstream sectors.
Host:
A seasoned TMT journalist and financial media editor-in-chief with over seven years of experience at prominent outlets, including Tencent Tech Channel and Investor’s Daily.
Below is the transcript of our conversation:
BroadChain: You entered the blockchain space in 2013 and immediately started selling mining rigs. What first drew you to this field, and what were you doing before?
Ruixi Wang: Before Bitcoin, I was a developer and product manager at Tsinghua Unigroup. In early 2013, I first heard the term "Bitcoin" in a casual chat with colleagues—it was a completely novel concept compared to something like Q-Coins. Out of curiosity, I started researching it online.
You learn by doing. So my first move was to launch a navigation website, BtcMini. Later, after helping Chinese authorities investigate the GBL Bitcoin futures platform scam, I was interviewed on CCTV-2.
After that, Aiwill from Bitmain invited both me and Xiao Xiao Sun to visit烤猫 (Kao Mao)'s company in Shenzhen.
BroadChain: People say you always have something to sell and intuitively understand market needs. What was the mining rig ecosystem like back then, and how did you break into it?
Ruixi Wang: I've always enjoyed deep product research, which helps me identify both strengths and weaknesses.
When I joined Kao Mao's company, I knew almost nothing about mining rigs—power installation, transformers, chip fabrication, or power efficiency. I dove in headfirst and learned on the job. While I'm a quick learner, I owe a lot to the support from Kao Mao, Song Wang, and Zhuang Zhong.
BroadChain: Kao Mao is well-known, but what about Song Wang and Zhuang Zhong? Could you tell us more about them?
Ruixi Wang: Song Wang used to co-run mining farms with me but left for personal reasons. I believe he's running a school now.
Zhuang Zhong is currently the CEO of BTC.com, a Bitmain subsidiary.
BroadChain: Some have called you a "mining-rig reseller." How long did you do that? You seemed to quickly pivot to building a mining pool and then launching an ICO platform. Did you have a clear roadmap from the start?
Ruixi Wang: With my background, trading mining rigs felt natural—which led some to label me a "reseller," though that might be a slight misunderstanding.
As for planning, I first focused on what I could do well based on my hands-on experience selling rigs and mining Bitcoin. I only expanded after mastering those core activities.
To scale up, I acquired Suanli Ba, which allowed more people to join in Bitcoin mining. This organic growth eventually led to our Cube ICO platform.
On September 4, 2017, the People's Bank of China froze our corporate bank account in Shenzhen, and the local Financial Office summoned us, urging us to shut down the ICO platform. Due to the regulatory shift, we chose to wind it down, ensuring all user assets were safely returned first.
Later, as our team grew, we remained confident in the industry's transformative potential. Driven by continuity, internal needs, and industry pain points, we decided to focus deeply on blockchain infrastructure. We incubated a Hong Kong-based wallet development team, providing full financial and technical support—that team became today's Hoo Wallet (Hoo.com).
BroadChain: Some argue that success requires singular focus. Recently, you've been fully promoting Hoo Wallet. How do you balance these different business lines, and what does Hoo Wallet mean to you?
Ruixi Wang: Many entering blockchain go through a period of confusion—not from lack of ideas, but because they see an emerging industry full of opportunity and want to do everything. I was no exception.
But after multiple bull and bear cycles, you settle down. Everyone knows focus is key to success, so today, I'm fully committed to Hoo Wallet, striving to deliver the best user experience and service possible.
Hoo Wallet is like my "own child"—I'm dedicating all my energy to it right now.
BroadChain: You entered at the 2013 peak, then endured the sideways decline of 2014–2015, somewhat like today's market. What was the industry landscape like back then?
Ruixi Wang: Starting in 2014, Bitcoin entered a downtrend, eventually hitting a low of around RMB 900. To survive, exchanges began offering "lifetime zero-fee trading." Many believed the industry was on the brink of collapse.
Those who believed in Bitcoin's future held on, while those who lost confidence exited.
BroadChain: In 2015, many left, only to return later and catch the 2017 bull run. Where were you at that time?
Ruixi Wang: After Kao Mao disappeared in early 2015, I acquired the remaining inventory of mining rigs and started mining Bitcoin by securing farm capacity. In 2016, I fully acquired Suanli Ba and began selling hashpower online.
Even before the ICO boom, I had invested in several blockchain projects—I sensed the ICO model would revolutionize fundraising.
Leveraging our technical expertise, we launched the Cube ICO platform in just one week, primarily to help projects raise funds.
This industry evolves rapidly—often described as "one day in crypto equals one year in traditional life."
Bitcoin represents a societal shift. I fear falling behind, so since 2013, I've continuously learned and built deeper connections across the industry. Even amid global economic headwinds and the current downturn, my conviction that "Bitcoin will change the world" has never been stronger.
BroadChain: You remain the largest EOS RAM holder (the "EOS RAM King"). When did you start focusing on EOS RAM, and why are you so bullish on it?
Ruixi Wang: When the EOS mainnet launched, I was excited by the Bancor algorithm—it felt like a milestone, and the industry hailed EOS as "Blockchain 3.0."
I'm not just bullish on RAM; I believe in EOS's entire ecosystem architecture. Even in a poor market, EOS remains one of the most active public chains.
Exchanges, wallets, a flourishing array of DApps and sidechains—all converge on EOS, attracting developers who are building the ecosystem. EOS's future belongs not just to BM or Block.one, but to these diligent builders. There's every reason to be optimistic about its growth.
BroadChain: We've seen EOS RAM's price plummet with the market. You mentioned your mindset: "I always have something to sell." When do you expect demand for EOS RAM to surge, and do you regret your investment?
Ruixi Wang: The 2018 global economic winter plunged the industry into a quiet bear market, meaning fresh capital may remain scarce for some time.
Currently, EOS still faces adoption barriers for outsiders—it will take time and iteration.
All investments carry risk; no one can guarantee substantial returns every time.
As for my EOS RAM investment, whether I regret it personally is irrelevant. What matters is that my actions demonstrate my belief in EOS's ecosystem growth—my RAM investment embodies that conviction.
BroadChain: What's your investment philosophy during bear markets?
Ruixi Wang: Stay prudent—don't blindly bottom-fish or panic-sell. Bear markets are ideal for learning: deepen your understanding of the ecosystems behind your holdings, reflect calmly, and make decisions aligned with your goals.
BroadChain: Over the past six years, what's your most satisfying investment and your biggest failure?
Ruixi Wang: My most satisfying investment was entering the industry through Bitcoin. As for failures—it's hard to pick one. Even losses on near-zero coins, which almost everyone experiences, yield valuable lessons worth treasuring.
BroadChain: Wallets don't seem very profitable now—doesn't that contradict your earlier "entrepreneurial logic"?
Ruixi Wang: "Entrepreneur" is a label others gave me—I don't see myself that way. I'm someone who loves this industry and has persistently navigated its ups and downs.
My modest goal is to stand firm through multiple cycles—to weather the storm with my team and secure a lasting place in this industry.
Wallets have their own monetization models. Simply surviving the bear market is any team's top priority. The fact that Hoo sustains our team while ensuring users' assets grow steadily is already a significant achievement.
BroadChain: Many say this winter will last much longer. What's your view, and how are you preparing?
Ruixi Wang: A one- to two-year bear market is perfectly normal. I strongly agree with Lao Luo's insight from his New Year's speech: "Doers don't dwell on optimism or pessimism—we only care about doing things well."
So, as long as survival isn't at risk, our entire focus is on optimizing Hoo and strengthening our team's resilience.
BroadChain: With 2019 here, what new opportunities do you see worth watching?
Ruixi Wang: By 2018, over 500 global digital asset funds were managing more than $10 billion in crypto assets. As digital asset volumes grow rapidly, more PE firms, VCs, token funds, and family offices are allocating capital here.
Against this backdrop of expanding scale, enterprise-grade digital asset management demand is surging—yet the industry lacks mature solutions. I believe enterprise custody will be a major trend in 2019.
Hoo Public Chain Cloud is our enterprise-grade solution for institutions, exchanges, developers, and wallet providers, meeting large-scale custody needs. Leveraging Hoo's technical and quantitative teams, it supports custody across 30 major blockchains and over 100,000 cryptocurrencies.
BroadChain: Our column is called "Bull & Bear Insights." In your view, what's the single most important thing for navigating market cycles?
Ruixi Wang: Staying true to your vision and holding firm. If you believe this industry has a future, you'll dig in—earning in bull markets, enduring patiently in bear markets. Long-term perseverance, whether as an individual or a company, will inevitably be rewarded.
BroadChain: What does financial freedom mean to you? And if you ever left blockchain, what would you do?
Ruixi Wang: I don't have a sharp sense of wealth—I'm content as long as I have enough to support the work I want to do in this industry.
If I ever leave blockchain, it would likely be in my later years—to retire and travel the world.
BroadChain: If you could recommend three people for this column, who would they be and why?
Ruixi Wang: 1. Hao Wen of Bitpie: A longtime friend who's weathered cycles with me. He's never stopped moving forward, single-mindedly running Bitpie, and his insights are worth learning from.
2. Lin Li of Huobi: I suspect many readers would love to understand how exchanges navigate bull and bear markets.
3. Sweety, the "Queen": She represents the wave of newcomers from 2017—having seen Bitcoin at $20,000, survived the 9/4 crackdown and the 2018 crash. Her media perspective is ideal for mainstream education.