Navigating Change, Keep Progressing | Edwin Wang’s Journey from Specialist to KuCoin’s Youngest VP

A New Industry, A New Lens：Reframe Past Experience for New Scenarios

Edwin Wang joined KuCoin as a Specialist in 2019. Before joining KuCoin, he had already built experience in risk management within the internet finance sector, with a strong foundation in data analysis and algorithmic methods. Entering the crypto industry meant stepping into a very different business environment: faster-paced, more fluid in its risk patterns, and often without ready-made answers. Past experience could serve as a starting point, but it could not simply be carried over. What attracted Edwin was the open space of an emerging industry — one where many rules, systems, and capabilities had yet to be fully defined. Compared with more mature business environments, crypto brought greater uncertainty, but also more room to build. Reflecting on his decision at the time, Edwin said:“I had other options back then, but I valued the growth potential of an emerging industry. I also felt there would be more opportunities to develop here.” In his early tenure at KuCoin, Edwin started with foundational work, including building data dashboards. These seemingly basic tasks gradually brought him closer to the operational details of the exchange’s business. Through one concrete problem after another, he began to recalibrate his judgment in a new context. Seven years later, Edwin has grown into KuCoin’s VP, overseeing Risk Management, Internal Control, and Liquidity. Behind that progression was not a sudden leap, but a steady process of building judgment, through real problems, driving execution, and taking on greater responsibility.  

From Execution to System Building: Reshaping Internal Control

In 2021, Edwin reached the first major turning point in his career path. Previously, he focused on assessing and handling specific risk issues. This time, however, the challenge was different. It was less immediately visible, but deeply important to the organization’s long-term development: moving risk governance from isolated responses to a more structured internal control system. As KuCoin’s business expanded, risks were no longer appeared only in individual incidents. They could also be embedded in processes, permissions, responsibilities, and cross-team collaboration. To identify and manage such risks earlier and more consistently, someone needed to reorganize scattered requirements across workflows and collaboration into an executable and trackable system That responsibility was ultimately entrusted to Edwin — not simply because of his risk management background, but because he had developed a practical understanding of how the business worked. He had also begun to see beyond individual problems and understand the processes and collaboration structures behind them. He later led the work to strengthen KuCoin’s internal control framework, turning scattered requirements into processes that could be executed, tracked, and improved over time. This stage marked Edwin’s growth from someone who solved problems into someone who built systems. It also reflected how growth can unfold at KuCoin: not only through a fixed career path, but through moments when critical work is placed in the hands of someone who has earned trust through judgment, ownership, and follow-through.  

Upgrading Risk Control: Integrating Dispersed Capabilities into a System

In 2024, Edwin reached his second major leap: moving from internal control framework construction to end-to-end enterprise-wide risk management oversight. This was not accidental. Years of staying close to the business, handling complex risk issues, and developing a systems perspective through internal control had shown the company that he was ready to take on a more comprehensive responsibility. Speaking about that transition, Edwin candidly added: “There were many details I had to learn along the way. But after assessing the situation early on, I believed this was something I could take on — and something I could do well.” There is a quiet strength in that answer. It is not about having every answer from the beginning. It is about facing complexity, first understanding the situation, then forming a judgment, and finally moving the work forward step by step. After taking on the role, Edwin did not rush to solve isolated issues. Instead, he first worked to clarify the bigger picture: how capabilities should be integrated, how responsibilities should be aligned, how strategies should be upgraded, and how risk management could be involved earlier in key business processes. He then helped move KuCoin’s risk management capabilities from fragmented development toward a more systematic operating model. In this process, data analysis, risk judgment, system building, and business understanding began to work together in more complex scenarios. It was also during this stage that Edwin’s role expanded further. He grew from someone who built systems into a leader capable of bringing together teams, strategy, processes, and cross-functional collaboration. As his impact became clear, the mandate grew broader — and so did the trust placed in him.  

Beyond Personal Growth: How Real Work Earns Trust and Opens Doors

Looking back at Edwin’s seven years at KuCoin, what is most worth recording is not only where he eventually arrived, but how the path unfolded. From Risk Specialist to internal control builder, and later to broader risk management leadership, the nature of his work kept changing. His scope of responsibility kept expanding. Each transition was not simply a change in title, but a process of learning anew, making fresh judgments, and delivering results in a new context. Reflecting on this journey, Edwin said: “When you truly deliver results, the company will see it — and it will give you more opportunities to grow.” That sentence offers a clear answer to what shaped his seven years. Opportunities are not always laid out in full from the beginning. Often, they are hidden in real tasks. When someone is willing to take on a problem, break it down, and deliver results, the next part of the path begins to emerge. Edwin’s story is not a story about “rapid promotion.” It is a story about how growth is shaped by real challenges, sustained by ownership, and strengthened by trust. His judgment was shaped by the problems he solved. His scope expanded with the responsibilities he earned. And after years of consistent delivery, being seen, trusted, and entrusted with more is what gives this story its greatest strength.