Richard Olsen (Lykke): 10 Key Things You Must Know

Overview

Richard Olsen (Lykke) is a Swiss entrepreneur and fintech innovator best known as the founder of Lykke, a blockchain-based financial technology company aimed at revolutionizing the trading of digital assets. With a background deeply rooted in high-frequency finance and currency trading, Olsen has sought to merge traditional financial markets with cutting-edge blockchain technology through Lykke. His vision was to create a global, zero-commission marketplace for various asset classes, allowing for seamless trading and immediate settlement on the blockchain. Despite initial enthusiasm and rapid growth, Olsen and Lykke have faced major challenges, including a significant crypto exchange hack and eventual liquidation, making his story a compelling case study of ambition, innovation, and risk in the evolving digital finance space.

1. Early Career and OANDA Legacy

Before founding Lykke, Richard Olsen co-founded OANDA, a pioneering currency trading platform known for its role in popularizing online forex trading. Launched over 20 years ago, OANDA set standards for automated and high-frequency trading platforms, blending financial market theory with technology. Olsen's experience at OANDA laid the foundation for his deep understanding of market microstructure, electronic trading, and the inefficiencies inherent in financial systems. This background inspired his vision of leveraging blockchain technology to overcome traditional market barriers and inefficiencies with Lykke.

2. Founding of Lykke and Vision

Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Switzerland's "Crypto Valley" in Zug, Lykke was conceived as a global blockchain marketplace where users could trade any type of asset—cryptocurrencies, fiat currencies, commodities, and even unique financial instruments—without commissions. Olsen aimed to build an open, efficient, and instantly settling exchange by leveraging blockchain's transparency and trustless features. Lykke’s use of "colored coins" technology allowed the tokenization of assets, enabling users to trade issuer-backed securities directly on the blockchain. His mission was to "reinvent finance" by democratizing access to global financial markets with innovative financial engineering.

3. Technological Innovations and Platform Features

Lykke distinguished itself through innovations such as zero-commission trading, immediate settlement, and the use of multisignature wallets for enhanced security. The platform was blockchain-agnostic, meaning it could operate across various public blockchains, not tied to a single technology like Ethereum. This flexibility was intended to maximize interoperability and user freedom. Additionally, Lykke planned to introduce algorithm-supported cryptocurrency derivatives to enhance liquidity and offer advanced financial products. Its wallet app enabled users to trade assets anytime, with transparent transaction histories and easy fiat and crypto conversions.

4. Growth, Investment, and Industry Recognition

Lykke gained significant attention and funding during its early years, raising between $15 and $20 million and growing a team of around 100 people. The company attracted strategic investments, including from South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Systems, enhancing its position for global expansion. Industry experts and investors viewed Lykke as a promising fintech innovator with the potential to disrupt traditional investment banking. Its advisory board included prominent figures like Bitcoin pioneer Nick Szabo. Lykke also secured partnerships, such as with Swiss publishing house Tamedia, which invested in its security tokens (LKKs), reflecting growing institutional interest.

5. The $22 Million Hack Incident

In June 2024, Lykke's platform suffered a severe security breach resulting in the theft of approximately $22 million worth of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ether. The attacker gained unauthorized access through a sophisticated operation that tricked a partner company into transferring funds, which were then laundered across multiple wallets to obfuscate the trail. This event forced Lykke to suspend trading and freeze withdrawals, causing significant disruption and loss of investor confidence. Despite assurances from Olsen that customer funds were protected and no users would suffer losses, the breach marked a major crisis for the company.

6. Impact of the Collapse and Legal Challenges

Following the hack, Lykke faced operational and financial turmoil culminating in its eventual liquidation. By late 2024 and early 2025, the UK-registered arm of Lykke ceased operations, and a winding-up petition was filed by over 70 customers claiming losses totaling approximately £5.7 million. Regulators had already issued warnings that Lykke was not authorized to offer financial services in the UK. Richard Olsen personally declared bankruptcy in early 2025 and faced ongoing criminal investigations in Switzerland, adding legal pressure to the company’s downfall. Customers and investors suffered losses, sparking lawsuits and widespread concern about security and oversight in crypto exchanges.

7. North Korean Hackers and Lazarus Group Connection

In August 2025, the UK Treasury's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation officially linked the hack on Lykke to North Korea's Lazarus Group, a notorious state-backed cybercriminal entity. The Lazarus Group is known for conducting high-profile cryptocurrency thefts worldwide to fund Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic weapons programs. The stolen funds from Lykke, totaling over £17 million (approximately $23 million), were laundered through cryptocurrency mixers and unregulated platforms. This designation underscored the geopolitical risks facing crypto exchanges and highlighted the vulnerabilities in digital asset security.

8. Regulatory and Industry Reactions

Lykke’s collapse drew attention from regulators across Switzerland, the UK, and other jurisdictions, illuminating the challenges in supervising rapidly evolving crypto markets. The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority had earlier warned consumers about Lykke’s unauthorized activities. Post-collapse, regulators called for tighter controls and strengthened cybersecurity requirements for digital asset platforms. The incident also spurred increased advocacy for investor protections, transparency, and the adoption of decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions to reduce reliance on centralized, vulnerable platforms.

9. Richard Olsen’s Vision on the Future of Finance

Despite the setbacks, Olsen has remained vocal about his belief in blockchain’s transformative power for global financial markets. His vision extends beyond cryptocurrencies to a future where financial instruments of all kinds are digitized and traded on global, decentralized marketplaces with immediate settlement. Olsen views Lykke as a prototype for this seamless ecosystem, emphasizing financial engineering, agnosticism toward blockchain platforms, and low transaction costs to democratize access and liquidity in financial markets worldwide.

10. Legacy and Lessons from the Lykke Story

Richard Olsen’s journey with Lykke offers a nuanced legacy of innovation marked by ambitious goals and significant pitfalls. It underscores both the promise and perils of pioneering financial technology in an unregulated, rapidly evolving environment. Lessons from Lykke’s hack and collapse have influenced industry best practices on security, compliance, and risk management. Moreover, the case highlights ongoing geopolitical challenges facing global crypto infrastructure, illustrating the delicate balance between innovation, regulation, and security in shaping the future of finance.

Conclusion

Richard Olsen’s career, culminating in the rise and fall of Lykke, encapsulates the dynamic interplay between traditional finance and the emerging blockchain revolution. His innovative vision sought to reinvent global financial markets by leveraging distributed ledger technology to create a commission-free, global trading platform. However, the company's challenges—from cybersecurity breaches to regulatory scrutiny and geopolitical interventions—reveal the formidable obstacles that fintech pioneers face. As the crypto industry matures, Olsen’s experience with Lykke serves as both inspiration and caution, highlighting the critical need for robust security, regulatory compliance, and resilience in the evolving digital economy. Will future innovators learn from Lykke’s story to build a safer, more inclusive financial marketplace?