Global Crypto Exchange Directory:
Owners, Licenses, Jurisdictions & Status

The world's largest crypto exchange by volume — by most measures processing more than the next five exchanges combined. In November 2023, Binance and founder Changpeng Zhao agreed to a $4.3 billion DOJ settlement, the largest corporate criminal fine in financial history at the time. CZ stepped down, Richard Teng (formerly ADGM CEO) took over, and Binance has since secured full ADGM authorisation in Abu Dhabi while operating under a compliance monitor. It is simultaneously the market's dominant liquidity venue and a platform with an ongoing monitored compliance remediation program. Both facts matter equally.

One of the clearest examples of a major exchange transitioning from growth-first branding into compliance-led market access. Holds a full UAE SCA Virtual Asset Platform Operator licence and MiCAR CASP in Austria. In February 2025, Bybit suffered the largest exchange hack in crypto history: $1.4 billion stolen by North Korea's Lazarus Group via a Safe{Wallet} supply-chain attack. Bybit remained solvent, covered losses through bridge loans, and continued operations — demonstrating institutional-grade incident response at a scale no previous exchange had managed.

One of the most visible regulatory repositioning stories in the industry. Holds a Dubai VARA licence, MiCA CASP and EMI in Ireland, and US state MTLs. In February 2025, OKX reached a $630 million DOJ/FinCEN settlement for historic compliance failures in serving sanctioned jurisdictions. The settlement, combined with its ongoing regulatory buildout, places OKX in the same category as Binance: major exchange, significant enforcement history, now under monitored compliance improvement. OKX's non-custodial Web3 Wallet is separately one of the most used in the industry.

The gold standard for exchange transparency — a NASDAQ-listed US public company with full Securities Exchange Act disclosure obligations. The SEC dismissed its enforcement lawsuit in February 2025; Coinbase was added to the S&P 500 in May 2025 and acquired Deribit (world's largest crypto options exchange) for ~$2.9B. It holds the world's largest Bitcoin custody position (12% of all BTC), a NY BitLicense, MiCA CASP in Luxembourg, and CIF registration in Cyprus. For any institutional due diligence comparison, Coinbase is the baseline for public regulatory transparency.

Founded in 2011, Kraken is the first crypto company to hold a bank charter — a Wyoming Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) charter. This is a structural distinction above standard money transmitter licensing. In 2025 it acquired NinjaTrader ($1.5B), received Citadel Securities investment ($200M), and is planning an IPO in early 2026. Kraken is also building Ink, an Ethereum L2 chain. With 15M+ users and $207B quarterly volume, it remains the benchmark for US regulatory compliance in crypto.

More regulatory-serious than most observers realise. It holds Malta MFSA CASP authorisation and Dubai VARA VASP licence — two named regulatory anchors in major crypto-friendly jurisdictions. With 2,600+ trading pairs and nearly 1,900 coins, Gate is a primary venue for exotic altcoin access. Its emphasis on "real trading volume" transparency is a direct positioning response to the wash-trading reputation that affects many high-volume offshore exchanges. Founder Dr. Lin Han continues to guide the platform's long-term direction.

Consistently among the highest-volume exchanges globally, with 3,150+ markets and nearly 2,000 coins as of March 2026. Its zero maker fee structure drives competitive positioning. However, its public regulatory disclosure posture trails peers like Coinbase, Crypto.com, or OKX. The clearest compliance anchor is MEXC Estonia OÜ (Estonian FIU VASP), which provides an EU regulatory link but not yet a full MiCA CASP authorisation. As MiCA full implementation continues through 2025–2026, MEXC Estonia's CASP pathway will be the key licensing milestone to track.

One of the fastest-rising exchanges by volume and brand recognition, with CEO Gracy Chen one of the most publicly visible female executives in crypto. Bitget's copy trading product and Web3 wallet are competitive differentiators. It discloses $20B+ in proof-of-reserves. However, a centralised public regulatory disclosure page comparable to Coinbase or Crypto.com is still developing. Bitget's growth narrative has been built primarily on product quality and low fees rather than a compliance-first identity — a positioning that will likely need to evolve as institutional demand for licensing transparency grows.

One of the oldest major exchanges (founded 2013), HTX's current identity is shaped heavily by Justin Sun (Tron founder), who is publicly listed as global advisor. HTX has 47M+ registered users and $33T in cumulative volume, and maintains a "global licensed businesses" page with market-specific milestones. However, it does not yet hold a flagship Western full-scope licence. Poloniex (also Sun-linked) suffered a $100M hack in 2023. HTX is best classified as an offshore-major with growing regulatory ambitions but not yet the compliance infrastructure of the leading regulated venues.

Upbit is proof that not every major exchange needs a global offshore structure. Operated by Dunamu Inc. in Seoul (Kakao-linked), Upbit is Korea's dominant exchange and a top-five global exchange by real volume. It operates within South Korea's strict APDA regime — one of the world's more rigorous domestic crypto frameworks — and also holds MAS and Indonesian licences. Its daily volume regularly exceeds $1.74 billion, larger than many globally marketed offshore platforms. For regulatory analysis, Upbit demonstrates that national market dominance with deep domestic compliance can outweigh international brand reach.