Are you an investor looking for a potential investment? Are you considering trading in cryptos? Do you have a particular exchange in mind?
There are a lot of crypto exchange trading platforms in the crypto market right now. According to data by Investopedia, there are 4,000 crypto exchanges that operate in the crypto market. So, what should be your metric in choosing the best exchange? The exchange should be trustworthy with a high-level of confidence from its users. One metric to watch out for is the volume of trading transactions. Why is this important? Because trading volumes work both ways, for the exchange and the traders. How? Exchanges earn from transaction fees in their platform. The large volume of trades would also mean more profit for them. As for traders, it will give them more windows to earn. There are three types of crypto exchanges. What are these?
Types of Crypto Exchanges
- Centralized exchanges (CEX) are trading platforms that are similar to traditional brokerage and stocks. It is owned and operated by a company that has control of all the transactions on the platform. But they do not have access to their users’ private keys.
- Decentralized exchanges (DEX) are trading platforms that allow peer-to-peer crypto transactions securely online without the need for intermediaries.
- Hybrid exchanges (HEX) are trading platforms that address the issues of centralized and decentralized exchanges. It’s like you are having the best of both worlds in your hand. It enjoys the usability and liquidity of centralized exchanges while getting the protection and anonymity of decentralized exchanges.
Leading Crypto Exchanges
So, now let’s begin our countdown for the best crypto exchanges based on trading volumes. We have also included a little background on these exchanges and other details on their platforms. We have accumulated data from other sites to give you the most comprehensive list. The ranking is based on an average daily volume. We have included other metrics like trust score, transparency rating, and exchange score. Trust score and exchange score have the same rating system with 10 being the highest and 1 being the lowest. Transparency rating A stands for very good, B for good, C for fair, and D for poor.
Binance is a crypto trading platform that supports digital currencies. It also provides crypto wallets for its users where they can store their digital assets. It was founded in China by Changpeng Zhao in 2017. But in 2018, it relocated to Malta due to the implementation of stricter regulations in the country. The trading platform has 332 listed digital assets including major cryptocurrencies like BTC (Bitcoin), ETH (Ether), LTC (Litecoin). Binance Coin (BNB) is the native asset of Binance. BNB coin has a total market cap of $ 38,480,769,009.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $26,819,876,928
Trust Score: 10
Transparency Rating: A
Exchange Score: 9.8
Exchange Type: Centralized
Huobi Global is a crypto exchange based in Seychelles. It was founded in China by Leon Li in 2013. Due to a ban imposed by the Chinese government on bitcoin exchanges in 2017, Huobi ventured into expanding its services globally. It opened a new headquarter in Korea and started its trading operations in 2018. It has a total of 313 listed virtual assets. Huobi Token (HT) is the native token of the exchange and has a total market cap of $ 3,517,642,443.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $8,118,379,927
Trust Score: 9
Transparency Rating: C
Exchange Score: 9.2
Exchange Type: Centralized
Coinbase Pro is a US-based trading platform and was established by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam in 2012. It runs its operation to over 190 countries worldwide. Do not mistake Coinbase with Coinbase Pro. Coinbase is a brokerage that also offers services for crypto-wallets. Coinbase Pro on the other hand is a trading platform that offers services for buying and selling crypto assets. Currently, it has 46 cryptocurrencies listed on its platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $3,478,351,752
Trust Score: 10
Transparency Rating: A
Exchange Score: 8.7
Exchange Type: Centralized
Kraken is a crypto exchange based in the U.S. It was founded in 2011 by Jesse Powell, a veteran of the virtual currency industry. It offers its service to residents of 48 U.S. states and 176 countries globally. 46 virtual assets are listed in its platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $1,824,202,404
Trust Score: 10
Transparency Rating: A
Exchange Score: 8.5
Exchange Type: Centralized
Bitfinex is a trading platform owned and operated by iFinex Inc. It was founded in Hong Kong in 2012 by Giancarlo Devasini and Raphael Nicolle. But the company was registered in the British Virgin Islands. LEO (UNUS SED LEO) token is the exchange’s native token. It has a total market cap of $ 1,929,878,683. Bitfinex has 144 digital assets listed on its platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $1,172,557,457
Trust Score: 10
Transparency Rating: A-
Exchange Score: 8.2
Exchange Type: Centralized
Bithumb is a South Korean cryptocurrency exchange and was founded in 2014 by Javier Sim. 156 cryptocurrencies are listed in its platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $1,919,018,022
Trust Score: 9
Transparency Rating: C
Exchange Score: 8.2
Exchange Type: Centralized
Kucoin Exchange is a crypto exchange dubbed as “The People’s Exchange”. It was founded by Michael Gan, Eric Don, Top Lan, Kent Li, John Lee, Jack Zhu, and Linda Lin in 2013. The trading platform was officially launched on September 15, 2017. Kucoin Token (KCS) is the native token of the exchange and has a total market cap of $ 420,087,399. The exchange has 279 crypto assets listed on its platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $664,174,423
Trust Score: 9
Transparency Rating: C
Exchange Score: 7.9
Exchange Type: Centralized
Bitstamp is the world’s longest-standing fiat and crypto exchange and based in Luxembourg. It was founded in August 2011 by Nejc Kodrič and Damijan Merlak in Slovenia. It later moved to the UK in April 2013 then finally to Luxembourg in 2016. Bitstamp was acquired by NXMH, a Belgium-based investment company in October 2018. It has 13 digital assets listed on its platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $792,754,317
Trust Score: 9
Transparency Rating: A
Exchange Score: 7.9
Exchange Type: Centralized
Binance.US is a regulated marketplace built on the globally leading trading technology of Binance. It was founded in 2019 and Catherine Coley, former Ripple Exec was appointed as CEO. It currently lists 54 virtual assets in its platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $496,999,534
Trust Score: 10
Transparency Rating: B
Exchange Score: 7.7
Exchange Type: Centralized
Coinone is a South Korean cryptocurrency exchange founded by Myunghun Kevin Cha in February 2014. It is the second-largest crypto trading platform in the country. Wire transfer is the only deposit method allowed in the exchange. It has 162 cryptocurrencies listed on the platform.
Ave. Daily Trading Volume: $496,999,534
Trust Score: 6
Transparency Rating: D
Exchange Score: 7.5
Exchange Type: Centralized
That wraps up our top 10 cryptocurrency exchanges by trading volume. As investors, it is still very important to do your research. We have also featured articles on our website that you may find helpful in choosing which project to invest in. We also have tips on how to invest wisely in cryptos. At the end of the day, choosing your exchange still depends on your preference. As a trader or a future crypto trader, you trade at your risk.
