How Regulatory Actions Impact Crypto Centralised Exchanges: A Case Study Analysis 

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In the recent past, the top crypto exchanges including Binance and Coinbase Exchange, have faced regulatory crackdowns. Crypto exchanges are the backbone of the crypto industry. Crypto enthusiasts are keenly observing how the crypto exchanges are responding to these crackdowns. Let’s see how some recent crypto crackdowns have affected some top exchanges. 

1. Top Crypto Centralised Exchanges in the World 

Binance, Coinbase, Bybit, Bitget and OKX are the top five crypto exchanges in the world in terms of monthly visits.

Crypto Exchanges	Monthly Visits	24h Volume	Trust Score
Binance	64.6M	$22,209,415,532	10/10
Coinbase Exchange	36.8M	$3,154,417,101	10/10
Bybit	33.4M	$6,562,695,319	10/10
Bitget	30M	$2,076,518,756	9/10
OKX	29.4M	$2,991,282,099	10/10

With a monthly visit of 64.6M binance binance binance@miceneurol.com Centralised Exchange is the top crypto centralised exchange in the world. It has a 24 hour trading volume of $22,209,415,532, and a normalised 24 trading volume of $13,009,118,576. Coinbase and Bybit follow with 36.8M and 33.4M monthly visits. With a trading volume of $6,562,695,319, Bybit has better trading volume than Coinbase Exchange, which shows a trading volume of just $3,154,417,101. Bitget and OKX are also close contestants in the top crypto exchange list, with 30M and 29.4M monthly visits. OKX, with a trading volume of $2,991,282,099 and a trust score of 10/10, fairs over Bitget which only has a volume of $2,076,518,756 and a trust score of 9/10. Interestingly, in the top five crypto exchange list, excluding Bitget, none of them have a trust score lower than 10/10. 

1.1. Binance Crypto Exchange Performance Overview 

Established in 2017, Binance is an exchange registered in Cayman Islands. As of now, there are not less than 379 coins and 1251 trading pairs on the exchange. It has an Exchange Reserve of $101,246,382,851.47. 

BTC/FDUSD, BTC/USDT, ETH/FDUSD, ETH/USDT and USDC/USDT are the top five trading pairs in the exchange by volume. 

Trading Pairs	Volume by Market Pair
BTC/FDUSD	23.37%
BTC/USDT	12.85%
ETH/FDUSD	12.47%
ETH/USDT	6.72%
USDC/USDT	6.35%

BTC/FDUSD dominates with a volume by market pair of 23.37%. BTC/USDT and ETH/FDUSD follow with 12.85% and 12.47%. 

In terms of volume by currency, USDT, FDUSD, USDC, BTC and TRY are the top five currencies. 

Currencies	Volume by Currency
USDT	49.10%
FDUSD	41.29%
USDC	1.86%
BTC	1.21%
TRY	0.94%

USDT enjoys a massive volume by currency of 49.10%. FDUSD closely follows with 41.29%. USDC, BTC and TRY have small volume shares compared to the top two cryptocurrencies. 

1.1.1. Impact of Regulatory Crackdown on Binance 

The major regulatory crackdowns that Binance has faced recently are the UK FAC Ban, the Dutch Central Bank Fine and the US CFTC Lawsuit.

On June 26, 2021, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority banned Binance Markets Limited from conducting any regulated activity in the UK. On July 18, 2022, the Dutch Central Bank fined Binance Euro 3.3 million for operating without proper registration. On March 27, 2023, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission sued Binace and its CEP for allegedly offering unregistered crypto derivative products. 

On March 14, 2023, the 24-hour volume was nearly $32.93B. On 27th March, it sharply dropped to $5.53B. Between 27 March and 25th February, 2024, the 24-hour volume remained inside the range of $17.22B and $1.92B.  

1.2. Coinbase Crypto Exchange Performance Overview 

Established in 2012 coinbase coinbase support@coinbase.com Centralised Exchange Exchange is an exchange registered in the United States. At present, there are not less than 250 coins and 406 trading pairs on the exchange. 

BTC/USD, ETH/USD. USDT/USD, SOL/USD and USDT are the top five trading pairs on this exchange. 

Trading Pairs	Volume by Market Pair
BTC/USD	27.68%
ETH/USD	18.92%
USDT/USD	13.49%
SOL/USD	10.67%
USDT/USDC	3.82%

BTC/USD is the top most trading pair. It has a volume by market pair of 27.68%. ETH/USD, USDT/USD, and USDT/USD follow closely with 18.92%, 13.49% and 10.67%, respectively. USDT/USDC only has a small volume of 3.82%. 

USD, USDC, USDT, EUR and GBP are the top five currencies traded on the exchange by volume.

Currencies	Volume by Currency
USD	86.33%
USDC	3.82%
USDT	3.17%
EUR	2.61%
GBP	1.35%

USD dominates in terms of volume by currency with 86.33% volume. USDC, USDT, EUR, and GBP are less significant players compared to the top currency. USDC has just a 3.82% volume. USDT, EUR and GBP have 3.17%, 2.61% and 1.35% respectively. 

1.2.1. Impact of Regulatory Crackdown on Coinbase

The SEC Wells Notice and the SEC Lawsuit are the top important regulatory crackdowns Coinbase has experienced recently.

On 1st Sep, 2021, the SEC issued a Wells notice to Coinbase over its planned Lend product, alleging it constituted an unregistered securities offering. On June 6, 2023, The SEC sued Coinbase, alleging that the exchange operated as an unregistered securities broker.

On June 6, 2023, the 24-hour volume was $1.30B. In the year 2023, the 24 hour trading volume of the exchange largely oscillated between $3.51B and $291.02M. On 6th March, 2024, it reached a peak of $11.18B. 

1.3. Bybit Crypto Exchange Performance Overview 

Established in 2018 bybit bybit Centralised ExchangeCrypto trading and Information is a centralised crypto exchange registered in the British Virgin Islands. As of now, there are not less than 513 coins and 599 trading pairs on the exchange. This exchange has an Exchange Reserve of $8,427,582,344.24. 

BTC/USDT, BTC/USDC. ETH/USDC. ETH/USDT, and SOL/USDT are the top five trading pairs on the exchange in terms of volume by market pair.

Trading Pairs	Volume by Market Pair
BTC/USDT	24.84%
BTC/USDC	16.93%
ETH/USDC	13.18%
ETH/USDT	11.65%
SOL/USDT	6.07%

BTC/USDT enjoys a volume of 24.84%. BTC/USD follows with 16.93%. ETH/USDC and ETH/USDT record 13.18% and 11.65% respectively. SOL/USDT has a volume of 6.07%. 

USDT, USDC, BTC and USDE are the major currencies traded on the exchange. 

Currencies	Volume by Currency
USDT	66.16%
USDC	30.84%
BTC	0.49%
USDE	0.15%

USDT registers a significant volume of 66.16%. USDC also has a moderately high volume of 30.84%. BTC and USDE show just 0.49% and 0.15% volume, respectively. 

1.3.1. Impact of Regulatory Crackdown on Bybit

The UK FAC Warning and the Ontario Securities Commission Settlement are the top major regulatory crackdowns experienced by Bybit.

On March 5, 2021, The UK Financial Conduct Authority issued a warning to Bybit. It stated that it was not permitted to offer its services in the UK without proper authorisation. On June 21, 2022, the exchange reached a settlement with the OSC in Canada, agreeing to pay a fine and improve its compliance. 

On 4th October, 2022, the 24-hour volume was $835.65M. On the last day of that year, it was just $279.86M. In the year 2023, the volume oscillated between $4.33B and $0.00. On 6th March, 2024, it touched a peak of $13.62B 

1.4. Bitget Crypto Exchange Performance Overview 

Established in 2018 bitget bitget bd@bitget.com Centralised Exchange is a major crypto exchange registered in Seychelles. At the time of writing this, there are not less than 878 coins and 971 trading pairs on the exchange. The exchange has an Exchange Reserve of $3,123,638,844.89.

BTC/USDT, ETH/USDT, SOL/USDT, DOGE/USDT, PEPE/USDT are the top five trading pairs on the exchange on the basis of volume by market pair. 

Trading Pairs	Volume by Market Pair
BTC/USDT	16.45%
ETH/USDT	12.69%
SOL/USDT	7.65%
DOGE/USDT	5.67%
PEPE/USDT	3.11%

BTC/USDT dominates with a volume of 16.45%. ETH/USDT and SOL/USDT follow with 12.69% and 7.65%, respectively. DOGE/USDT records 5.67% volume, and PEPE/USDT shows 3.11% volume. 

USDT, USDC, and EUR are the most important currencies traded on this exchange.  

Currencies	Volume by Currency
USDT	88.15%
USDC	0.53%
EUR	0.14%

USDT records an extreme volume of 88.15%. Compared to USDT, the volume of 0.53% shown by USDC and the volume of 0.14% displayed by EUR are insignificant. 

1.4.1. Impact of Regulatory Crackdown on Bitget

The Singapore MAS Investigation, and UK FCA Warning are the two most notable regulatory crackdowns this exchange has experienced recently.

On Nov 1, 2021, the Monetary Authority of Singapore placed Bitget on its Investor Alert List. On 11th December, 2021, the UK FCA issued a warning against Bitget for operating without proper regulatory approval.

The year 2023 was not an impressive year for Bitget in terms of trading volume. The 24-hour volume of 2023 was $2.01B and the lowest was $265.73M. The year 2024 is better compared to the previous year. On 14th April, 2024, the 24-hour volume of Bitget marked a peak of $6.47B. On 6th March and 21st March, the exchange showed similar performances.  

1.5. OKX Crypto Exchange Performance Overview 

Established in 2017 okex okex Centralised Exchange is another crypto exchange registered in Seychelles. Right now, at least 317 coins and 552 trading pairs are available on the exchange. With a massive Exchange Reserve of $17,686,435,732.39, this is one of the most powerful exchanges.

BTC/USDT. ETH/USDT. SOL/USDT, PEPE/USDT and MAX/USDT are the top five trading pairs on the exchange in terms of volume by market pair.

Trading Pairs	Volume by Market Pair
BTC/USDT	28.69%
ETH/USDT	18.46%
SOL/USDT	8.99%
PEPE/USDT	2.67%
MAX/USDT	2.47%

BTC/USDT dominates with 28.69% volume. ETH/USDT closely follows with 18.46%. SOL/USDT marks a volume of 8.99%. PEPE/USDT and MAX/USDT register 2.67% and 2.47% respectively. 

USDT, USDC, BTC, EUR and ETH are the top five currencies traded in this exchange at present, in terms of volume by currency. 

Currencies	Volume by Currency
USDT	88.91%
USDC	4.76%
BTC	0.86%
EUR	0.79%
ETH	0.26%

USDT has a significant volume of 88.91%. USDC closely follows, but with a comparatively small volume of 4.76%. BTC, EUR and ETH record just 0.86%, 0.79% and 0.26% volume respectively. 

1.5.1. Impact of Regulatory Crackdown on OKX

The China withdrawal suspension and the Malta Financial Services Authority warning are the two major crypto crackdowns OKX experienced recently.

On March 23, 2020, the MFSA issued a warning that OKX was not licensed to operate in Malta. On 16th October, 2020, OKX suspended all cryptocurrency withdrawals after one of its key holders was taken into custody by China. 

In 2023, The 24-hour volume of OKX majorly oscillated between $4.84B and $317.44M. The year witnessed neither major highs nor major lows. In 2024, the situation improved slightly. In the year, a few interesting peaks were observed. In 6th March, the 24-hour volume crossed the mark of $13B. Similar impressive performances were repeated on 16th March, 20th March and 14th April as well.  

2. Top Crypto Centralised Exchanges in the United States 

At present. Coinbase Exchange, Kraken, Tapbit, TradeOgre and Gemini are the top five crypto exchanges in the United States by monthly visits.

Crypto Exchanges	Monthly Visits	24h Volume	Trust Score
Coinbase Exchange	36.8M	$3,271,283,830	10/10
Kraken	8.07M	$1,162,142,290	10/10
Tapbit	6.47M	$1,254,742,533	5/10
TradeOgre	1.72M	$1,612,726	4/10
Gemini	1.59M	$94,209,051	8/10

Coinbase dominates with 36.8M monthly visits. Kraken and Taqbit follow with 8.07M and 6.47M respectively. TradeOgre records 1.72M monthly visits and Gemini registers 1.59M monthly visits. 

Here are the major regulatory crackdowns on the top crypto exchanges in the US witnessed in the recent past. 

In September 2021, the SEC issued a Wells notice to Coinbase. In June 2023, The SEC sued  Coinbase. It alleged that the exchange operated as an unregistered securities broker. 

In November, 2019, Kraken settled with the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control for apparent violations of sanctions against Iran. In September 2021, The Commodity Futures Trading Commission fined Kraken $1.25 million.

In October 2019, Gemini was fined $1 million by the NYDFS for compliance failures. In January 2022, the SEC issued a Wells notice to Gemini concerning ist Gemini Earn program. 

Endnote 

There is enough data to believe that government regulatory interventions can affect crypto exchanges. To understand the impact, we can use several parameters like trading volume and trust score. It is important to create a clear regulatory framework for crypto exchanges to operate, but such a framework or any attempt to create such a framework should not stifle the growth of crypto exchanges, particularly should not affect the trust of people in the centralised exchanges. 

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