KuCoin
Leadership History
3 leaders · 2017 to present
BC Wong is the CEO of KuCoin, in the role since 2025. The first chief executive was Michael Gan, from 2017.
| Name | Role | From | To | Years in role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BC Wong | CEO | 2025 | Present | 1 |
| Johnny Lyu | CEO, KuCoin Global | 2020 | 2025 | 5 |
| Michael Gan | Co-founder & CEO | 2017 | 2020 | 3 |
KuCoin is one of the larger offshore crypto exchanges, known since 2017 as 'The People's Exchange' for listing smaller tokens early and packaging trading bots into its app. The company was started in China, moved through Hong Kong and Singapore, and is registered in the Seychelles, with Peken Global Limited as its operating entity. Its story since 2023 has been regulatory: a $22 million New York settlement, a 2024 US indictment, a 2025 guilty plea that removed two founders from management, and a CEO change to BC Wong. The company is headquartered in Victoria, Seychelles.
KuCoin makes money mainly from transaction fees. Spot trades start at 0.1% maker/taker for standard pairs, with discounts for high-volume VIP tiers and for paying fees in KCS. Perpetual and delivery futures charge lower per-trade rates but carry far higher volume, so derivatives are a major fee source. Margin borrowing generates interest spreads, and KuCoin Earn, P2P, OTC desks, withdrawal fees and token-launch programmes add further income. Built-in trading bots are free to set up but every order they place pays normal trading fees. KCS, the exchange token, ties customers to the platform through fee discounts and a holder bonus funded from a share of trading fees. KuCoin does not publish audited financial statements.
CEO
2025 – Present
1 year (current)
Took over as CEO in January 2025 after serving as chief legal officer, and led KuCoin through the US plea, the CFTC settlement and its MiCA, AUSTRAC and Thailand launches.
Repositioned KuCoin around licensing and compliance.
CEO, KuCoin Global
2020 – 2025
5 years
Became CEO of KuCoin Global in March 2020, handled the September 2020 hack and recovery, and oversaw the 2022 Series B and the launch of proof of reserves.
Public face of KuCoin through its fastest growth and its early regulatory troubles.
Co-founder & CEO
2017 – 2020
3 years
Launched KuCoin and the KCS token in 2017 and raised the 2018 Series A; moved to chairman of KuGroup in 2020.
Built the founding team and exchange; left management in January 2025 under a deferred prosecution agreement.
KuCoin's main challenge is regulatory. It pleaded guilty in the US in January 2025, was fined ~$14 million (C$19.5 million) by Canada's FINTRAC in September 2025, accepted a permanent US ban in a March 2026 CFTC settlement, and saw Austria's FMA restrict new business at KuCoin EU in February 2026 over missing AML and sanctions officers. It also competes with larger offshore venues (Binance, OKX, Bybit) and licensed onshore exchanges (Coinbase, Kraken), while its revenue swings with crypto trading volumes.
BC Wong, appointed January 20, 2025. He was previously KuCoin's chief legal officer.
Johnny Lyu, who became CEO of KuCoin Global in March 2020 when Michael Gan moved to chairman of KuGroup.
Co-founder Michael Gan led KuCoin from 2017 until 2020.
The change came as KuCoin resolved US charges; the company said Wong's appointment reflected its focus on compliance and global expansion.
Johnny Lyu serves as CEO. He became the highly visible face of the company during the brutal 2022 crypto winter, famously taking to Twitter to aggressively deny rumors that KuCoin was insolvent and pausing withdrawals (unlike FTX). However, his leadership is currently under massive existential threat due to the 2024 US DOJ criminal indictments alleging willful anti-money laundering violations.
Compare executive leadership tenures and strategic transitions
Explore KuCoin
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