Binance vs KuCoin: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Binance reported $16B of revenue in FY2025 and — of net income. KuCoin does not publish annual revenue.
Latest financial snapshot
Financial summary
Binance
Binance does not publish audited accounts, so every revenue figure is an outside estimate. Fortune put 2022 revenue at about $12 billion. Bloomberg's billionaires index estimated $9.8 billion for the 12 months to March 2024, using tracked trading volume and published fee rates. In March 2026 Forbes quoted an Artemis analyst estimating $16 billion to $17 billion a year in 2024 and 2025, about two and a half times Coinbase's $6.6 billion. Forbes valued Binance at about $100 billion and estimated CZ's stake at roughly 90%. The only disclosed outside equity investment is MGX's $2 billion minority stake from March 2025, settled in the USD1 stablecoin. The largest known cost was the roughly $4.3 billion US penalty agreed in November 2023.
KuCoin
KuCoin is private and does not publish revenue, profit or audited accounts, so this profile does not list a revenue figure. Known numbers come from funding and legal records: roughly 5,500 BTC (about $27.5 million at the time) raised in its 2017 token sale, a $20 million Series A in November 2018, and a $150 million Series B at a $10 billion valuation in May 2022. Its US resolution in January 2025 cost about $297 million ($112.9 million criminal fine plus $184.5 million forfeiture), and Canada's FINTRAC assessed ~$14 million (C$19.5 million) in September 2025, which KuCoin appealed. In February 2026 KuCoin said it would commit $2 billion to a trust and security programme.
Revenue and profit by year
Binance
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $16B | — | 0.0% | +0.0% | Source |
| FY2024 | $16B | — | 0.0% | +63.3% | Source |
| FY2023 | $9.8B | — | 0.0% | -18.3% | Source |
| FY2022 | $12B | — | 0.0% | — | Source |
KuCoin
KuCoin does not publish annual revenue. What is known about its finances is in the summary above.
Full KuCoin financialsBusiness model and strategy
Binance
How it makes money
Binance earns most of its money from trading fees. Regular spot traders pay 0.1% per trade, or 25% less when they pay in BNB, and futures fees start at 0.02% for makers and 0.05% for takers, falling for high-volume VIP tiers. Derivatives carry most of the volume, so they carry most of the fee income.
Growth strategy
Under Richard Teng, and since December 2025 co-CEO Yi He, Binance has swapped its old borderless model for licences and a single home regulator. The ADGM authorisation, effective January 5, 2026, puts the main platform under Abu Dhabi's FSRA.
Competitive advantage
Liquidity is the moat. Binance has the most traders, so its order books are the deepest and its spreads the tightest, which draws more traders and market makers. Forbes put its share of global crypto trading at about 38% in early 2026.
KuCoin
How it makes money
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.
Growth strategy
Under BC Wong, a lawyer and former chief legal officer, KuCoin has made licensing the centre of its strategy. Moves since 2025 include KuCoin Thailand with SEC-supervised ERX (April 2025), AUSTRAC registration and an Australian derivatives arrangement (November 2025), a MiCA CASP licence for KuCoin EU Exchange GmbH in Austria (November 2025), a $2 billion trust programme announced at Consensus Hong Kong 2026, and adm…
Competitive advantage
KuCoin's edge is breadth: it lists many smaller tokens early, bundles free grid, DCA and futures bots into its app, and keeps loyal holders through KCS fee discounts and bonuses. That mix suits active retail traders who want access to new altcoins. The same fast-listing, light-touch history is also what drew enforcement action, so the advantage is narrowing as KuCoin adopts mandatory KYC and regional licensing.
Questions about Binance vs KuCoin
Which company has higher revenue — Binance or KuCoin?
Binance reported $16.0B (FY2025). A verified revenue figure for KuCoin was not available at the time of this comparison.
Which is more financially efficient — Binance or KuCoin?
Binance generates $3.20M / employee in revenue per employee. A comparable figure for KuCoin requires matching employee and revenue data from the same reporting period.
How do Binance and KuCoin make money?
Binance and KuCoin generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Binance: Binance earns most of its money from trading fees. KuCoin: KuCoin makes money mainly from transaction fees.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Binance vs KuCoin overview