Market Requires Standardized Benchmark for Evaluating Centralized Exchanges
CoinDesk's April 2025 Exchange Benchmark report provides a detailed framework for assessing the operational quality of digital asset exchanges, covering 89 platforms across spot and derivatives markets. Key aspects include:
- Refined scoring based on 100+ metrics across eight categories: market quality, security, regulation, KYC, transparency, data provision, exchange leadership, and negative events.
- Six exchanges received an AA rating: Binance, Coinbase, Bitstamp, Kraken, Crypto.com, and Bullish.
- Nineteen exchanges are classified as top-tier, up from 16 in November 2024, with new entries including Gate.io, Bitvavo, and WhiteBIT.
- Over 60% of top-tier exchanges submitted due diligence questionnaires (DDQs), correlating with higher scores and improved score reliability.
- 67% of AA-rated exchanges offer off-exchange settlement options, enhancing risk management by keeping assets in third-party custody.
- Top-tier exchanges accounted for over 60% of Q1 spot volume, despite being less than 20% of ranked venues.
- Several high-volume exchanges remain in lower tiers due to licensing or internal transparency issues.
The next benchmark edition will be published in November 2025, emphasizing the importance of robust infrastructure in the crypto ecosystem.