Kaiko Exchange Ranking.

Our exchange ranking is a classification of centralized spot cryptocurrency exchanges using a proprietary methodology supported by Kaiko crypto market data. The ranking plays a crucial role in various Kaiko solutions, including the selection of exchanges for our Blue-Chip Crypto Indices.

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Our Exchange Ranking Criteria

We comprehensively evaluate each exchange every quarter based on six key weighted criteria, designed to stress-test infrastructure, capabilities, professionalism, security and reliability to provide a comparable overview and score. This ensures our data solutions, indices, and reference rates use only the very best rated exchanges based on a fully justifiable and transparent metric. 

Governance Score – 30%
This score measures each exchange based on its policies around regulatory compliance, enforcement history, institutional governance, KYC/AML procedures, transparency practices, country risk, insurance coverage, and proof of reserves. The review is predominantly based on the policies issued by the exchanges and the terms and conditions that govern access to the exchanges.

Business Score – 15%
This score assesses each exchange’s business maturity based on company identification and operational history, executive team composition (including CEO, CTO, COO, and CCO), and product diversity measured by the number of trading pairs offered. The evaluation reflects the exchange’s operational stability, leadership structure, and market coverage.

Technology Score – 10% 
Each exchange is screened according to different technology-related sub-criteria built on data collected from their public market data distribution pipeline. By assessing the quality of these metrics, our model measures the capacity of an exchange platform to provide market-level information through widely adopted distribution standards, while ensuring a significant level of infrastructure reliability.

Data Quality Score – 10%
This score evaluates the quality and availability of market data provided by each exchange, including real-time and historical trade data, OHLCV (Open, High, Low, Close, Volume) data with granularity levels, and order book depth information. The assessment measures both the diversity of public market data types and the exchange’s capacity to deliver comprehensive real-time feeds and historical datasets for quantitative analysis.

Security Score – 20%  
This score evaluates each exchange’s security infrastructure based on industry certifications (SOC, ISO27001), cold storage practices, account protection measures (including two-factor authentication), historical security incidents, bug bounty program rewards, and the presence of a Chief Information Security Officer. The assessment monitors both preventative security measures and the exchange’s response to past vulnerabilities to ensure robust protection of digital assets.

Liquidity Score – 15% 
This score evaluates each exchange’s liquidity infrastructure based on trading activity volume, market depth at +/-1% price levels, dispersion of trading across assets, market quality metrics, and quarterly liquidity momentum trends. The assessment combines absolute and relative liquidity measures across multiple digital assets, weighted to reflect both current market depth and sustained trading stability over time.

You can see a full in-depth breakdown of our review criteria in our comprehensive methodology, available here.   

Why institutional financial professionals trust our Exchange Ranking

Since 2014, Kaiko has been the trusted data foundation for digital asset markets, delivering institutional-grade market intelligence across centralized and decentralized platforms alongside industry-leading crypto research. Kaiko powers mission-critical infrastructure for industry leaders including Société Générale, Fidelity, CBOE Digital, Bitstamp, and major financial regulators.

With over a decade of continuously collected historical data, global operations spanning four continents, and the unique capability to bridge traditional financial infrastructure with blockchain networks, Kaiko serves as the definitive source of record for institutions building the future of digital finance. When accuracy, accountability, and trust are the priority, institutional market participants turn to Kaiko.

FAQ

What is the Kaiko Exchange Ranking? 

The Kaiko Exchange Ranking is an institutional-grade evaluation system that assesses crypto exchanges based on data quality, market depth, operational reliability, and regulatory compliance. Updated every 3 months the ranking serves as the foundation for selecting exchanges in Kaiko’s Blue-Chip Crypto Indices and is used by institutional investors to evaluate exchange quality and make informed trading decisions.

How is Kaiko’s Exchange Ranking different from alternatives?

Unlike volume-based exchange rankings, Kaiko’s methodology evaluates institutional-grade data quality, market depth, and operational reliability. Kaiko identifies artificial volume and wash trading by analyzing market depth ratios, tick-level trade data, and spread patterns metrics that traditional rankings overlook. Kaiko’s approach prioritizes actual market liquidity over self-reported trading volume, making it the standard for institutional exchange evaluation.

Who uses the Kaiko Exchange Ranking?

The Kaiko Exchange Ranking is used by institutional investors, financial services firms, and enterprises to evaluate crypto exchange quality and make informed decisions. The ranking serves as the foundation for selecting exchanges included in Kaiko’s Blue-Chip Crypto Indices and is widely followed by institutions across the digital asset ecosystem. The ranking can also be licensed by third parties for integration into commercial products and services.

How often is the Kaiko Exchange Ranking updated? 

Kaiko’s Exchange Ranking is updated quarterly in March, June, September and December. These regular updates ensure rankings incorporate the most recent three months of trading, liquidity, and governance data while maintaining consistency for index construction.