Black and white chess pieces in play on a checkered board

Analysis · Exchanges

Kraken vs Binance: who can use each, what they charge and what regulators settled

Published 2026-10-14By the CryptoGuardz Register Desk6 min read19 sources

Photo: Felix Mittermeier / Unsplash

In short, from the documents

Kraken vs Binance: access, fees, settlements

Binance.com must keep a "complete exit from the United States" under its 2023 Treasury settlement; Americans use the separate Binance.US, unavailable in 16 states and regions. Kraken serves US residents except in Maine and New York. Binance's entry spot fee is 0.100%; Kraken Pro's is 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker.

Piece published 2026-10-14Reviewed by CryptoGuardz Register Desk, editorial desk

Kraken and Binance serve different people. Binance.com must stay out of the United States under its November 2023 Treasury settlement, after Binance agreed to pay $4,316,126,163 to the Department of Justice. Americans who want the brand use Binance.US, a separate company that is unavailable in 16 US states and regions. Kraken serves US residents except in Maine and New York. At entry level, Binance charges 0.100% per spot trade; Kraken Pro charges 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker.

All documents were read on 14 October 2026 unless a register date is given. Nothing here is investment advice. Full entries: Kraken and Binance.

Kraken vs Binance at a glance

Point	Kraken	Binance.com
US residents	Yes, except Maine and New York	No, use Binance.US
Non-US counterparty	Payward Trading Ltd, BVI	Three ADGM companies
Entry spot fee	0.40% maker, 0.80% taker	0.100% maker and taker
App or instant buy	1% fee plus spread	Not verified
Proof of reserves signer	Unnamed accountant	Binance itself
Last PoR snapshot shown	30 June 2026	No date on public page
US penalties	$30 million SEC, $362,158.70 OFAC	$4.3 billion DOJ, $3.4 billion FinCEN

Who can use Kraken and who can use Binance?

Kraken's support page, last updated 30 September 2026, says Kraken "does not offer services to residents of" Maine and New York. It lists 14 prohibited regions, including Iran, Russia, North Korea and Japan. In the US it is registered with FinCEN as a money services business under "Payward Interactive, Inc.", and its subsidiary Kraken Financial holds "a Wyoming-chartered Special Purpose Depository Institution". Outside the US, UK, Canada, Brazil and the EEA, the counterparty is Payward Trading Ltd in the British Virgin Islands, as recorded on the Kraken entry.

An open passport with colourful ink stamps on its pages — Illustration: a stamped passport. Where you live decides which exchange, and which Binance entity, will take you. Photo: Henry Thong / Unsplash

Binance's terms, effective 21 July 2026, bind users to three companies in Abu Dhabi Global Market and exclude anyone in a jurisdiction "listed in our List of Prohibited Countries". The US position comes from the Treasury settlement, which requires Binance to ensure its "complete exit from the United States."

Binance.US vs Binance.com

They are separate companies. Binance.US terms, last updated 5 June 2026, form a contract with BAM Trading Services Inc. and state:

BAM Trading and BHL share common majority ownership, but are not within the same corporate or management structure.

Binance.US terms of use, retrieved 2026-10-14

BHL is Binance Holdings Limited, the company that pleaded guilty in 2023. Binance.US lists 16 unsupported states and regions, among them New York, Texas, Georgia, North Carolina and Washington. In Kansas and Wisconsin, USD services are unavailable and accounts are crypto-only. Binance.US fees were not verified for this piece.

What did Binance settle with the DOJ, FinCEN and OFAC in 2023?

On 21 November 2023 Binance Holdings Limited pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act, failing to register as a money transmitting business and violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The DOJ release sets out forfeiture of $2,510,650,588 and a criminal fine of $1,805,475,575, with an independent compliance monitor for three years. Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering programme and resigned as chief executive.

Treasury's release of the same day gives FinCEN's civil penalty as $3.4 billion with a five-year monitorship, and OFAC's settlement as $968 million. It says Binance executed "more than 1.67 million virtual currency trades" between US persons and users in "Iran, North Korea, Syria, and the Crimea region of Ukraine." The DOJ credited about $1.8 billion toward the other agencies' resolutions. A month later the CFTC obtained $2.7 billion from Binance and a $150 million penalty against Zhao personally.

In the SEC's separate civil case against Binance, BAM Trading and Zhao, the SEC filed on 29 May 2025 to dismiss with prejudice, "as a policy matter". The background is set out in what is Binance.

What has Kraken settled?

Smaller sums. On 28 November 2022 OFAC announced that Kraken would pay $362,158.70 over apparent Iran sanctions violations and invest $100,000 more in sanctions controls. On 9 February 2023 the SEC announced that Payward Ventures and Payward Trading would pay $30 million and "immediately cease offering or selling securities through crypto asset staking services" to US users. On 27 March 2025 the SEC filed to dismiss its later suit against Payward with prejudice, a decision it said was "not on any assessment of the merits of the claims alleged in the action".

Is Kraken or Binance cheaper?

At entry level on the order book, Binance. Its fee schedule lists 0.100% maker and 0.100% taker for a regular user, cut to 0.075% when fees are paid in BNB, labelled "BNB 25% off". Kraken Pro starts at 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker and reaches 0.0% maker and 0.05% taker above $500 million of 30-day volume. In the Kraken app the cost is higher:

Kraken charges a 1% trading fee on instant and recurring trades and a 1.5% fee on custom orders.

Kraken fee schedule, retrieved 2026-10-14

Do Kraken and Binance publish proof of reserves?

Both do, with different signers. Kraken says its review "is a procedure performed by an independent 3rd party accountant" but does not name the firm publicly. Its page shows a snapshot date of 30 June 2026 and six in-scope assets: BTC, ETH, SOL, USDC, USDT and XRP. It also lists its own limits, including that the procedure "cannot identify any hidden encumbrances".

Hundreds of gold bars stacked in tight rows — Illustration only: gold bars. Proof of reserves covers crypto balances, and each exchange's method and signer differ. Photo: Andrej Sachov / Unsplash

Binance uses a zk-SNARK proof over a Merkle tree of user balances and claims funds "cover all of our users assets 1:1". The public page names no third party, and its audit time and Merkle root fields were empty on 14 October

The register's comparison pages, such as Coinbase vs Kraken and Binance vs Coinbase, set the clauses side by side. For moving coins out to a wallet, see the self-custody checklist.

Quick answers

Can Americans use Binance?

Not Binance.com, which must keep a "complete exit from the United States". Binance.US is a separate company, unavailable in 16 states and regions, including New York and Texas.

Is Kraken available in all US states?

No. Kraken's support page says it does not serve residents of Maine and New York. See Kraken.

How much did Binance pay in 2023?

$4,316,126,163 to the DOJ, which credited about $1.8 billion toward FinCEN's $3.4 billion and OFAC's $968 million, plus $2.7 billion to the CFTC. See Binance.

Which has lower trading fees?

At entry level, Binance at 0.100% versus Kraken Pro's 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker, per each fee schedule read 14 October 2026.

More analysis

2026-10-14What does it mean to stake crypto? Proof of stake, lockups, slashing, exchange terms and taxStaking crypto means locking coins in a proof-of-stake network so they back a validator, in return for rewards and at the risk of slashing. Solo Ethereum staking needs 32 ETH. Coinbase takes a 35% commission and Kraken 30% on flexible staking. The IRS taxes rewards as income when you gain control of them.2026-10-14What is USDC on Coinbase? Circle's dollar token, Coinbase's rewards terms and redemptionUSDC on Coinbase is a dollar token issued by Circle that Coinbase lets customers buy, hold and convert at $1 for $1 with no conversion fee. Coinbase advertises up to 3.75% APY on USDC, which its help centre calls a loyalty program funded by Coinbase, open in the US to Coinbase One members only.2026-10-14Coinbase withdrawal time, fees and how to cash out, from the Coinbase Help CenterSelling crypto to a Coinbase cash balance is instant. Moving that cash to a bank takes 1 to 5 business days by ACH, about 30 minutes by instant cashout, or a same-day wire for $25, per the Coinbase Help Center on 14 October 2026.2026-10-14Coinbase vs Gemini: licences, fees, custody and the Earn collapse, from the documentsBoth hold New York charters, but most US Gemini users now contract with Gemini Moonbase, LLC, which is not on the NYDFS list. Gemini's ActiveTrader fees start at 0.600% maker and 1.200% taker. Coinbase's record includes a $50 million NYDFS penalty and a 2025 insider data theft; Gemini's includes the Earn freeze of 340,000 investors.2026-10-14Coinbase scams: how the impersonation calls work, and what Coinbase says it will never askMost Coinbase scams are impersonation: a caller or text posing as Coinbase support pushes the customer to move coins to a "safe" wallet. Coinbase's help centre lists what its staff never ask for. In May 2025 Coinbase disclosed that bribed support contractors had taken customer data, including government ID images, for under 1% of monthly transacting users, which gave scammers real details to quote.2026-10-14Can you buy crypto with a credit card? What four exchanges and three card issuers sayIn the US, Coinbase, Kraken and Gemini accept debit cards, not credit cards, for crypto purchases. Crypto.com's Pay on-ramp lists credit cards at a 3.99% fee. Where a credit card purchase goes through, Chase, Capital One and American Express agreements class it as a cash advance with a 5% fee, minimum $5 or $10.

Sources

About this piece

Compiled by the CryptoGuardz register team from the sources listed above. Research and drafting are AI-assisted and reviewed by a named editor before publication. Nothing here is a recommendation to gamble. If a figure or a reading is wrong, tell us and the correction is logged in public.