🛡️ Crypto Platform Safety Scores 2026
Bitcompare Independent Assessment — 15 Major Platforms Rated
📅 Last Updated: February 2, 2026 | 📊 15 Platforms Assessed | 🔬 5 Safety Dimensions | ⚖️ Weighted Scoring Methodology
📌 Key Findings
- 🏆 Coinbase Leads Overall Safety — As the only publicly traded crypto exchange (NASDAQ: COIN), Coinbase scores highest at 8.7/10 thanks to strong US regulatory compliance, SOC 2 audits, and $320M insurance on custodial assets.
- 🚨 Bybit $1.5B Hack Shakes Industry — The February 2025 Bybit hack — the largest in crypto history at ~$1.5 billion — significantly impacts exchange safety scores. Bybit's recovery response was swift but the incident remains a major red flag.
- 🏛️ DeFi Protocols Score High on Transparency — Aave, Compound, and Lido score well on transparency and audits due to open-source code and multiple independent audits, but lose points on insurance and regulatory clarity.
- ⚖️ Regulatory Landscape Maturing — MiCA enforcement in Europe and expanding US state-level licensing are raising the bar. Platforms with EU MiCA registration (Crypto.com, Binance, OKX) gain meaningful compliance points.
- 🔍 Proof of Reserves Now Standard — 10 of 15 platforms now publish proof-of-reserves attestations. Platforms without PoR face credibility gaps.
- 💀 BlockFi & Celsius: Cautionary Tales — Both collapsed in 2022. Their inclusion as "defunct/restructured" serves as a benchmark for what failure looks like.
📐 Scoring Methodology
Each platform is independently scored on five safety dimensions. Scores are on a 1–10 scale where 10 is safest. The overall score is a weighted average.
| Dimension | Weight | What It Measures |
|---|---|---|
| Regulation & Compliance | 25% | Licenses held, jurisdictions, regulatory actions, KYC/AML |
| Insurance & Fund Protection | 25% | Insurance policies, proof of reserves, cold storage %, fund segregation |
| Security Track Record | 20% | History of hacks/breaches, response to incidents, security infrastructure |
| Transparency & Audits | 15% | Third-party audits, open-source code, public PoR reports |
| Operational History | 15% | Years active, track record through market cycles, team credibility |
Score Thresholds: 8.0–10 = Excellent (industry-leading) | 6.0–7.9 = Good (solid with some gaps) | Below 6.0 = Caution (significant concerns)
Platform Types: CEX = Centralized Exchange | DeFi = Decentralized Protocol | CeFi = Centralized Finance/Lending
🏅 Safety Rankings — All 15 Platforms
| Rank | Platform | Type | Safety Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coinbase | CEX | 8.7/10 |
| 2 | Kraken | CEX | 8.5/10 |
| 3 | Gemini | CEX | 8.5/10 |
| 4 | Aave | DeFi | 7.4/10 |
| 5 | Crypto.com | CEX | 7.4/10 |
| 6 | Compound | DeFi | 7.2/10 |
| 7 | Lido | DeFi | 7.0/10 |
| 8 | Nexo | CeFi | 7.0/10 |
| 9 | Binance | CEX | 6.9/10 |
| 10 | Rocket Pool | DeFi | 6.9/10 |
| 11 | OKX | CEX | 6.8/10 |
| 12 | YouHodler | CeFi | 6.5/10 |
| 13 | Bybit | CEX | 5.5/10 |
| 14 | KuCoin | CEX | 5.3/10 |
| 15 | Bitfinex | CEX | 4.7/10 |
Detailed sub-scores (Regulation, Insurance, Security, Audits, History) are included in each platform assessment below.
📋 Individual Platform Assessments
1. Coinbase — 8.7/10 (Excellent)
Publicly traded (NASDAQ: COIN) • San Francisco, USA • Founded 2012
- Regulation: SEC financial reporting; licensed MSB with FinCEN; 40+ state MTLs; FCA registered; MiCA-compliant
- Insurance: $320M crime insurance; 98% cold storage; FDIC-insured USD balances
- Security: No major exchange breaches; SOC 1 & SOC 2 Type II audited annually
- Audits: Annual Deloitte financial audits; quarterly SEC filings; transparent fees
- History: 13+ years through multiple market cycles
- ⚠️ Settled with SEC in 2025 over certain asset classifications
2. Kraken — 8.5/10 (Excellent)
Private company • San Francisco, USA • Founded 2011
- Regulation: FinCEN MSB; FCA, MiCA, FINTRAC, AUSTRAC registered
- Insurance: 95%+ cold storage; Proof of Reserves (Armanino-attested); full reserves — no lending of customer assets
- Security: No major hacks in 14+ years; regular pen testing; bug bounty program
- Audits: PoR with Merkle-tree verification; transparent fee schedule
- History: 14+ years — one of the longest-operating US exchanges
- ⚠️ Paid $30M SEC settlement in 2023 over staking services
3. Gemini — 8.5/10 (Excellent)
Winklevoss-founded • New York, USA • Founded 2014
- Regulation: NY DFS BitLicense; NY trust company; first crypto exchange with SOC 2 Type 2; FCA registered
- Insurance: $200M+ hot wallet insurance; majority cold storage; FDIC-insured USD; Gemini Custody for institutions
- Security: No exchange-level hacks since founding
- Audits: SOC 2 by Deloitte; transparent NYDFS reporting
- ⚠️ Gemini Earn faced NYDFS scrutiny (Genesis collapse); users eventually made whole by 2024
4. Aave — 7.4/10 (Good)
DeFi lending protocol • Decentralized (DAO) • Founded 2017
- Regulation: DeFi protocol with limited direct regulatory framework; Aave Arc for institutional KYC
- Insurance: Safety Module with $400M+ AAVE staked as backstop; fully non-custodial
- Security: No major protocol hacks; 15+ independent audits (Trail of Bits, OpenZeppelin, Certora); $16M+ bug bounty
- Audits: 100% open-source; on-chain governance; real-time fund verification
- History: 8+ years (originally ETHLend, 2017)
5. Crypto.com — 7.4/10 (Good)
Singapore-based • Global operations • Founded 2016
- Regulation: MiCA registered; MAS, FCA, AUSTRAC licensed; SOC 2 & ISO 27001 certified
- Insurance: $750M insurance via Lloyd's; monthly PoR (Mazars-attested); majority cold storage
- Security: Rapid incident response
- ⚠️ $34M hot wallet hack (Jan 2022) — users fully reimbursed
- ⚠️ Accidental $400M transfer to Gate.io (recovered) raised questions
6. Compound — 7.2/10 (Good)
DeFi lending protocol • Decentralized (DAO) • Founded 2018
- Security: Non-custodial; open-source; audited by Trail of Bits & OpenZeppelin; on-chain governance
- History: 7+ years; pioneer of DeFi lending; Compound III security-focused redesign
- ⚠️ $80M erroneous COMP distribution bug (Sept 2021) — largely recovered
7. Lido — 7.0/10 (Good)
Liquid staking protocol • Decentralized (DAO) • Founded 2020
- Security: Largest liquid staking ($15B+ TVL); 11+ audits; no smart contract exploits; bug bounty via Immunefi
- Transparency: Open-source; on-chain governance; DVT integration for decentralization
- ⚠️ Concentration risk — ~28% of staked ETH at peak raised centralization concerns
- ⚠️ 5 years operational — shorter track record
8. Nexo — 7.0/10 (Good)
CeFi lending platform • London/Zug • Founded 2018
- Regulation: Licensed in EU (Lithuania, Italy); Swiss FINMA-registered
- Insurance: $775M insurance via BitGo/Ledger Vault; real-time Armanino attestations
- Security: No platform hacks or loss of funds; survived 2022 without halting withdrawals
- ⚠️ Exited US market (Dec 2022); Bulgarian investigation (charges dropped 2023)
9. Binance — 6.9/10 (Good)
World's largest exchange • Global • Founded 2017
- Regulation: MiCA registered; VARA (UAE), Bahrain, France, Japan licensed
- Insurance: $1B+ SAFU emergency fund; monthly PoR
- Security: Deep liquidity; largest exchange by volume
- ⚠️ $4.3B DOJ settlement (Nov 2023); founder CZ pled guilty to AML violations
- ⚠️ $40M hack (2019) — users reimbursed via SAFU
- Post-settlement: New CEO Richard Teng, major compliance overhaul
10. Rocket Pool — 6.9/10 (Good)
Decentralized ETH staking • DAO-governed • Founded 2021
- Security: Most decentralized liquid staking (3,000+ node operators); audited by Sigma Prime, Consensys, Trail of Bits; no exploits
- Insurance: Node operators post RPL collateral as slashing insurance
- Transparency: Fully open-source and permissionless; strong pDAO governance
- ⚠️ ~4 years operational — relatively young; smaller TVL vs. Lido
11. OKX — 6.8/10 (Good)
Global exchange • Seychelles/Dubai • Founded 2017
- Regulation: VARA (Dubai) licensed; MiCA-compliant
- Security: No major hacks; monthly PoR; strong technical infrastructure; top-3 by volume
- History: 8+ years with growing regulatory footprint
12. YouHodler — 6.5/10 (Good)
CeFi lending platform • Switzerland/Cyprus • Founded 2018
- Regulation: Swiss VQF registered; EU operations via Cyprus
- Security: Ledger Vault custody; no major incidents; never halted withdrawals
- ⚠️ Limited public audit history; smaller platform — less battle-tested
13. Bybit — 5.5/10 (Caution)
Major exchange • Dubai/Singapore • Founded 2018
- Regulation: VARA (Dubai) licensed; VASP registered in multiple jurisdictions; PoR published
- 🚨 $1.5B hack (Feb 2025) — largest in crypto history (Lazarus Group attributed)
- Rapid response: covered losses, resumed withdrawals within 72 hours; no customer funds lost
- ⚠️ Hack exploited multisig signing — significant operational security failure
14. KuCoin — 5.3/10 (Caution)
Global exchange • Seychelles • Founded 2017
- ⚠️ DOJ indictment (2024) for operating unlicensed MSB and AML violations
- ⚠️ $280M hack (2020) — recovered ~84% of funds
- ⚠️ Limited regulatory licenses; Seychelles-based; significant legal headwinds
- Insurance fund and PoR published; 8+ years operational
15. Bitfinex — 4.7/10 (Caution)
Veteran exchange • BVI/Hong Kong • Founded 2012
- ⚠️ $72M hack (2016); NYAG investigation & $18.5M Tether settlement (2021)
- ⚠️ Close ties with Tether (shared parent iFinex) — ongoing scrutiny
- ⚠️ Limited regulatory licenses; no comprehensive third-party audits
- 13+ years operational; no major hacks since 2016; improved security
ℹ️ About This Assessment
Bitcompare is an independent crypto comparison platform that helps users compare rates, yields, and platform safety across the cryptocurrency ecosystem. We track 30+ platforms in real-time via our API and publish independent assessments to help users make informed decisions.
Methodology transparency: Our safety scores are based on publicly available information including regulatory filings, proof-of-reserves attestations, audit reports, security incident disclosures, and corporate filings. We do not accept payment for scores or rankings.
Data sources: Regulatory databases (FinCEN, FCA, MAS, VARA, NYDFS), proof-of-reserves reports, public audit reports (SOC 2, financial), security incident databases, corporate filings, and the Bitcompare platform API.
Compare live rates across all these platforms at bitcompare.net
⚠️ Disclaimer: This assessment is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency platforms carry inherent risks including smart contract vulnerabilities, regulatory changes, market volatility, and counterparty risk. Past safety performance does not guarantee future security. Always conduct your own due diligence. Bitcompare is not responsible for any losses incurred from using the platforms assessed herein.
Data updated: February 2, 2026 | Next scheduled review: May 2026
