Binance Review (2026)

Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange with over 300 million users and a daily trading volume exceeding $217 billion. The platform offers access to more than 350 cryptocurrencies and 1,500+ trading pairs with extremely low trading fees of 0.10%. Binance operates globally and holds registrations in multiple jurisdictions, including a PSAN registration from France’s AMF and a VASP registration with the Banco de Espana.

In January 2026, Binance applied for a MiCA licence via Greece. In this Binance review, we analyse the platform, fees, security and the best alternatives for European users.

Binance review summary

Binance was founded in 2017 by Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and Yi He and grew at record speed into the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. The platform currently serves over 300 million users in more than 180 countries. With more than 350 cryptocurrencies, Binance offers one of the widest selections on the market. Binance was recognised as Forbes Most Trusted Crypto Exchanges 2025, #1 in Fortune’s FinTech Innovators Asia 2024 and CNBC’s World’s Top Fintech Companies 2025 in Digital Assets.

Spot trading fees are just 0.10% for both makers and takers, making Binance one of the cheapest exchanges in the world. Holders of the Binance Coin (BNB) receive an additional 25% discount on all trading fees. Through our referral link, you also get a lifetime 20% discount based on commission sharing, meaning you effectively pay even less per trade.

Since November 2023, Binance has been led by co-CEOs Richard Teng and Yi He. Founder CZ stepped down after a $4.3 billion settlement with US authorities and received a pardon from President Trump in October 2025.

Binance publishes a monthly Proof of Reserves report and ranked #1 in 2026 with $155.6 billion in reserves. Client funds exceed $133 billion. The platform has a debt-free capital structure and maintains the SAFU emergency fund of 1 billion USDC.

Important for European users: Binance has applied for a MiCA licence via the Greek regulator HCMC in January 2026. If approved before the July 1, 2026 deadline, Binance will be able to operate across all 27 EU member states through the European passporting system. 

Binance pros and cons

Exclusive: 20% lifetime trading fee cashback

Register an new account and get a lifetime 20% friend discount. When you hold BNB tokens you will get an additional 25% discount on top of that.

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Binance compared to alternatives

Binance offers the lowest trading fees on the market, but does not yet have a MiCA licence. For European users who prioritise regulation, Bitvavo, Bybit EU and OKX are MiCA-licensed alternatives. Below is a comparison of the available options:

Binance has the lowest trading fees but does not yet hold a MiCA licence. For European users, Bitvavo offers the best combination of regulation (MiCA), a wide selection of 440+ cryptocurrencies and low fees. Bybit EU and OKX are also strong alternatives with MiCA licences and competitive offerings.

What is Binance?

Binance is a cryptocurrency exchange and the largest trading platform in the world by volume. You can compare an exchange with a foreign currency bureau where you swap one cryptocurrency for another to make a profit. Over the years, Binance has grown into a complete ecosystem where you can manage virtually everything related to crypto.

Binance’s offering of more than 350 cryptocurrencies is one of the widest on the market. Not all cryptocurrencies are available on this exchange, simply because there are too many cryptos in circulation and not all of them are equally reliable. Binance’s catalogue is regularly expanded and the platform adds new tokens weekly after an internal evaluation process.

History of Binance

Binance was founded in 2017 after a very successful Initial Coin Offering (ICO). Binance is a good practical example of an ICO that worked out well and whose associated Binance Coin has gained increasingly favourable value. Binance was founded by Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and Yi He. CZ is a Chinese-Canadian software developer who previously worked at Bloomberg and Blockchain.com. Yi He was previously active at OKCoin and is co-founder of Binance.

The Binance ICO took place in July 2017 and over 100 million tokens were sold in three phases. During the first phase, you could buy 2,700 BNB tokens for 1 Ethereum. Around July 1st, 1 Ethereum was worth approximately $280, meaning you paid $0.10 per Binance Coin.

Within six months of its launch, Binance became the largest exchange in the world by trading volume. The platform does not have a fixed headquarters but operates from various offices worldwide including Malta and Dubai.

Settlement and leadership change (2023)

In November 2023, Binance reached a $4.3 billion settlement with US authorities. CZ pleaded guilty to failing to adequately combat money laundering on the platform and stepped down as CEO. He was sentenced to four months in prison and was released in September 2024.

Richard Teng, a former regulator from Singapore with experience at the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Abu Dhabi Global Market, took over as CEO. In December 2025, Yi He was officially appointed as co-CEO alongside Teng, after CZ received a pardon from US President Trump in October 2025.

Day-to-day management is handled by the co-CEO duo, supported by a Board of Directors chaired by Gabriel Abed, an internationally recognised technology entrepreneur and former diplomat from Barbados.

Binance in Europe

Binance operates in most European countries through local registrations, including a PSAN registration with France’s AMF (obtained May 2022) and a registration with Spain’s Banco de Espana. However, Binance is not available in the Netherlands since July 2023, after failing to obtain a DNB registration and receiving a fine of EUR 3.3 million.

In January 2026, Binance applied for a MiCA licence with the Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) in Greece. A Greek holding company called Binary Greece was established for this purpose. The application is being fast-tracked with the help of major firms such as Ernst & Young and KPMG. If the licence is approved before the July 1, 2026 deadline, Binance will be able to operate across all 27 EU member states through the European passporting system.

Binance’s entry with a MiCA licence could be great news for the European market. The competitive fees of 0.10% would likely force competitors like Bybit EU and OKX to lower their rates.

How to buy crypto on Binance?

Buying cryptocurrency on Binance is straightforward:

1. Create an account on the Binance website or app
2. Verify your identity (KYC) with a valid ID and selfie
3. Deposit funds via SEPA bank transfer, credit card (Visa/Mastercard), Wero, Apple Pay or Google Pay
4. Search for the cryptocurrency you want to buy using the search bar
5. Click ‘Buy’ and enter the desired amount
6. Confirm the transaction and the crypto will be credited to your Binance wallet immediately

For beginning users, it can be complex to buy crypto on an exchange like Binance. We have a detailed Binance tutorial that explains the platform step by step. If you need help, contact us and we will assist you.

Binance services

Binance is constantly developing new services. We have highlighted the most important ones you should know about.

Spot Trading

The core of Binance is the spot exchange, where you can buy and sell more than 350 cryptocurrencies. Trading fees are just 0.10% for both makers and takers, which is significantly lower than most competitors.

With the BNB discount (25%) and our referral discount (20%), you pay even less. Binance offers a basic interface for beginners and an advanced interface with comprehensive technical analysis tools for experienced traders.

Binance Earn

Through Binance Earn, you can generate additional income with the crypto you hold and are not using for trading.

Binance Earn offers various products: Flexible Savings (withdraw whenever you want), Locked Savings (higher interest rate by locking your funds), Staking and Launchpool (earn new tokens). Interest rates vary by product and cryptocurrency.

Futures Trading

Binance offers a comprehensive futures environment globally with 530+ contracts and up to 125x leverage. However, this is only for experienced traders and is limited or disabled for European users due to MiCA regulations. If you are looking for crypto futures in Europe, options are currently limited across all exchanges.

Binance Launchpad

Binance has developed a special Launchpad where new crypto projects can easily conduct their token sales. Binance performs a full background check and verifies whether the company meets all requirements. This is also called an Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) and is very popular among investors. Additionally, Binance Alpha provides access to early tokens before they are listed on the spot market.

Margin Trading

Binance supports margin trading with up to 10x leverage on a wide range of cryptocurrencies. Through the Portfolio Margin Pro Program, experienced traders can combine their Margin, USDT-M Futures and COIN-M Futures balances as collateral. Margin trading is risky and only suitable for experienced traders.

Binance Card

With the Binance debit card, you can easily spend your crypto in stores that accept Visa. The card is free and no transaction fees are charged. You can receive cashback of up to 8% on your purchases. The card is linked to your Binance wallet and works with Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Exclusive: 20% lifetime trading fee cashback

Register an new account and get a lifetime 20% friend discount. When you hold BNB tokens you will get an additional 25% discount on top of that.

DEAL ACTIVATED

ACTIVATE DEAL

On Going Offer

Binance limits and verifications

As with all major exchanges, KYC (Know Your Customer) verification is mandatory on Binance. This is a standard requirement under both US regulations and the European MiCA framework. To verify your account, you need:

• A valid ID (passport or national ID card)
• A selfie for facial recognition
• Optionally, proof of address for higher limits

Verification takes less than an hour on average. After verification, you have access to all trading and withdrawal functions.

Limits (daily)

Identity verification is mandatory before you can perform any operations on Binance:

• Level 1 (verified): access to trading and deposits. Standard withdrawal limits.
• Level 2 (advanced verification): increased fiat withdrawal and deposit limits.

For most users, Level 1 is sufficient to start trading.

Binance fees and costs

Binance’s trading fees are among the lowest on the market. The standard spot fee is 0.10% for both makers and takers.

This is significantly lower than most European exchanges: Bitvavo charges a maximum of 0.25%, Bybit EU a maximum of 0.25% and OKX 0.20%/0.35%.

You can get additional discounts in two ways:

1. BNB discount: by holding Binance Coin (BNB) and paying your fees with it, you receive 25% off all spot and margin trading fees. This option is enabled by default in your dashboard if you have BNB in your account.
2. Referral discount (20%): through this referral code, you receive a lifetime 20% discount on your trading fees. This works on the basis of commission sharing: we share 20% of the commission Binance receives with you. This discount is applied automatically on every trade and is cumulative with the BNB discount.

In practice, with both discounts combined you pay less than 0.075% per trade, making Binance one of the cheapest platforms in the world.

Payment methods

Binance supports a wide range of payment methods depending on your region:

• SEPA bank transfer: free, processing in 1 to 2 business days (Europe)
• Credit/debit card (Visa/Mastercard): 2% fee, instant credit
• Apple Pay: available for quick purchases
• Google Pay: available for quick purchases
• Wero: available as a payment method in Europe
• Cryptocurrency: free deposit from an external wallet
• 30+ fiat currencies supported globally

For the cheapest deposits, we recommend SEPA bank transfer which is completely free.

Binance security

2019 hack

In 2019, a hack took place at Binance in which criminals stole over 7,047 BTC. At the time, this was worth approximately $40 million. Through a sophisticated attack, the hacker was able to take over multiple accounts and transfer the BTC off the platform.

Binance responded quickly and transparently. CEO CZ kept the community constantly informed and all losses were fully compensated through the Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU), an emergency fund that Binance specifically set up for such situations. The crypto community reacted very positively. Even the Bitcoin price barely reacted.

Security measures

Binance offers comprehensive security options:

• Two-factor authentication (2FA) via Google Authenticator or security key
• Anti-phishing code for emails
• Device management and IP whitelisting
• Face ID unlock in the app
• SAFU emergency fund of 1 billion USDC for extreme situations
• Cold wallet storage for the majority of assets

Binance has helped a total of over 7.4 million users with security issues and recovered $229 million in funds for affected users.

Proof of Reserves

Binance publishes a monthly Proof of Reserves report with zk-SNARK verification. Users can individually check whether their balance is included in the calculation. In 2026, Binance ranked #1 with $155.6 billion in reserves and over $133 billion in client funds.

The platform holds all user funds at a minimum of 1:1 and has a debt-free capital structure. The SAFU (Secure Asset Fund for Users) emergency fund contains 1 billion USDC as additional protection.

Is Binance safe?

Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world with over 300 million users and a proven track record since 2017. The platform has never been insolvent and fully compensated all losses during the 2019 hack. The monthly Proof of Reserves reports provide transparency about the platform’s financial health. Binance was recognised as Forbes’ Most Trusted Crypto Exchanges 2025 and #1 in Fortune’s FinTech Innovators Asia 2024.

On the other hand, Binance has had multiple encounters with regulators in the past. The $4.3 billion settlement with the US in 2023 is a notable example. Under the leadership of co-CEOs Richard Teng and Yi He, Binance has made compliance and regulation a top priority. The company has significantly expanded its compliance team and is actively seeking licences in various countries.

It remains an exchange and, as always, it is recommended to only leave money on an exchange that you actively trade with. Never use an exchange as your wallet, as such companies are always targets for hackers. Never use the same password for multiple platforms and always enable two-factor authentication.

Investing in cryptocurrencies involves significant risks. Past results do not guarantee future returns.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us.