In this article, we will discuss the 15 biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. If you want to skip our detailed analysis of the cryptocurrency exchange platform industry, you can go directly to 5 Biggest Cryptocurrency Exchanges in the World.
Cryptocurrency exchanges are platforms that allow users to buy, sell, or trade digital assets in exchange for other assets, such as fiat currencies or other digital currencies. Cryptocurrency exchanges can be centralized, where there is an entity that manages the platform and holds the user’s assets, or decentralized, where the platform is run by the users themselves. Cryptocurrency exchanges typically charge a fee for each transaction and facilitate the buying, selling, or trading of digital assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and others.
Crypto’s “Lehman Moment”
Sam Bankman-Fried is an MIT graduate, former billionaire, and former CEO of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange based in the Bahamas that is now filing for bankruptcy. Sam Bankman-Fried founded FTX in 2019 and quickly grew it to one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world through strategic M&A and collaborations. The business was booming for FTX and the company had gained the attention of leading financial institutions including Blackrock, Tiger Global Management, and Sequoia Capital. FTX also engaged in aggressive marketing strategies and had celebrities including Tom Brady, Shaquille O’Neal, and Stephen Curry invest in and promote its platform.
On November 2, CoinDesk published an article that triggered a chain reaction, bringing FTX and Alameda Research to file for chapter 11. Alameda Research, also founded and led by Sam Bankman-Fried, is a quantitative cryptocurrency trading firm. According to the company’s balance sheet, Alameda Research had $14.6 billion worth of assets, a majority of which was FTT tokens. FTT tokens are minted by FTX, and compared to other cryptocurrencies, have little transparency which makes them difficult to track and regulate. When Alameda’s balance sheet was disclosed, on November 6, Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, announced that Binance will sell all its FTT tokens. This caused the price of FTT to tank significantly and resulted in the insolvency of Alameda Research. On November 8, Binance announced that it would acquire FTX to pull it out of bankruptcy. However, on November 9, Binance backed out of the deal citing the mishandling of consumers’ funds by FTX to be the reason. On November 11, the Wall Street Journal reported that FTX used billions of dollars of clients’ funds to place risky bets via Alameda Research. Both FTX and Alameda Research have now filed for bankruptcy and the exchange’s implosion has wiped out $152 billion from the world’s 15 largest cryptocurrencies’ market value. The Financial Times has called this event “crypto’s Lehman moment”.
The Cryptocurrency Exchange Industry: An Analysis
According to a report by Grand View Research, the global cryptocurrency exchange industry was worth $30.18 billion in 2021. The industry is expected to reach a value of $37.07 billion by the end of 2022 and then grow to $264.32 billion by the end of 2030, registering a compound annual growth rate of 27.8% from 2022 to 2030. This growth is primarily attributed to the rising acceptance and adoption of cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which are expected to fuel the demand for cryptocurrency exchanges worldwide. Moreover, investments in the research and development of blockchain technology are expected to further advance the growth of the global cryptocurrency exchange platform industry.
End-use-wise, the commercial segment dominated the global cryptocurrency exchange market and held a 68.20% revenue share in 2021. This is attributed to the fact …….