Kraken vs Binance: fees, MiCA licence and track record

For anyone living in the EU, Kraken vs Binance has a clear winner: Kraken. Kraken serves EEA residents through Payward Europe Solutions Limited, which the Central Bank of Ireland authorised under MiCA on 25 June 2025. Binance holds no MiCA licence, withdrew its application in Greece on 24 June 2026, and since 1 July 2026 lets EU users only withdraw. Outside the EU, Binance is the cheaper exchange, and this Kraken vs Binance comparison explains where the differences lie.

We checked both exchanges’ fee pages, licences and public records on 23 October 2026. For the full picture, read our Binance review and Kraken review. This comparison is not investment advice.

Kraken vs Binance: which crypto exchange is better for European investors?

Kraken is the crypto exchange to use if you live in the EU, because it is licensed and Binance is not. Binance charges lower trading fees than Kraken, but that advantage matters only to readers outside the EU. Kraken has operated since 2011, six years longer than Binance.

• EU resident: Kraken. It holds a MiCA licence, offers free SEPA deposits in EUR and has a route to EU-regulated futures.
• Outside the EU, fee-sensitive spot trader: Binance charges 0.10% against 0.40%/0.80% on Kraken Pro. Weigh those lower fees against Binance’s regulatory history.
• US resident: Kraken is available in the US, though its US licence list doesn’t include New York. Binance.com doesn’t serve the US; Binance.US is a separate platform.

Is Binance or Kraken licensed in Europe?

Kraken is licensed in the EU and Binance is not. Since 1 July 2026, only MiCA-authorised firms may provide crypto services to EU residents, so availability now follows the licence.

Kraken holds its MiCA authorisation through Payward Europe Solutions Limited, passported to all EEA countries including the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. A second Irish entity runs the trading platform, and futures come from Payward Europe Digital Solutions (CY) Limited, licensed by CySEC. In August 2026 Kraken agreed to take over MEXC’s clients in the Netherlands.

Binance applied to Greece’s HCMC in January 2026 and withdrew on 24 June 2026, after reports that the regulator was leaning towards rejection. No Binance entity is in ESMA’s interim MiCA register (update of 22 October 2026). Binance says it will seek a licence in another member state, but no new application could be confirmed as of 23 October 2026. Its only listed licences are three Abu Dhabi entities approved in December 2025.

Kraken vs Binance trading fees: is Binance cheaper?

Yes, Binance is cheaper. Binance charges 0.10% maker and taker on spot trading, or 0.075% with the BNB discount. Kraken Pro’s maker taker fees are 0.40% and 0.80% at entry level since July 2026, when Kraken raised them from 0.25%/0.40%. The standard app on Kraken charges 1% plus a spread.

On a €1,000 market order Binance charges €7.00 less than Kraken Pro, and you pay the same fee again when you sell. So a buy and a sell of €1,000 costs €2.00 at Binance and €16.00 as a taker on Kraken Pro. Kraken’s higher fees are the main catch of choosing it.

How to get lower fees on Kraken

For EU readers the Binance saving isn’t available, so the useful comparison is between Kraken’s own screens. Using limit orders on Kraken Pro instead of the app cuts the fee on €1,000 from €10.00 to €4.00. Other ways to lower trading fees on Kraken:

• volume tiers on a shared ladder that counts spot volume, futures volume or assets held;
• 0.20% maker and taker on stablecoin and FX pairs, such as EUR against USD;
• Kraken+, whose members pay no app trading fee on up to $10,000 a month (the spread still applies).

Binance’s discounts are the BNB discount (25% off) and VIP tiers for high volume traders by 30-day volume or BNB balance. You need to hold BNB, which is volatile. See our Kraken fees page for every cost.

Deposits and withdrawals

Kraken’s euro costs are published: SEPA deposits are free and SEPA withdrawals cost €1, or €0.90 via SEPA Instant. A Bitcoin withdrawal costs 0.000015 BTC. Binance listed 0.00002 BTC for a Bitcoin withdrawal on 23 October 2026 (dynamic), but its euro deposit and withdrawal fees could not be read, and EU deposits are suspended.

Kraken Pro vs Binance: features and futures trading

Binance has the broader list of features on its global platform, but most of it is closed to EU users. Binance offers spot, futures, margin, staking and copy trading worldwide, with USDⓈ-M futures at 0.02% maker and 0.05% taker. Unlike Kraken, Binance offers EU users no derivatives at all.

Kraken offers EU residents a simple app, Kraken Pro for order-book trading, staking, a card and futures. Futures come through its CySEC-licensed entity, only for clients who pass the MiFID II appropriateness test, at 0.02% maker and 0.05% taker for accounts under $5m of futures volume. Margin trading is offered to eligible clients. Both platforms have an API for traders who automate.

Kraken lists more cryptocurrencies by our count, 600+ assets with live trading pairs against 500+ at Binance. Kraken supports seven fiat currencies, including EUR, USD, pounds and Swiss francs; Binance lists 13 fiat currencies globally. More coins don’t always help: liquidity on the market you actually trade decides your real cost.

Security: proof of reserves, cold storage and the SAFU fund

Binance has a hack in its history; Kraken has none in the sources we checked. In 2019 hackers stole 7,000 BTC (about $40m) from a Binance hot wallet, and Binance covered the loss from its SAFU fund. For Kraken we found no verified incident, though we haven’t completed a dedicated search, so we don’t call its record clean.

How each exchange describes the protection of user funds:

• Binance: Merkle-tree and zk-SNARK proof of reserves and a statement that it holds user funds 1:1. Its SAFU fund was converted to 15,000 BTC (about $1bn) in February 2026, with a promise to top it up below $800m.
• Kraken: Merkle-tree proof of reserves checked by an independent accountant, latest snapshot 30 June 2026. Its card page states major assets are held 1:1 and covered by £125m of insurance, scope not detailed.

Neither publishes a cold storage percentage on the pages we checked. Proof of reserves shows client funds and balances at one moment, not all debts, and a protection fund is the exchange’s promise, not a legal right. For your own asset protection, use two-factor authentication, withdrawal allow-lists and your own wallet for long-term holdings.

Regulatory track record

Binance’s record is far heavier:

• Binance: a €3.3m DNB fine in 2022; its exit from the Netherlands, withdrawn BaFin application and paused UK sign-ups in 2023; a 2023 US guilty plea to anti-money-laundering and sanctions violations with about $4.3bn to pay, after which founder Changpeng Zhao stepped down; a pardon for Zhao in October 2025; and the withdrawn MiCA application in 2026.
• Kraken: $362,159 to OFAC in 2022 over Iran sanctions; $30m to the SEC in 2023 over its US staking programme; and a 2023 SEC lawsuit that was dismissed with prejudice in March 2025.

Binance Earn vs Kraken: can you earn interest?

Kraken offers staking to EU users; Binance Earn is suspended for them since 1 July 2026. Staking rewards are variable, not fixed interest, and some assets have lock-up periods, so you can’t always sell straight away.

Support and ease of use

Kraken offers 24/7 in-app support; we could not confirm Binance’s support channels from official pages. Both pair a user-friendly app for simple buys with a more complex trading screen, so beginners can start small.

Which should you choose: Kraken or Binance?

Choose Kraken if you live in the EU. It is licensed, publishes its euro fees, offers 24/7 support and regulated futures. Its downside is cost: 0.40%/0.80% on Kraken Pro and 1% in the app are higher fees than Binance’s 0.10%.

Choose Binance only if you live outside the EU, want the lowest spot fee and accept its regulatory history.

If Kraken’s fees are your main concern, compare it with other licensed exchanges in Coinbase vs Kraken and Kraken vs Bybit. Whichever you pick, crypto can lose its entire value, so invest only what you can afford to lose.