Bitunix, Bitget, BingX and OKX: a crypto exchange comparison for 2026

The four at a glance

Bitunix, Bitget, BingX and OKX are all used to trade crypto futures, but each stands out for something different: Bitunix is focused on futures, Bitget offers the widest range, BingX is known for its copy trading and its demo account, and OKX is the only one with a MiCA licence for the whole EEA.

The order is not a ranking: the four appear in the same order throughout the page. Each one has its own profile further down, with the good points and what you should know before opening an account.

Quick comparison

What sets them apart most is the licence, identity verification and leverage: OKX is the only one with a MiCA licence for the whole EEA; Bitunix doesn’t require identity verification until you withdraw and goes up to 200x on BTC; Bitget and BingX require it earlier and go up to 150x. BingX holds a MiCA licence through BingX EU, without futures, and Bitget has applied in Austria.

Data checked on 14 October 2026 on each exchange’s website, help centre and public API, and on 20 October 2026 on the ESMA register. It changes often: check it on the official website before opening an account. BingX’s leverage comes from its help centre, because its API does not publish it.

Bitunix

Bitunix is a futures exchange founded in 2021: the youngest of the four and the most focused on derivatives. It goes up to 200x on the BTC perpetual, publishes a proof of reserves with a Merkle tree and holds no MiCA licence.

Bitunix is the youngest of the four and the most focused on derivatives. Its maximum leverage on the BTC perpetual is 200x, the highest in this comparison. At 200x, a move of less than 0.5 % against you is enough to liquidate you: how it is calculated is in the liquidation price guide.

Its proof of reserves is on its website, but the ratios are only visible when logged in. The latest public figure to be found is from March 2026.

Bitget

Bitget, founded in 2018, brings together the most products of the four, from spot to copy trading, and goes up to 150x on the BTC perpetual. In September 2026 it suffered a hack of around 387 million dollars, which it covered with its protection fund.

Bitget brings together the most products of the four, from spot to copy trading, and its BTC perpetual goes up to 150x. Its big story of 2026 is the September hack: its hot and warm wallets were attacked, North Korea is suspected, and Bitget absorbed the loss with its protection fund. Withdrawals came back between 28 September and 2 October.

BingX

BingX, founded in 2018, is known for its copy trading: it is the only one of the four that also lets you copy CFD trades, and it has a demo account to practise on. Its European subsidiary, BingX EU, has held a MiCA licence since October 2026, only for exchange and custody. In 2024, around 44 million dollars were stolen from BingX.

BingX made its name with copy trading and is the only one of the four that also lets you copy CFD trades. Its demo account lets you try futures with virtual funds before putting money in. Its transparency page shows the proof of reserves for each coin; the latest check by an external auditor it cites dates from 2022.

OKX

OKX, founded in 2017, is one of the largest exchanges in the world and the only one of the four with a MiCA licence for the whole EEA, through OKX Europe. In the EEA its futures are a regulated product of up to 10x; outside Europe, its BTC perpetual goes up to 100x.

OKX is the only one of the four that can legally serve the whole European Union, through OKX Europe. Anyone who signs up from the EEA joins that entity, with its rules: spot is the same, but futures are a regulated product with less leverage. Outside Europe, its BTC perpetual goes up to 100x.

How to choose an exchange: what really matters

Fees and leverage are the first things people compare, and rarely what matters most: whether the exchange can serve you in your country, its reserves and its track record count for more. Before opening an account, go through this in order:

1. That the exchange can serve you in your country: read its terms and, if you live in the EEA, the ESMA register.
2. Its proof of reserves: whether it publishes one, how often and how recent the latest report is.
3. What it asks for to verify your identity and what you can do without doing so.
4. Its fees, on its official page and for your traded volume: how they are calculated is in maker and taker fees.
5. Its track record: hacks, how it responded and whether it covered its users.
6. Start small or with the demo account, and turn on two-factor authentication from day one.

A centralised exchange is not a bank: what you leave on it depends on it. Many traders keep what they trade separate from what they hold for the long term.

If you live in Europe: what changes with MiCA

MiCA is the European regulation on crypto-assets. Its transition period ended on 1 July 2026: since then, an exchange needs to be authorised to serve residents of the European Economic Area, which is the European Union plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

Of the four, only OKX is for the whole EEA, through OKX Europe Limited. BingX is partly: BingX EU, its Vienna-based subsidiary, has held an Austrian MiCA licence since 13 October 2026 for crypto exchange and custody, not for futures, because MiCA doesn’t cover derivatives. According to the ESMA register, that licence reaches 28 EEA countries, but not Spain or Malta, and accounts on bingx.com are not covered by it. Bitget has applied in Austria and doesn’t have it yet, and Bitunix is not on the register. An exchange not naming your country on its excluded list does not mean it can legally serve you.

You can check any exchange on the ESMA register, which lists the authorised providers and the countries each one reaches.

Proof of reserves, funds and hacks: how to read them

To know whether your money is safe on an exchange, look at three things: whether it publishes a recent proof of reserves above 100 %, whether it has a protection fund and whether it covered its users when it suffered a hack. This is how to read each one:

• Proof of reserves: a snapshot, on a given date, of whether the exchange holds at least what it owes its users in each coin. With the Merkle tree you can check that your balance is included. It does not count its other debts, and without an external auditor it is published by the exchange itself.
• Protection fund: the exchange’s own money set aside to cover user losses in a hack. Its size matters and, above all, whether it has already been used and how.
• Hacks: almost every big exchange has suffered one. What sets one apart from another is whether it covered its users, how long it took and how it explained it.

A ratio above 100 % is a good sign, but not a guarantee: look at the date of the latest report and whether it is repeated every month.

Frequently asked questions