Exchange (crypto exchange)

A crypto exchange is a marketplace for bitcoin and other crypto-assets. You don’t buy from the provider at a fixed price but from other users: your buy order is matched with suitable sell orders in the order bookGlossaryOrder bookA list of all open buy and sell orders for a trading pair such as BTC/USD, sorted by price. The price forms between the highest bid and the lowest ask.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 1 – Ways to get Bitcoin →In the glossary →×.

Exchange or broker?

In everyday language, almost every provider is called an ‘exchange’. Many offer both: a simple buy screen like a brokerGlossaryBroker (crypto broker)A provider that sells you bitcoin or buys it from you at a displayed price, instead of letting you trade in the order book yourself. The costs usually come from the spread, a fee or both.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 1 – Ways to get Bitcoin →In the glossary →× and a ‘pro’ interface with an order book. In the EU, both need authorisation under MiCAGlossaryMiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation)The EU regulation on markets in crypto-assets. Since 30 December 2024, exchanges, brokers and custodians in the EU have needed authorisation; the last transitional period ended on 1 July 2026. MiCA regulates providers, not Bitcoin itself.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 2 – Choosing a provider →In the glossary →×; the transitional periods ended in every EU country by 1 July 2026. Authorised crypto-asset service providers (CASPsGlossaryCASP (crypto-asset service provider)A company that professionally provides crypto-asset services to customers – such as trading, exchange, custody or transfers. In the EU, every CASP needs an authorisation under MiCA.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 2 – Choosing a provider →In the glossary →×) are listed in the ESMAGlossaryESMA (European Securities and Markets Authority)The EU authority for securities and financial markets, based in Paris. What matters to you is its MiCA register: it lists all crypto-asset service providers authorised in the EU.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 2 – Choosing a provider →In the glossary →× register, where you can check your provider (as of September 2026).^[1],[2]

What’s different on an exchange

• Order types: market orderGlossaryMarket orderAn order that is executed immediately at the best available price in the order book. You get speed but no price guarantee: with large amounts, the price can differ from the last price shown.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 3 – Buying Bitcoin →In the glossary →× (immediately, at the best available price) or limit orderGlossaryLimit orderA buy or sell order with a price limit: it is only executed at your price or better. That secures the price, but not the execution – the market may never get there.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 3 – Buying Bitcoin →In the glossary →× (only at your chosen price or better).
• Fees: usually a percentage trading fee under the maker-taker modelGlossaryMaker and taker feesA fee model used by exchanges: whoever places an order in the order book and so provides liquidity (maker) usually pays less than someone who immediately accepts an existing order (taker).On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 1 – Ways to get Bitcoin →In the glossary →× rather than a mark-up in the price. On Kraken ProProvider · ExchangeKrakenLarge crypto exchange with an EU licence from Ireland: simple in-app buying or an order book, withdrawals via Lightning too.Licence: MiCA (Central Bank of Ireland) · reviewed Sept 2026Costs: App 1% plus spread; Kraken Pro 0.40% maker / 0.80% taker (as of Sept 2026)On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 2 – Choosing a provider →Our profile →AdVisit Kraken* (paid link, opens in a new window)on kraken.com*Paid link: if you sign up or buy through it, we earn a commission. Your price stays the same. How we make money →18+ · Crypto assets are highly volatile; you could lose all your money. No deposit protection.×, for example, the entry tier is 0.40% for makers and 0.80% for takers (as of September 2026).^[3]

What this means for you

Until you withdraw, your bitcoin stays with the exchange rather than in your own walletGlossaryWallet (Bitcoin wallet)Software or a device that manages your private keys, generates receiving addresses and signs transactions. The bitcoin itself isn’t in the wallet but on the blockchain – the wallet holds the access to it.On the learning path: Stage 5 · Step 2 – Setting up your first wallet →In the glossary →×. Authorisation doesn’t protect you against falling prices, and crypto-assets are generally not covered by deposit protectionGlossaryDeposit guarantee (deposit protection)Statutory protection for bank deposits: up to €100,000 per person and bank if the bank goes bust. It generally doesn’t cover bitcoin – and neither does investor compensation.On the learning path: Stage 5 · Step 1 – Understanding custody →In the glossary →×, as Germany’s regulator BaFin points out.^[4] After a hack or a collapse like that of FTXGlossaryFTXA large crypto exchange that collapsed in November 2022. Around $8 billion in customer funds was missing, and founder Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Customers got dollars back instead of their bitcoin.On the learning path: Stage 5 · Step 1 – Understanding custody →In the glossary →×, you may not get your balance back for a long time, or at all. That’s why you can withdraw larger amounts to your own wallet: Your first withdrawal to your own wallet.