In this article, we are comparing the two well-established crypto exchanges – Bybit and KuCoin. What you will find interesting is that despite looking very similar on the surface, both are rather different platforms.

Bybit, co-founded by Ben Zhou in 2018, is a rapidly growing pioneering cryptocurrency exchange. At the time of its launch, it was one of the first derivatives crypto exchanges. The previous experience of the founding team in forex and investment banking enables it to offer unique products that combine the world of crypto and finance. With over 5 million registered users and more than 100 spot and contract options, Bybit remains focused on creating a modern financial ecosystem around blockchain technology.

KuCoin, on the other side, is a year older than Bybit. KuCoin was established in 2017 in Hong Kong with the marketing slogan of the “People’s Exchange.” KuCoin’s primary aim is to get as many users on board as it can by providing a simple platform and one of the largest ranges of cryptocurrencies (700+). The exchange currently has over 11 million users, and it is the 5th biggest crypto platform by market cap in the world. It also has its own profit-sharing native token KCS.

Bybit vs KuCoin Features

Bybit offers its users the option to spot trade more than 220 coins with three types of orders to choose from: Market price orders, Limit orders and Conditional orders. Bybit was originally a derivatives trading exchange, and they added the spot trading option later on, due to popular demand. Therefore, Bybit offers its users derivatives trading products that are very hard to find at other exchanges. Users can trade more than 88 derivatives contracts within the three major contract types: Inverse Futures, Inverse Perpetual and USDT Perpetual.

Bybit also allows you to use up to 100x leverage in Margin trading. Essentially, you can borrow funds from the exchange to trade. For example, if you buy 100 contracts for BTC long with 5x leverage, you would get five-time the original profit if the price goes up. This can be an excellent option for you as it can compound your profits if your trades are doing well. On the contrary, it could also aggravate your losses if trades go in the opposite direction. In addition, Bybit also provides its users with a testnet (demo) trading account so they can familiarise themselves with the platform’s interface and trading tools.

Unlike Bybit, KuCoin allows its users to buy crypto directly with 50 fiat currencies. It also supports futures and margin trading with up to 100x leverage. There are two types of futures trading offered on KuCoin. Futures Lite is a quick and simple futures trade while Futures Pro offers complete trading tools and up to 100x leverage.

KuCoin gives its users the opportunity to earn passive crypto income by lending coins to other users in the P2P market, and receiving interest in return. KuCoin also runs regular competitions to reward the top 50 traders based on 30-day trading volume. 

Another feature that sets KuCoin apart is its free trading bots. Trading bots can act as virtual trading assistants for you. You set the rules of their engagement, and they will execute the trades. You can also do copy trading with bots by copying the configuration settings of the most popular bots in the daily or weekly rankings.

Number of Coins

Bybit has 220+ coins on offer.

KuCoin has 700+ cryptocurrencies on offer.

Bybit vs KuCoin Fees

All spot trades on Bybit are charged a flat fee of 0.1%. Undoubtedly, contract or derivatives trades are the primary focus of Bybit, which is why they are charged even lower fees. At Bybit, derivatives contracts trades have the makers-takers fee model. They charge makers only 0.01% because they provide liquidity in the market; takers, on the other hand, pay a 0.06% fee per trade because they match demand and take liquidity.

Bybit does not support fiat deposits so you won’t be able to use AUD. Only cryptocurrency deposits are allowed and there is no fee for them. There is also a fiat gateway to help users buy USDT, ETH or BTC instantly with AUD. However, the gateway is operated by various service providers who levy fees.

Bybit does not support fiat withdrawals. You can withdraw cryptocurrencies from the exchange after paying a fee that varies from coin to coin.

KuCoin also charges 0.1% for spot trades but you can receive a 20% discount by paying the fee using KuCoin’s token KCS, which reduces the fee to 0.08% per trade. This is only the initial fee in the tiered maker/taker model. The trading fees can be lowered with an increase in your 30-day trading volume.

Cryptocurrency deposits are also free on KuCoin. There are no direct fiat deposits, but you can make purchases instantly using AUD. However, purchasing cryptocurrencies directly with a credit card can be very expensive on KuCoin, with fees reaching as high as 12%. You can pay a lower fee of 3% by choosing the third-party service Banxa. Be careful though, all third-party service providers charge different fees.

KuCoin does not allow fiat withdrawals. Crypto withdrawals are allowed, and the fees charged depend on the coin.

Deposit Methods

Fiat deposits are not allowed on Bybit. The platform only supports crypto deposits. However, users can buy BTC, ETH and USDT with the fiat gateway.

KuCoin is also the same; it only accepts crypto deposits. Their users can directly buy cryptocurrencies using fiat currencies.

Bybit Australia vs KuCoin Security

Bybit takes security very seriously, and that is why it has never been compromised. Bybit has created a cold (offline) hardware wallet that stores the funds of all of its users. The cold wallet is multi-signature collective storage, where users are assigned individual addresses with offline signatures. There is also thrice a day manual review process for withdrawal requests to further safeguard your funds from hackers.

Bybit follows the zero-trust architecture to manage and upgrade internal software. The exchange has also worked with renowned cybersecurity professionals to undertake system-wide penetration testing. They also have a bug bounty system to reward hackers who point out the potential vulnerabilities in their infrastructure.

KuCoin was hacked in September 2020. Hackers got access to hot wallets and stole $281 million worth of coins. The platform was able to recover approximately 80% of the stolen money and returned it to its rightful owners. Since then, the exchange has worked hard on its security infrastructure, adding many new security features to protect its users.

KuCoin provides you with different passwords for trading and primary account. All data on exchange is now encrypted and user activity is mandated under Two-factor authentication only. The exchange has also created an internal risk management team.

In any case, security is your responsibility too. Make sure you use strong and unique passwords for every platform and keep updating them regularly. You should also try to use your own hardware cold wallet to store your coins.

ByBit Australia Pros & Cons

KuCoin Pros & Cons

Conclusion

Bybit and KuCoin are both top-tier crypto exchanges. They offer excellent mobile apps and advanced trading tools. Both support spot and futures trading with up to 100x leverage.

However, choosing between Bybit or KuCoin is indeed a tough decision, but ultimately it’s your choice. What’s best for you depends on your preferences, experience and needs. If you are looking for a higher number of trading pairs, then KuCoin is best for you. On the other hand, if you prefer better security, low fees, and more mature derivatives trading options, then Bybit is the one you should select.

Selecting the right exchange is a very important decision. That is why, when you pick, you should always be sure of what you are doing. Trade responsibly and do not invest more than you are ready to lose.

If you want to do some more research before making up your mind, please read our Bybit review and KuCoin review or you can also take a look at our article on the best crypto exchanges in Australia (here).