How to read these grades: each is derived from published, checkable disclosures — proof-of-reserves attestations, public regulatory registers, disclosed insurance funds and the documented incident record — using the weighted rubric below. Where an exchange does not disclose something, we mark it unverified rather than assume it. These are not audits and not investment advice; they reflect what was published as of our last review.
Coinbase
Coinbase is a publicly traded, SEC-reporting U.S. company licensed in 45 states and holding a New York BitLicense, and the SEC's 2023 case against it was dismissed with prejudice in February 2025; it runs no crypto-specific proof-of-reserves programme and its last disclosed crime-insurance figure dates from 2019.
BySafety DeskSenior Exchange Safety Editor
Our Coinbase review
Coinbase is the most heavily licensed venue in this corpus and one of the very few that files audited accounts with a securities regulator. It still scores a B rather than higher, because being a public company is not the same as showing readers what you hold.
What checks out
Regulation is the clean factor. Coinbase holds a New York BitLicense, a FinCEN MSB registration, UK FCA registration FRN 900635 and licences in 45 U.S. states — every one of those checkable on a public register. The SEC's 2023 unregistered-exchange suit was dismissed with prejudice on 27 February 2025. A $100m NYDFS consent order from January 2023 sits on the same record and belongs beside it. We found no confirmed platform-level breach of customer funds.
Where the evidence stops
There is no exchange-wide proof-of-reserves programme. Reserve assurance rests on Deloitte-audited filings made as an SEC-reporting public company, plus per-asset attestations for wrapped tokens such as cbBTC. That is stronger than nothing, and weaker than a Merkle-tree proof you can check your own balance against. Coinbase Custody is an NYDFS-regulated qualified custodian, but the cold/hot split is not published and we could not confirm it from a primary source. The last crime-insurance figure we can point to — $255m covering hot-wallet assets — was disclosed in 2019; the company still advertises commercial crime cover for custodied assets without confirming a current number.
How to read the grade
Coinbase's protections are mostly institutional: audited accounts, a regulated custodian, a supervised licence book. They are meaningful, and they are not the same thing as a cryptographic proof you can verify yourself. The B says the paperwork is in order, and that the reader-verifiable evidence is thinner than the paperwork suggests.
Grade breakdown
Every KripZen grade comes from the same five weighted checks. Here is how Coinbase scores on each.
- Proof of reservesWeight 30%
Runs no exchange-wide proof-of-reserves programme; reserve assurance rests on its Deloitte-audited filings as an SEC-reporting public company, plus per-asset attestations for wrapped tokens such as cbBTC.
What this means → partial or unverified - CustodyWeight 25%
Coinbase Custody is an NYDFS-regulated qualified custodian, but the cold/hot storage split is not disclosed and we could not confirm it from a primary source.
What this means → partial or unverified - RegulationWeight 20%
New York BitLicense, FinCEN MSB registration, UK FCA registration FRN 900635 and licences in 45 U.S. states; paid a $100m NYDFS consent order in January 2023, and the SEC's 2023 unregistered-exchange suit was dismissed with prejudice on 27 February 2025.
What this means → meets this factor - InsuranceWeight 15%
A $255m crime policy covering hot-wallet assets was disclosed in 2019; Coinbase still advertises commercial crime cover for custodied assets but has not confirmed a current figure.
partial or unverified - Incident historyWeight 10%
No confirmed platform-level breach of customer funds found in our research.
meets this factor