KuCoin rides crypto expansion into AI and payments to cross 45 million user landmark
- KuCoin marked its ninth anniversary with 45 million global users, expanding beyond trading into AI, payments, institutional infrastructure, and tokenized products.
- The exchange saw sharp emerging-market growth, 170% in Latin America and 30% in Africa, while completing its 44th consecutive monthly Proof of Reserves report.
- KuCoin’s AI service KIA saw 300% user growth and payment volume more than tripled, as the company also secured new licenses in Australia and the EU.
Cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin says its users have crossed 45 million globally as it marks its ninth anniversary with a push to expand beyond trading into artificial intelligence, payments, institutional infrastructure and tokenized financial products.
The company announced the milestone on Thursday alongside the release of its 2026 first-half review, titled “Beyond the Signal.”
The report details KuCoin’s evolution from a digital asset trading platform into an ecosystem that is now serving retail users, businesses, institutions and Web3 participants.
The company saw considerable growth in users in emerging markets during the first half of 2026. It says users increased by 170% in Latin America and 30% in Africa.
KuCoin says it now offers access to more than 1,600 digital assets, adding that it is now among the world’s top three exchanges for spot market share and Bitcoin spot market depth.
KuCoin has grown its user base across emerging markets
KuCoin said its expansion in Latin America and Africa was supported by continued investment in trading infrastructure, Web3 access, digital asset payments and institutional services.
The exchange’s institutional business now supports more than 120 Crypto-as-a-Service partners (Caas) and more than 400 brokers. Broker-driven activity accounts for around 4% to 7% of KuCoin’s overall trading volume, according to the company.
The platform is also seeking to position itself around trust and transparency, an increasingly important issue for crypto exchanges following years of market failures and collapses across the industry.
KuCoin’s CEO BC Wong, stated, “As crypto moves from the margins into the infrastructure of global finance, the platforms that endure will be defined not by short-term noise, but by the value they create over time.”
He said that for KuCoin, this “means building secure and transparent infrastructure, advancing responsible innovation, strengthening compliance, and connecting digital assets with the real economy.”
KuCoin emphasizes security and transparency
KuCoin said it completed its 44th consecutive monthly Proof of Reserves report during the first half of the year, supported by 14 independent audits conducted by blockchain security firm Hacken.
The company also highlighted AI-assisted security operations, vulnerability disclosure programs, and user protection initiatives.
Crypto platforms, both centralized and decentralized, have come under a barrage of attacks from bad actors in the first half of 2026, and it does look like it is slowing down soon. Investing in security shows that the platform understands the terrain it is operating in, and it is taking the appropriate steps to protect users and the platform itself.
KuCoin said its $2 billion Trust Project brings together security infrastructure, compliance and governance, transparency mechanisms, user protection, and global operational resilience.
Can AI and payments make KuCoin more than a crypto exchange?
The company’s strongest growth figures outside trading came from its artificial intelligence and payments businesses.
Daily active users of KIA, KuCoin’s AI-powered service layer, increased 300% in the first half of the year. The service has expanded beyond customer support into trading, asset management, search, market data, wealth management, and content.
KuCoin also introduced Skills Hub, which allows external AI agents to connect with modular crypto services.
Payments also grew, with KuCoin highlighting that its off-chain payment volume has more than tripled, while total payment orders increased more than 25 times. The number of merchants and service partners rose 60%.
The company expanded multichain payments, introduced Payment Links and merchant QR codes, and added an API-based crypto-to-stablecoin conversion service. Its Web3 Wallet added native perpetual trading powered by Hyperliquid and access to more than 260 tokenized U.S. stocks and exchange-traded funds through Ondo Global Markets.
The company has also done considerable work in ensuring that it is on the right side of regulators in the jurisdictions that it is already operating in and expanding to.
KuCoin says that it has been licensed to operate in Australia through AUSTRAC registration. The exchange stated that it leveraged Mastercard’s global network to expand into the Australian market. KuCoin also has a MiCA license, which enables it to operate in the European Union, and both licenses came in the first half of the year.
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