Binance's alpha+ wallet+ contract+ spot listing system has basically shattered the listing systems of other offshore exchanges, and everyone seems to have to avoid its sharpness.

But what really makes exchanges money is still the large coin contracts. New spot listings do not make money, they are more about earning users and traffic. Don’t be fooled by OKX's apparent abandonment of listings; its contract trading volume last year was still second only to Binance, and everyone is keeping their core profit margins tightly guarded.

Outside of their core businesses, OKX is working on on-chain solutions, Bybit is expanding into foreign exchange and gold bulk trading, Bitget is focusing on Payfi and cards, Gate is focusing on compliance, MEXC is targeting the Middle East, HTX is catering to Russian speakers, and a number of smaller exchanges are quietly targeting the U.S. market, with each one engaging in some form of differentiated competition.