Press note
Why Bitcoin's Price Differs Between Exchanges: 18 Venues Checked Every Minute
5.8 bpsTypical gap between the highest and lowest venue
Median of 1,095 minute readings across 16 exchanges, 12–13 September 2026; about $45 on a bitcoin near $77,000
Vultax read Bitcoin's order books on 18 exchanges every minute for 28 hours. Half stayed within a basis point, the highest and lowest ordinary venues sat a median 5.8 bps apart, and Upbit ran 1.31% above. In a week of readings no gap survived fees; here is what a gap has to clear. Bitcoin does not have one price. Every exchange runs its own order book, and the books are held together only by traders who move money between them. A few venues sit apart for reasons you can name. Upbit, a Korean exchange where Bitcoin trades against won, ran a median 1.31% above the others once its price was converted to dollars. HTX sat a median 2.9 basis points high.
Observed 2026-09-12T19:16Z to 2026-09-13T22:57Z, population: 1,095 minute readings with at least ten venue books under 60 seconds old.
Supporting figures
- +1.31% — Upbit above the other venuesMedian of 985 readings, range 1.07% to 1.53%, with Upbit's won price converted to dollars at a live exchange rate
- 9 of 18 — Venues within 1 bp of the pack on 80% of readingsBinance, Bitget, Bitrue, BTSE, Bybit, Gate, Kraken, OKX and WhiteBIT
- 0 of 1,029 — Readings where the gap paid after feesVultax's live crypto pack, 6–13 September, five major venues, 10 bps taker fee per side; best reading −7.0 bps
Images
Vultax Research
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Links
- The study
- Full text, sources and method
- Markdown edition
- Plain text for quoting and for assistants
- Chart figures (CSV)
- The numbers behind the headline chart
- All datasets (JSON)
- Every published table and chart, with units and sources
- Open the BTC venue desk
- Bitcoin books from each connected exchange side by side, with the cross-exchange arbitrage view, venue depth and large trades.
Press contact
Vultax Research — [email protected]
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How to cite
Vultax Research, Why Bitcoin's Price Differs Between Exchanges: 18 Venues Checked Every Minute, 2026-09-16, https://vultax.com/research/why-bitcoin-price-differs-between-exchanges
Published 2026-09-14, last revised 2026-09-16. Figures are the published study; live screens move. Plain-text version · Use our data