Highlights

• Countries around the world are concerned about the security and safety while trading of decentralized currencies.
• At present, there are 438 crypto exchanges actively working across the world.
• Some of the popular crypto exchanges include Binance, Coinbase, FTX, Kraken and Crypto.com. 

Cryptocurrencies and altcoins have seen a phenomenal surge in 2021. With the growing popularity, investors are looking for promising profits not only in the short term but also for a longer term. The total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies stood at US $2.38 trillion as of 7 December, with a total sale volume of US $124.44 billion over 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.

For this, investors look for an effective and reliable cryptocurrency exchange where they can buy and sell digital currencies. Most exchanges work like stock exchanges, where these online dealings take place. At present, there are 438 crypto exchanges actively working across the world.

10 most popular cryptocurrency exchanges and trading platforms

Choosing a safe crypto exchange is crucial as it will make trading of cryptocurrencies easier with low fees and robust security features, and which also acts as an intermediary between a buyer and a seller. At present, most countries and investors are concerned about the security and trading of the decentralized currencies.

Also read: 5 tips for crypto investment rookies

So, here are the top 10 most popular crypto exchanges at present.

1. Binance

Founded in 2017 in China by Changpeng Zhao, Binance is one of the most popular crypto exchanges at the global level. The Malta-based platform offers huge number of supported coins and tokens, with fast transaction time, low fees and high security. For US residence, Binance US was launched in 2019, in San Francisco. However, the platform is not available in 7 US states and is not ideal for the beginners.

The platforms charge 0.1% on transactions and you also have an option to earn interest of between 0.5% and 10% by pledging coins for while. You may buy digital coins by using debit or credit cards, bank transfer or bank deposits. The platform charges 4.5% fee on debit card purchase. In case, your investment gets stolen, the platform offers insurance securities and two-factor authentication system.

Source: Copyright © 2021 Kalkine Media

2. Coinbase

Launched in 2012 by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam in San Francisco, California, Coinbase is one of the most popular exchanges because one can invest directly with US dollar across 103 countries. The platform is best for beginners due to its simple UI with options to invest in insured cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Ethereum, following a very easy process. However, the platform charges high fees as compared to other exchanges with few payment options and custodial wallet.

The platform charges US $0.99 to US $2.99 as fees for under US $200 transactions and an additional 0.5% fee is charged depending on the amount of transaction. It also allows debit or credit card, bank deposits, Paypal and bank transfer payments.

The platform also offers FDIC Insurance under which 98% of users’ investments are compensated in case they are stolen. 

3. FTX

Founded in 2019 by Sam Bankman-Fried and Gary Wang, FTX is build by traders and is for traders. It offers innovative products such as options, derivatives, volatility products and leveraged tokens. However, the platform is entirely unavailable in the US. The platform also offers leveraged tokens, MOVE contracts and regular spot trading, and allows users to transfer their earnings in currencies such as GBP, USD, AUD, EUR and CAD. It also accepts credit card deposits. 

The KYC process of FTX is easy, specialises in crypto derivatives trading, helps in increasing trading limit, guarantees liquidity and charges low fees on all transactions.

Also read: Bitcoin recoils 18% after slipping to $42,000

4. Kraken

Founded in 2011 by Jesse Powell and re-launched in 2013, Kraken is a US-based crypto exchange offering over 50 cryptocurrencies within three packages of accounts that include Starter, Intermediate and Pro, with average fees between 09% and 1.5% depending on the amount of trade. The starter account enables investor to trade, deposit and withdraw cryptocurrencies depending on the investor.

However, before starting investing, the platform asks for KYC for any deposit and allows users to transfer in currencies such as GBP, USD, AUD, EUR, CAD, JPY and CHF. But, it does not allow deposits from debit and credit card. The platform offers a limited section of cryptocurrencies and tokens in the US as compared to other countries. 

5. com

Launched in 2016, Crypto.com is a Hong Kong-based largest and fastest growing crypto exchange that enable users to trade, buy, sell, and spend on cryptocurrencies and offers over 90 coins and tokens across the world, and 50 tokens and coins across US. The platform offers security over investments and charge remarkably low fees of between 0.04% and 0.20%.

The platform offers a crypto earn programme where investor can stake their digital currency for renewable period of one or three months and earn interest up to 12%. It also offers a non-custodial DeFi wallet though an app that makes it easy to transfer funds.

However, poor customer service, poor privacy, unclear source of funding and complex app system is often reported by the existing customers.

6. KuCoin

Launched in 2017, KuCoin is a Hong-Kong based third party exchange that enables trading of wide range of cryptocurrencies and is known for hosting of over 300 trading pairs. Since its launch, the platform has not reported any problem and hasn’t suffered from any system overloads. The platform charges quite low fees of 0.1% of the total trading amount, and deposits have no charges. It supports some well-known crypto coins, such as Binance Coin, Bitcoin, Tether, Ethereum and XRP.

However, the platform is not licensed to operate in the US, with limited payment methods, complex interface for beginners and limited educational resources.

7. Huobi Global

Founded in 2013 by Leon Li, in China, Huobi Global is a Singapore-based crypto exchange offering over 234 crypto assets, such as Bitcoin, Tether, Ethereum, Litecoin and Ripple, and forms part of the Huobi global group as a subsidiary. It offers up to three times leverage for spot trading and provide secure, professional, reliable and world-class services to its global clients in over 130 countries.

The platform has expanded into public chain, proprietary investment, digital assets trading and wallet, incubation, mining pool, digital asset research and more. It operates though its offices in Hong Kong, Japan, China, US and Korea. It charges low fee charges of just 0.2%

However, the platform does not support fiat deposits and withdrawals, and has a lengthy account registration procedure, low withdrawal limits and low leverage for margin.

Source: Copyright © 2021 Kalkine Media

8. Bitfinex

Founded in 2012 by Raphael Nicolle, Bitfinex is Hong Kong-based crypto exchange managed by iFinex Inc. It is the oldest and most liquid & P2P margin lending platform. The platform offers a wide range of cryptocurrency to choose from with over 300 trading pairs supported in fiat currencies such as GBP, USD, JPY, EUR, and CNH.

However, the platform was hacked in 2016, which lead traders to lose their investments, but it agreed to pay US $18.5 million to settle a lawsuit. The platform does not support US clients, does not allow debit/credit card or r-wallet deposits and is not regulated. The platform charges 1.100% (min 60, USD/Euro) as deposit fees and 0%-0.2% as transaction fees, depending on the amount of trading.

Also read: Top five Metaverses in The Universes

9. Gemini

Founded in 2014, Gemini is an American crypto exchange that supports all top crypto coins, such as Bitcoins, Ethereum, Litecoin, Chainlink and Orchid, across the US. It deals in over 50 cryptocurrencies and over 25 fiat currencies. The platform stores assets in cold storage and funds are insured by FDIC to enhance security.

The platform offers a bonus of US $10 on selling or buying bitcoin worth US $100 and also runs a earn promotion programme for users that offers interest rate of 3.5%. However, it charges trading and transaction fees of up to 1.49% depending on trading platform and 3.49% for debit card purchases, and its account have a US $5,000 daily deposit limit and a US $30,000 monthly deposit limit. User may withdraw a maximum of US $100,000 per day.

10. Bitstamp

Founded in 2011, Bitstamp is a European-based crypto exchange that enables traders around the world to trade cryptocurrencies that accepts fiat-to-crypto transactions. It offers a range of services for individuals with personal accounts and institutions with corporate accounts.

The platform charges 0-0.5% trading fee, 5% card purchase fee and 15% Ethereum staking fee and offers traders with a good selection of useful trading tools, customer support services and educational resources. It stores 98% of assets safely offline with highly secured personal data.

The platform offers its services to over 50 countries apart from 28 EU member states, such as China, Australia, Brazil, South Korea, South Africa, and the US.   However, the platform does not offer any other products and services except Cryptocurrencies, with no regulations and MetaTrader platform.