HashPi
Contributor
Your first step into the cryptocurrency world will most likely occur through an exchange. There are two main types of exchanges that we will discuss in this guide.
The first type of exchange is what most people call a fiat exchange. This an exchange that allows the direct transfer of US Dollars, Euros, and most government-backed currencies to be traded for cryptocurrency.
The second type of exchange are cryptocurrency to cryptocurrency exchanges, that allow cryptocurrencies to be traded with each other. The most common pairings on these exchanges are Bitcoin and Ethereum. Crypto to crypto exchanges will be covered more in-depth on the second half of this page.
Depending on what cryptocurrency you are trying to obtain, you will need to use certain exchanges. To get most cryptocurrencies, you will need to use both types of exchanges. This is because laws and regulations around certain cryptocurrencies make it difficult for fiat exchanges to sell them.
Each exchange has different pros and cons, so the best exchange for one person, might not be the best for another.
You should consider a number of things when determining the best Bitcoin/cryptocurrency exchange for you:
How safe is the website and server? Secure exchanges are better.
How is the liquidity? The higher the exchange’s volume, the better.
What are the exchanges fees? The lower the better.
How is the exchanges customer support?
What trading pairs are available?
How many different payment options does it have?
Is the exchange beginner friendly?
Here’s some information on some of the most popular crypto to crypto exchanges.
Binance
Binance is one of the newer exchanges but has impressed its customers on several occasions. They have some of the highest trading volumes on several of their trading pairs, and an enormous amount of coins available for purchase.
It is based in Hong Kong, with offices located in several other countries such as Japan and China. It is available to all countries and US states.
Recently, Binance has introduced SAFU (Secure Asset Fund for Users), that takes 10% of all trading fees the exchanges earns, to give back to the users in the event of a hack.
Kucoin
Kucoin is also a relatively new cryptocurrency exchange based in Korea, that has a wide variety of cryptocurrencies for sale. It has its own token similar to Binance known as Kucoin shares, that award its holders a percentage of the exchanges total trading fees. Kucoin’s trading fee is .1%.
Kucoin holds contests and other promotions similar to Binance making it a great exchange to have an account on. Kucoin is an interesting exchange as many of the altcoins listed on the exchange are exclusive or on a small amount of exchanges.
Changelly
Changelly takes a different approach to being an exchange. Instead of letting users store their cryptocurrency on their exchange, they set up conversion transactions. Users select an input and output currency and an amount.
In the above example, I selected .1 BTC and an opposing amount of ETH is automatically determined at the going rate. Then, Changelly provides an address to send the Bitcoin to, and asks for an address to send their Ethereum to.
This effectively cuts out one step and swaps currencies in real-time. In exchange for their services, Changelly charges .5% on transactions. Fiat currencies such as the US Dollar and Euro can be used, but have slightly higher fees. Pretty cool!
Bittrex
Bittrex is a Seattle, U.S. based and regulated exchange. It offers several trading pairs and supports more than 190 cryptocurrencies. It offers speedy transactions, high stability, and follows some risk management practices. Bittrex’s fees are .25%, which are somewhat high compared to their competition. Bittrex’s customer support is pretty good and uses Slack, Twitter and Email.
They recently allowed certain customers to deposit fiat currency into their exchange, which is pretty rare for an exchange with the amount of coins Bittrex offers.
Cryptopia
Cryptopia is a New Zealand based exchange that has an enormous amount of cryptocurrencies available. It features Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Tether trading pairs. Cryptopia’s serves all countries and has trading fees of .2%.
In addition to their cryptocurrency trading pairs, Cryptopia offers a marketplace where nearly any item or service can be purchased with cryptocurrency.
Bitfinex
BitFinex is one of the larger cryptocurrency in terms of volume and users. It is based in Hong Kong and has trading fees of .1% for makers, and .2% for takers. It is important to note that BitFinex does not allow US users to sign up for their exchange.
Please note that Bitfinex is limited in the countries they serve and do not accept US signups.
Poloniex
Poloniex is a U.S. based exchange available in all countries and states. It was recently purchased by Circle and has a great selection of cryptocurrencies. Poloniex has .15% fees for makers and .25% fees for takers.
Poloniex has lost a lot of their volume as competitors have been able to add more coins and features to their exchange.
Aiodex
Security: Use of HTTPS, Google 2FA verification, SMS verification, cold wallet, personal account security and other five major security plans to ensure users trade their assets with security.
Privacy: All our traders’ information is fully secure and kept undisclosed.
Free Listing: We will be listing coins that are voted by the community and in the future we aim to have most cryptocurrencies listed so you can trade all in one place.
Low Fees & No Hidden Fees: All our fees are transparent, upfront and listed when you make a purchase. The trading and withdrawal fees will be held as low as possible.
High Performance: To ensure stability we will take Bank-level standardized servers to operate flawlessly even when experiencing huge traffic.
Ease of use: User-friendly interface allows Aiodex to provide users with convenient transaction services, including automatic deposit and transfer.
Limited Verification: To create an account and begin trading you will only be asked to provide your email address. Verification is only required for large withdrawals over the daily limit.
Advanced Trading Tools: Our platform provide statistical analysis tools when you make trading plan.
Referral System: With each member invited, you will receive an additional one month free trading fee.
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Read more: Top Cryptocurrency Exchanges in 2018 Reviews – DanielJenkinson – Medium
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