21bitcoin vs Kraken Comparison

21bitcoin has established itself as an Austrian Bitcoin app across German-speaking Europe and deals exclusively in Bitcoin. On instant purchases the provider charges a service fee of 1.49%, or 1.29% with a referral code; limit orders and instant sales cost 1.49%, and OTC orders from €100,000 cost 0.49% to 0.99%. In the savings plan no service fee applies from day 8 onwards, while the first seven days cost 0.99%. According to 21bitcoin, euro deposits, account management and Bitcoin custody are free of charge; a euro withdrawal costs €1.

Austria’s Financial Market Authority (FMA) granted FIOR Digital GmbH authorisation as a crypto-asset service provider under Article 63 of the EU’s MiCAR regulation by decision of 27 November 2025, so a clearly identifiable European supervisor stands behind the app. Customer Bitcoin is kept separate from the company’s own holdings; the cold-wallet keys are held by BitGo Europe GmbH, which itself holds a MiCAR authorisation from BaFin.

The savings-plan approach is refreshingly uncomplicated: purchases run hourly, daily, weekly, every two weeks or monthly from the euro balance, and the flat wallet-transfer fee of 0.00001 BTC is widely seen as fair. Users single out the automatic transfer to a personal wallet above defined thresholds as a genuinely useful security feature. 21bitcoin now also offers limit orders at a target price and variable interest of 1.21% p.a. on the euro balance; the interest is granted by Volksbank Raiffeisenbank Bayern Mitte eG, and 21bitcoin converts it into Bitcoin free of charge on request.

Because Bitcoin is the only asset on offer, 21bitcoin is not aimed at investors who want a broad crypto portfolio, a limitation some users do point out. Two-factor authentication in the app and the €10 minimum order are also seen as leaving room for improvement. That makes 21bitcoin a good fit for Bitcoin-focused investors in German-speaking Europe who save regularly and care about automatic wallet transfers and Austrian regulation.

In short: Kraken is one of the oldest crypto exchanges in the world, active since 2011 and licensed under MiCA in the EEA. More than 600 coins, 490 of them directly against the euro, a regular proof of reserves and strong security features speak for the platform. The simple buy costs 1% plus spread; on the Kraken Pro order book you pay from 0.40% as a maker and 0.80% as a taker.

Is Kraken safe and licensed in the EU?

Yes, Kraken may serve customers across the EU. In the EEA, Kraken operates through Payward Europe Solutions Limited, based in Dublin, licensed under MiCA since 25 June 2025 and supervised by the Central Bank of Ireland. Through the EU passport the licence covers 30 EEA countries, including Germany, France and Spain (ESMA register, file of 30 October 2026). It covers custody, exchanging crypto for money and for other crypto, order execution and transfers, among other services. Kraken's parent Payward agreed on 14 October 2026 to buy Lithuania's Saldo Bank; closing is planned for 2027 and needs regulatory approval (our report on the deal).

Reserves and security: Kraken has its proof of reserves prepared regularly by auditors. The snapshot of 30 June 2026 shows coverage of 102.9% for Bitcoin, 100.5% for Ether, 100.6% for Solana and 102.3% for XRP, and 105% or more each for USDC and USDT. Kraken is certified to ISO/IEC 27001:2022, offers two-factor authentication with FIDO2 passkeys and a Global Settings Lock, and does not recover accounts by phone or SMS.

Account freezes and delistings: Between 17 and 24 August 2026, Kraken customers received almost 12,000 tiny deposits from wallets that analytics firms attribute to the sanctioned exchange HTX. Sanctions screening temporarily froze affected accounts; access has since been restored (our report on the dust attack). Kraken also removes tokens from trading regularly, most recently 13 tokens on 23 October 2026; withdrawal deadlines and steps are in our delisting report.

What you can do yourself: turn on a passkey or two-factor authentication and the Global Settings Lock, leave tiny deposits of unknown origin untouched and keep larger amounts on your own hardware wallet.

Who is Kraken for?

Kraken suits investors who want a long-established exchange with a wide choice of euro pairs, a savings plan and staking. Regular traders save with Kraken Pro. Since 26 October 2026, EEA customers with a derivatives account can also trade bitcoin and ether options there after an appropriateness assessment, provided by Cyprus-based Payward Europe Digital Solutions (CY) Limited under CySEC supervision. For simple euro trading, Bitvavo is cheaper, and Coinbase is an alternative with a listed parent company. All licensed providers are listed in our comparison of regulated crypto exchanges.