Digital assets are now going mainstream, attracting interest from the general public. This was previously due to the massive bull run that occurred last year. Though the assets have traded upwards and downwards this year, traders are still counting their profits. These and many other reasons have pushed more people into the market, with most of them looking to make profits, thereby moving to crypto exchanges.
Traders who intend to make profits from crypto cannot just purchase it from a bank. This is where crypto exchanges come in, as they bridge that gap, helping users exchange their cash for any digital asset they wish to purchase. Traders who want to invest in exchanges cannot just enter a website without knowing the kind of services they offer. In this article, we will be looking at the top three crypto investing apps in the market.
What are crypto exchanges?
Exchanging digital assets from one blockchain to another is not something that anybody can do. This is because the blockchains in question do not communicate effectively with each other. To achieve this aim, crypto exchanges bridge the gap. Crypto exchanges are websites or platforms that allows users access to different kind of digital assets. The exchanges allow traders to buy, sell and trade any digital asset they wish to, provided it is listed on the exchange. Traders who intend to make profits by trading on the moving price of digital assets can also carry out their activities on these websites.
How do crypto exchanges work?
In most cases, the balance will be withdrawn to his bank account. In other cases, the user might prefer to be matched with another user that will send the fiat to his bank and he will transfer the asset to. Notably, the exchange monitors transactions like this, which eliminates the issue of scams in the exchange.
Top 3 Crypto Exchanges In The Crypto Market
Coinbase
Located in San Francisco and founded in 2012, Coinbase has become one of the most popular crypto exchanges globally. The company recently reached new heights in 2020 after it ended the year with a trading volume of $89 billion. New traders often choose Coinbase as their go-to crypto exchange due to the availability of widely known assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
The exchange also allows traders to purchase assets with the fiat currency of their country. Coinbase can also be likened to a brokerage because it provides users with virtual wallets. For seasoned traders, Coinbase launched Coinbase Pro, a crypto exchange that allows peer-to-peer trading with more technical tools.
Coinbase provides users the opportunity to trade 75 digital assets across its platform. The exchange has also not listed some privacy coins like Zcash, which is not available to users in the United Kingdom. Another example is Monero which is not available to users across the regions that they support.
Coinbase has three varieties of apps for users to carry out their activities. The Coinbase app, the Cooinbase pro app, and the Coinbase Wallet app are available on iOS and Android. Safety is not something that is guaranteed but Coinbase provides users with the safest options when it comes to investing and trading crypto.
Coinbase charges up to 0.5% for buying and selling digital assets on the platform. On the Coinbase Pro app, its flat and variable fees are subject to changes according to market movements. However, the crypto exchange does not charge for its wallet hosting service.
Binance
Sitting up there rivaling Coinbase is Binance, another crypto exchange with prestige and popularity in the crypto sector. The crypto exchange was founded by Changpeng Zhao, who usually goes by the nickname CZ. Binance is presently the number one crypto exchange when we talk about trade volumes.
With China banning crypto in 2017, Changpeng Zhao had to move his base of operation to Japan. With the years running down, the crypto exchange’s base of operation had moved across different locations. In 2020, CZ moved the company’s base of operation to Malta, a country known for openness towards crypto and blockchain. Presently, the headquarters of Binance is now in Caymans Island, with its other offices scattered across 50 locations worldwide.
Binance provides traders with a vast list of digital assets to trade with its BNB token also included. However, the company is still increasing the number of supported tokens. Another reason it has a vast pool of tokens is that it responds to trending tokens which are quickly listed so its users can buy them.
Binance has a desktop app but it provides mobile users with a mini version on their Android and iOS devices. However, traders who intend to download the Binance app should make sure they are downloading the original one. This is because malicious actors have started making a copy to siphon trader’s funds.
Binance charges withdrawal fees according to the market movements while depositing tokens on the platform is free. Trading fees on the crypto exchange are 0.1% when traders don’t pay the fees using BNB. Just like Coinbase, hosting a wallet on the crypto exchange is entirely free.
Gemini
Gemini, a crypto exchange in the United States was founded by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss in 2014. It has its official headquarter in New York and became the first crypto exchange to be licensed as an ETH exchange in 2016. One main feature of the Gemini is its security measures.
According to the exchange, most of its user’s details are stored offline with only a small portion of its Bitcoin stored in an online wallet. This is a measure to reduce the likelihood of hack attacks. The crypto exchange provides users with about 68 tokens to choose from.
Asides from the top coins, traders can also gain access to Cardano, Uniswap, and AAVE. Just like Coinbase, the exchange has not listed BNB with a few privacy coins like Monero also missing from its supported tokens. To complete the KYC verification on Gemini, traders are mandated to provide a valid passport.
Gemini has an app that traders can trade from asides from the online exchange. The app is available for download on iOS, Android, and the Samsung Galaxy Store. Unlike both crypto exchanges above, Gemini charges users a 0.4% fee annually for storing their digital assets on the exchange’s wallet. Asides from charges incurred for trading which are subject to fluctuations, traders also have to pay Bitcoin and Ethereum network fees.
Conclusion
Trading and investing in crypto is not something that should come with stress. Asides from this top 3, there are other exchanges that traders can turn choose from to carry out transactions. Exchanges like eToro, Crypto.com provide more or the same kind of services that those above provide.
One distinct factor that traders must look out for is how secured the crypto exchange is and how user-friendly the mobile app is. It is also great to carry out a great deal of research before choosing a crypto exchange that you want to invest in. Lastly, traders need to ensure that the fees charged by the exchange tallies with what is on the platform.
