Which are the best Bitcoin exchanges?
Blake In order to get your hands on bitcoin to paypal and other cryptocurrencies, you'll need to go via a leading Bitcoin exchange. There are many around, but the very best Bitcoin exchanges make it easy to buy and sell Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies using regular fiat money (i.e. dollars, pounds or euros).
Bitcoin exchanges also allow people to store cryptocurrency, although if security is a priority, you'll want to store your virtual wealth in a leading Bitcoin wallet, over which you have more control.
However, before plunging in head first, users should be aware of what to look for in in the best Bitcoin exchanges.
1. Coinbase
This is a US-based exchange which was founded in 2012, and it supports over 32 countries. Coinbase exchanges Bitcoin and the alternative cryptocurrencies of Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum and Litecoin, and it’s the largest of the exchanges, claiming $150 billion (£112 billion) in currency exchanged. In 2014 Coinbase created GDAX, the Global Digital Asset Exchange which was developed for professionals with high volumes of trading. Since June 29th, GDAX is now Coinbase Pro with some improvements, and visiting GDAX site will redirect you to Coinbase Pro.
The firm offers a mobile wallet, offline storage, and insurance protection for currency stored on its servers. Coinbase supports several fiat currencies: British Pounds, US Dollars, Euros, Canadian Dollars, Australian Dollars and Singapore Dollars.
2. Gemini Exchange
Gemini Exchange is another US-based outfit founded by the Winklevoss twins – the pair who sued Mark Zuckerberg over social networking, and were awarded $65 million (£48 million), which they put to use as venture capitalists. This exchange is based in New York, and is available in 49 US states, as well as the Puerto Rico, Canada, UK, Singapore, South Korea and Hong Kong.
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Gemini’s only supported fiat currency is US dollars, and it trades Bitcoin, Ethereum and Zcash. Gemini does not charge deposit or withdrawal fees, and has a 1% fee (depending on your 30 day trading volume - thee fee will go down as your trading volume increases) for trades, to both the buyer and the seller
3. Changelly
Changelly is a cryptocurrency exchange with support for many more virtual currencies than most, including Monero, Dash, Bytecoin, and DigitalNote among others. If you are mining a less popular currency, chances are that Changelly can exchange it for you.
This exchange comes from the popular mining platform MinerGate which provides a merged mining pool across Windows, Mac, Linux and Android operating systems. While Changelly focuses on exchanges between different cryptocurrencies, users can also purchase cryptocurrency with US Dollars or Euros.