Kraken offers a wide range of services for buying, selling, and trading cryptocurrencies.
With over 200 digital assets available, Kraken's platform is a one-stop-shop for all your crypto needs.
Kraken's user-friendly interface makes it easy to navigate and execute trades quickly.
Kraken's services include margin trading, futures trading, and staking, which can help users maximize their returns.
Kraken's fees are competitive and transparent, with a maker-taker fee model that rewards users for providing liquidity.
Kraken's platform is available in multiple languages, making it accessible to users worldwide.
Kraken Services
Kraken has expanded its services to include a partnership with TradingView, a financial market chart service provider. This has allowed the exchange to add more cryptocurrencies to its trading platform.
Kraken offers funding denominations in various fiat currencies, including the U.S. and Canadian dollars, euro, and Japanese yen. This makes it easier for users to trade on the platform.
Kraken provides a margin trading facility and dark pools, allowing large orders to be placed discreetly and executed against similar-sized orders for a price advantage. This feature is popular with both retail investors and professionals.
You can access Kraken's OTC (Over-the-Counter) service 24/7 if you live in the Americas, Europe, or Asia-Pacific, except on major holidays. This service provides deep liquidity, private, and personalized services to institutions and high-net-worth individuals.
Initial Market
Kraken initially served European customers through a partnership with Germany-based Fidor Bank, which has since been cancelled.
In 2014, Kraken and Coinbase were selected to feed BTC market data to Bitcoin price indices on the Bloomberg terminal.
Kraken's integration with a leading market data provider helped the platform gain popularity among the financial community.
Kraken's significant progress in helping creditors of the defunct exchange Mt. Gox locate their bitcoin was announced in 2016, and numerous claims from thousands of Mt. Gox creditors were approved.
Kraken's initial market expansion included operating in Japan, where it helped creditors of Mt. Gox locate their bitcoin.
Kraken's early success in the crypto market was marked by its ability to provide a reliable and secure platform for buying, selling, and exchanging cryptocurrencies.
Here is a list of some of the key events that highlight Kraken's initial market:
Kraken's early focus on helping creditors of Mt. Gox demonstrates the platform's commitment to providing a secure and reliable service for its users.
Expanding Services
Kraken has partnered with TradingView, a financial market chart service provider, to expand its services.
This partnership has enabled Kraken to offer more cryptocurrencies on its trading platform and accept funding in various fiat currencies, including the U.S. and Canadian dollars, euro, and Japanese yen.
Kraken continued to grow in 2015 by launching several new features that cater to both retail investors and professionals. These features include a margin trading facility and dark pools, which allow large orders to be placed discreetly and executed against similar-sized orders for a better price.
In 2016, Kraken expanded its services beyond spot markets into derivatives, futures, and other specialized markets. This move has helped the exchange reach a wider audience across North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
Kraken has obtained registrations and licenses in several countries, including the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, Italy, Europe, and Abu Dhabi in the U.A.E. This regulatory compliance has enabled the exchange to operate in these jurisdictions.
In April 2024, Kraken acquired Tradestation Crypto from Tradestation Group, a Japanese global financial services company. This acquisition has expanded Kraken's presence in the U.S. through the licensed money transmitter, Tradestation.
Over The Counter
Kraken offers deep liquidity, private, and personalized services to institutions and high-net-worth individuals needing to fill large orders that might be too disruptive if placed on open markets at the exchanges.
You can access this service 24/7 if you live in the Americas, Europe, or Asia-Pacific, except on major holidays.
Crypto.com Comparison
Kraken and Crypto.com are both popular cryptocurrency exchanges, but they cater to different needs. Kraken has a higher overall score of 9.8 compared to Crypto.com's 9.1.
Kraken is best for beginners, making it an excellent choice for those new to cryptocurrency trading. It's available in over 190 countries, including the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom.
Crypto.com, on the other hand, is geared towards buying, selling, tracking, and trading cryptocurrencies, with a focus on a wide variety of crypto-related services. It's available in around 100 more countries than Kraken.
In terms of value for money, Kraken comes out on top with a higher score, indicating it offers better quality compared to the price. This is likely due to its lower trading fee percentage of up to 0.40%.
Here's a comparison of the two exchanges in key areas:
Crypto.com has a significantly larger active user base, with around 100 million users compared to Kraken's 10 million. However, Kraken offers a wider range of accepted cryptocurrencies, which may be a deciding factor for some users.
Account Types and Verification
Kraken offers four types of accounts: Starter, Express, Intermediate, and Pro, each with its own set of trading and investment options.
The Pro account stands out for having no maximum withdrawal limit, whereas the other account types have daily withdrawal limits.
You can open the Starter, Express, and Intermediate accounts in just a couple of minutes, but the Pro account verification process can take several days.
To open an account, you'll need to go through Kraken's KYC protocol, which requires providing personal information like your full name, address, and a photo of your government-issued ID card.
You can fund your Kraken account with a bank transfer or by depositing cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether, Ripple, or Litecoin from your crypto wallet.
Kraken Fees
Kraken Fees are structured in a tiered system, with fees decreasing as your 30-day trading volume increases. The fees range from 0.26% for small-scale takers to 0.00% for large-scale market makers with a 30-day trading volume of over $10,000,000.
Kraken has different fees for buying crypto using payment cards and digital wallets, which are quite high at 3.75% each. However, online banking and ACH processing is a good option that charges only 0.5% for instant buys.
The Instant Buy option on Kraken charges a 1.5% fee for buying, selling, or exchanging digital currency. If you use a credit card or debit card for your purchases, you'll also pay an additional 3.75% fee.
Kraken's fee schedule mainly discourages the conversion of cryptocurrencies into stablecoins, which charges a lot more for such transactions, depending on your trading volume for the last 30 days.
Here's a breakdown of Kraken's fees:
Kraken Security
Kraken has never been breached in its 11 years of operation, setting a standard for other exchanges in the space.
The exchange's security is top-notch, with comprehensive controls in place to prevent theft of financial assets or information. These controls include 2FA, which is an integral part of the standard login process.
Approximately 95% of all digital currencies deposited on the platform are stored in the company's hardware storage, making it difficult for hackers to compromise a large amount of funds.
Kraken servers are kept under constant surveillance, making a manual hack nearly impossible. All user data and information is protected by advanced encryption solutions.
Kraken holds the number one spot out of 100 of the most popular exchange platforms on Cer.live, a website that evaluates the security measures of crypto exchanges.
Kraken Features
The Kraken platform offers a range of features to suit different trading needs. Kraken has three mobile apps, including the Kraken Futures app, which is designed for experienced brokers and investors.
The Kraken Futures app allows for up to 50 times leverage on popular cryptocurrencies like BTC and ETH, and features a professional trading interface. It also includes an educational section and personal support option.
Kraken's mobile apps are designed to be practical and easy to use, making it simple to access your portfolio of digital assets on the go. The terminal features a professional broker chart and interface with all the necessary information for conducting successful trades.
History
Kraken has a rich history that dates back to its establishment in 2011. The exchange was formally launched in 2013 under the ownership of Payward Inc.
The current CEO, David Ripley, took over in 2022, succeeding co-founder Jesse Powell.
Futures
Kraken offers a seamless, flexible futures trading experience. This is made possible by its high-performance API for programmed trading.
With Kraken Futures, you can use various collateral types to manage all of your positions without needing to move funds around. This is facilitated by the Multi-Collateral Futures Wallet.
The Kraken Futures app is designed for highly experienced brokers and investors who deal with serious amounts of assets. It enables up to 50 times leverage on popular cryptocurrencies like BTC and ETH.
The app also allows users to set entry limits, providing an added layer of control. This feature is particularly useful for traders who want to limit their potential losses.
Kraken Futures also offers an educational section and personal support option, where traders can get direct support from the Kraken team. This is a valuable resource for users who want to improve their trading skills.
Crypto Staking
Crypto staking is a way to earn passive income with digital assets, and Kraken makes it easy to get started. You can earn rewards on your crypto holdings, with some delivering up to a 23% annual return. Rewards payments are made twice a week, and you can cancel anytime.
Kraken offers staking for 15 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Tezos, and Solana. These are among the best crypto coins for staking, and you can select your cryptocurrency of choice with just a few clicks.
Developer Grants
Kraken offers a development grant to support developers in the crypto space, aiming to further the adoption of cryptocurrencies.
The grant is awarded quarterly to fund open-source development projects, and developers can apply for consideration.
Priority is given to projects related to Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Lightning (LN), Monero (XMR), other public cryptocurrencies, and Rust developers.
Developers interested in applying should be working on projects that align with Kraken's mission and goals.
Affiliate Program
Kraken's affiliate program is a great way to earn some extra cash by referring friends to the platform. You can earn 20% of the trading fees paid by people you refer, which includes spot trade fees, margin opening fees, and margin rollover fees.
To participate, you'll need to have a finance or crypto-related social media account with at least 5,000 followers. A Facebook group with this number of followers will also work.
The affiliate rewards are paid directly to your bank account by bank transfer, and you'll receive the payment in your default bank currency.
Crypto.com Feature Breakdown
Crypto.com offers a wide range of features that set it apart from other cryptocurrency exchanges.
The platform supports over 250 cryptocurrencies, including popular ones like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.
Crypto.com also has a built-in wallet, allowing users to securely store, send, and receive cryptocurrencies.
Their exchange offers a variety of order types, including market, limit, and stop-loss orders.
Crypto.com has a mobile app that allows users to trade on the go.
Crypto.com Comparison Result
In this section, we'll dive into the Crypto.com comparison result, which highlights the key differences between Crypto.com and Kraken.
Crypto.com has a lower overall score of 9.1 compared to Kraken's 9.8. This suggests that Kraken offers a better user experience, making it a more suitable choice for beginners.
Crypto.com is available in over 100 countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada. However, Kraken has a broader reach, operating in over 190 countries.
Here's a brief comparison of the two exchanges:
Crypto.com has a larger active user base, with around 100 million users, compared to Kraken's 10 million. However, when it comes to value for money, Kraken has a higher score, indicating that it offers better quality compared to the price.
In terms of trading fees, Kraken has the lowest fee percentage of up to 0.40%, while Crypto.com has a fee of up to 0.3%.
Terminal
The Kraken terminal is a powerful trading platform that offers a wide variety of trading tools for buying, selling, and exchanging cryptos.
It features a professional broker chart and interface with all the necessary information for conducting successful trades. This makes it a great option for traders who want to stay on top of their game.
The terminal can seem a bit complicated at first, but it's actually very easy to navigate once you learn which tools are at your disposal. This is because most of the options you need are available in a single dashboard.
You get a depth chart that allows you to follow the market sentiment regarding a particular crypto or trading pair. This is super helpful for staying informed about market trends.
The order book is also a key feature of the Kraken terminal, providing you with a clear view of your trading orders. This means you can keep track of your trades and make informed decisions.
You can submit your trading orders directly from the terminal, without extra steps, which saves time and makes the trading process more efficient.
Mobile Features
Kraken has three mobile apps that serve different trading needs, making it easy to access your portfolio on the go. The apps are available on Android and iOS devices.
The Kraken App is the basic app that enables all basic functions such as purchasing, exchanging, and selling cryptocurrencies. It's very easy to navigate for beginners.
One of the standout features of the Kraken App is its support for credit card and debit card purchases of cryptos. This makes it easy to buy cryptos quickly and easily.
The app also provides portfolio tracking and market monitoring features, giving you a clear view of your investments. You can also initiate withdrawals to your crypto wallet or bank account.
Kraken security software handles the privacy of all your user data associated with the app, giving you peace of mind. You can also set up two-factor authentication for logging into your user account.
Here are some additional features of the Kraken App:
- DCA Crypto Calculator
- Crypto Compound Interest Calculator
Frequently Asked Questions
What coins are offered on Kraken?
Kraken offers a range of popular cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Dogecoin, and Polygon, as well as thousands of tokens. Explore our full list of supported coins and discover the crypto ecosystem at your fingertips.
How many crypto Kraken are there?
Kraken offers over 175 cryptocurrencies for trading. Explore our extensive selection to find the one that suits your investment needs.
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