Choosing an exchange that you will use to make transactions in fiat and cryptocurrencies may seem like a routine task, but it is much more than that. Therefore, as soon as you select an appropriate Bitcoin wallet, make sure to take a careful look at potential exchanges which you could use. In order to save your precious time, we compiled a list of the most secure Bitcoin exchanges, so feel free to take a moment and read more about each of the platforms presented in this article.
CoinMama
CoinMama is available in a lot of countries and can process large Bitcoin transactions if you buy digital gold using credit and debit cards. In fact, it is considered one of the best exchanges for people who use credit cards to buy Bitcoins. This exchange is not really big compared to some other popular options for people who want to trade cryptocurrencies, but it certainly ranks well when it comes to safety and security.
The company behind CoinMama is FinCEN-registered and is perceived as a money service business. In other words, it is completely legal and secure. Furthermore, the platform doesn’t hold users’ cryptocurrencies on their behalf which means that it is not an easy target for hackers.
CEX.IO
CEX.IO was founded back in 2013, and its original purpose was to serve both as an exchange platform for Bitcoins and as a service that offers cloud mining. However, the platform pivoted and focused solely on being a cryptocurrency exchange. At the moment, it is considered one of the most popular options for people who want to buy and sell Bitcoin, as well as a number of other coins such as Ethereum, Dash, Zcash, Stellar Lumens, and many more.
What’s more, the group of people that created CEX.IO has taken effective measures to make their platform safe and easy to use. Being a licensed exchange, CEX.IO undergoes regular audits and certifications to ensure that their users’ data and funds are protected. They also introduced offline cold storage of funds and 2FA that should help users keep their private data secure.
Coinbase
Coinbase is a San Francisco-based company which is currently considered the most popular platform for crypto exchange in the US. With more than 20 million registered users, they have broken many records and have set the standard quite high.
One of the significant reasons why Coinbase is considered safe is that it is regulated and in compliance with the US State and Federal law. When compared to some other platforms that are lightly regulated and are located in other countries, Coinbase makes sure that there is an open financial system and try to be as transparent as possible. Furthermore, the company is also very transparent when it comes to the way they store their funds, with approximately 98% of users’ cryptocurrencies being stored offline.
Poloniex
Poloniex is among the pioneer crypto exchanges, and thus has already managed to become one of the leaders in the space, positioning itself so as to set the new industry standard. Two things that they are very proud of are maximum security and a lot of exciting trading features for advanced users.
That being said, Poloniex pays special attention to safety and security. One of the primary ways to keep hackers at bay is to store deposits made by customers in cold storage offline. Only a small portion of funds is kept online in order to make trading active and effective. Furthermore, Poloniex has auditing software which monitors the platform for suspicious activity. As soon as it spots anything, the software blocks it immediately and sends a report before it becomes a problem.
Kraken
Kraken is one of the first online cryptocurrency exchange platforms ever, and it is still very active and successful. It has managed to gain a reputation of being secure, and both occasional buyers and regular traders love it. Apart from supporting the most popular cryptocurrencies, this platform also offers a lot of fiat currency trading opportunities.
The exchange comes with a list of security measures which help users protect their cryptos and their personal information. Apart from the standard ones such as 2FA, the platform also uses the PGP/GPG encryption, as well as other essential security technologies, including a master key, and a global settings lock.
Bitstamp
Bitstamp is another pioneer out there. It was one of the first exchanges to penetrate the European user base where it is still prevalent. However, Europe is not the only location where it is available, as it offers its services to users all around the globe. The exchange originated in Slovenia but moved its headquarters to the UK and Luxembourg after that.
Being registered within the EU countries, the exchange is compliant with all the regulations and protection laws of the territories. It holds the majority of assets in cold storage. Furthermore, FDIC insures all US dollar accounts, and DFS authorizes Bitstamp to provide services to the US customers.
Summing up
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are not always secured well. There have been cases of Bitcoins being stolen from what many people thought were reliable exchanges. The most notable case of one such cyber attack took place in 2014, when approximately 740,000 Bitcoins were stolen from Mt. Gox.
Therefore, choosing a reliable exchange is so important in the crypto world. If you want to keep your money away from hackers, spare neither time nor effort to check whether the exchange of your choice has gone the extra mile to protect your funds.