Bitstamp

Bitstamp Crypto Review

Since Bitcoin started, many alternatives have been established on the market. For example, the cryptocurrency Ripple increased its value by more than 10,000% in 2017! Bitstamp allows you to trade five cryptocurrencies. You can spread your capital widely and thus compensate for price drops in individual currencies. Even those who invest in several cryptocurrencies and don’t just want to trade Bitcoin only have to create an account with Bitstamp.

Bitcoin: Bitcoin is still the market leader in cryptocurrencies. Hundreds of thousands of traders trade Bitcoin worldwide every day.

Bitcoin Cash: When there were disagreements in the Bitcoin community regarding the further development of Bitcoin in mid-2017, Bitcoin Cash split off from the actual currency. The new cryptocurrency developed rapidly; it is said to be faster and safer than Bitcoin.

Tradable cryptocurrencies:

• BTC
• ETH
• XRP
• BCH
• LTC

Ethereum: Ethereum only came on the market five years after Bitcoin. Many investors saw great potential in the cryptocurrency, so its value increased enormously in 2017.

Litecoin: Litecoin is based on the same basic structure as Bitcoin, but is faster in terms of mining and transactions. In the future, the cryptocurrency is predicted to be more competitive than Bitcoin.

Ripple: Ripple takes a different path than other cryptocurrencies and transfers the principle of conventional currency systems to the Internet.

COSTS

Bitstamp charges fees for the orders. The amount depends on how high the volume traded in US dollars over the past 30 days has been. For a trading volume under $20,000, fees of 0.25% apply. The higher the size, the lower the cost. If the trading volume has exceeded $20,000,000 for the past 30 days, the fee drops to 0.1%. Bitstamp is therefore primarily suitable for traders who want to trade more substantial sums.

Anyone investing in Bitstamp must also make an investment of at least 5 euros or 0.001 BTC. For further questions about the conditions, you can contact the Bitstamp customer service.

• <$ 20,000: 0.25%
• <$ 200,000: 0.22%
• <$ 600,000: 0.15%
• <$ 1,000,000: 0.14%
• <$ 20,000,000: 0.11%
• > $ 20,000,000: 0.10%

It should be emphasized that there are no account management fees or other fixed costs. Bitstamp only charges fees for the trading volume of the coins and individual transactions. At best, traders only have to pay 0.1% fees. However, since most customers do not exceed $20,000 a month, typically 0.25% is due.

Finally, it should be noted that all costs are presented transparently on the website.

ACCOUNTS

To trade cryptocurrencies at Bitstamp, you need a user account. Without registration, access to a section of the website is denied. However, the process is relatively quick and easy: You only enter your first and last name and a valid email address.

You will then receive a confirmation email with the necessary login details in the form of an ID and a password. After you have logged in with the data, you can change the password in the settings. Verification is now necessary, without which Bitstamp trading is not possible. It also serves for additional security.

The process includes checking if you are acting as an individual or company and whether you are liable to tax. Also, an ID document (passport or ID card) must be uploaded and the address provided must be proven. A copy of a telephone or electricity bill is sufficient for this.

The whole process takes some time but ensures that Bitstamp can filter out potential fraudsters from the start. After completion of the verification, the customer will receive a confirmation email. Then you can start immediately with a deposit to the user account and Bitstamp trading in cryptocurrencies.

TRADING PLATFORM

Unlike with providers of individual currencies – for example, if you want to open a Bitcoin account – there are usually several cryptocurrencies available on exchanges. New customers can purchase one or more of the five cryptocurrencies traded on Bitstamp within minutes of setting up an account.

Once registration is complete, the user must deposit money into the account. This is done via the menu item “Deposits” using an 11-digit reference code. Depending on the means of payment, it may take a few days before the credit is booked. The first order can then be placed. Bitstamp automatically buys and sells cryptocurrency units at the best price. The coins are available in the user account after just a few seconds.

There is a fee for each order, which is initially 0.25% of the trading amount. Depending on the monthly trading volume, this value can drop to 0.10%. There is no minimum deposit. To make a purchase, enter how many currency units you would like to purchase in the “Buy / Sell” area. You can also buy fragments of coins, so that you don’t have to invest several thousand euros, especially with Bitcoin.

The transaction is carried out automatically, the buyer receives the currency units and the seller the money paid. Sales also work automatically: the seller creates an order, the system takes care of the processing.

USABILITY

The website is the calling card of every online provider; it also determines the first impression. The Bitstamp website has a minimalist design and is therefore particularly evident, as our experience with Bitstamp shows. The most essential information can already be found on the homepage: You can see at a glance which cryptocurrencies you can trade with. Live Trade and Live Order Book are also currently shown on the website. It can be seen which volume of coins is presently being bought and sold at which price.

At the bottom of the website are contact information, FAQs and information about the company. The current prices of the individual cryptocurrencies are listed under the menu item “Tradeview”. The colour of the website is also kept simple. Only in the upper area is a striking, large banner with the title “Go for the digital currency stars”. The banner in the lower area with the contact details is black. The items “Tradeview”, “Register” and “Login” are in blue letters. A significant shortcoming of the website: It is only available in English.

CUSTOMER SUPPORT

Security is taken care of as best as possible on Bitstamp so that customers should feel in good hands. Once the verification is complete, trading can get underway. But it is also essential to have a contact person in an emergency. In comparison to some other crypto exchanges, Bitstamp offers support that can be reached in different ways. In addition to the usual contact via email, it is also possible to contact them by phone.

1. Contact by email at [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] and [email protected]
2. Contact by phone at: +44 20 8133 5474

However, the exchange does not specify exact business hours. The possibility of contacting Bitstamp by phone is still an advantage: Since an answer by email can take a few days, urgent matters can be settled more quickly via personal contact on the phone.

One drawback: the support is not available in other languages because Bitstamp is a purely English-language platform. The FAQ section can also help with general questions. However, this is also only available in English. The Bitstamp experience shows that basic knowledge of English should be sufficient to use the platform. We can only hope that Bitstamp will offer more languages ​​in the future.

PAYMENT METHODS

For trading, a deposit to the user account is necessary. Bitstamp offers two variants for this, for which fees vary. The deposit is possible by credit card or SEPA transfer. Bitstamp charges a fee of 10 euros for deposits with a credit card up to 1,000 euros. For sums exceeding this, 2% of the amount is due.

The bank also charges fees for using the credit card, the amount of which depends on the institution. The Bitstamp payment also incurs costs of 3.45 euros. There is no charge for depositing money via bank transfer unless there is a currency change: for example if you are depositing in euros but want to trade in US dollars. A Bitstamp payment by bank transfer costs 0.90 euros per transfer.

Note that wire transfer payments can take a few days to complete. For quick investments, paying by credit card is more advantageous, especially since the rates of cryptocurrencies can change quickly. Investors can also transfer Bitcoins, Ethereum, Litecoin etc. from Bitstamp from the wallet in the user account. There are no fees for this. A recipient address must be specified when paying out coins. Traders can also choose to receive Bitcoins in the form of gold.

ADDITIONAL OFFERS

Since Bitstamp is purely an exchange for cryptocurrencies, there are no other special services on offer. You can buy and sell the cryptocurrencies Ethereum, Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin and Ripple for euros or US dollars. However, Bitstamp offers the possibility to create and manage multiple accounts within the platform. These are sub-accounts.

Up to 10 sub-accounts can be created per account and managed via the main account of the registered user. These sub-accounts offer a decisive advantage: it is possible to split the available credit into several parts. This is particularly interesting for traders who want to invest their money in different cryptocurrencies. This gives a much better overview of the currencies traded and the capital invested. There is also an additional offer for the payment of bitcoins.

The Bitcoins can also be paid out in gold. If you choose to do so, the gold will be sent to the address provided within two to five days.

REGULATION & DEPOSIT INSURANCE

Since hacker attacks on large cryptocurrency platforms occur, again and again, the topic of security is of utmost importance. This includes several areas, including regulation and deposit insurance. Cryptocurrencies themselves are not regulated, customer funds are not protected, which you should always keep in mind when trading virtual currencies.

However, Bitstamp is regulated – the authority is the Luxembourg Financial Industry Supervisory Commission. While this does not guarantee that Bitstamp works appropriately, it is an important indicator, since financial regulators control the activities of the relevant service providers.

Bitstamp also relies on a proven security concept in which all communication processes are encrypted using the latest technologies. SSL encryption is used on the Bitstamp website. Also, regular software updates are carried out, making it almost impossible for third parties to steal cryptocurrencies or intercept users’ data.

Many Bitstamp experiences confirm excellent safety precautions. However, you should be aware that there may be a loss of capital when investing in cryptocurrencies. Because it is a relatively short-lived facility, which is characterized by intense price changes. If you have an interest in an investment, you should always keep an eye on the market and be regularly informed about price changes.

AWARDS

Bitstamp is better known in English speaking countries. Many reports of Bitstamp crypto experiences in English can be found. These underline that no Bitstamp fraud has been identified so far.

A large number of users also speak for the professionalism of the company. Especially for new customers, the opinion of the trade press is an essential criterion for deciding for or against a crypto platform. Forbes dubbed Bitstamp the “backbone of the Bitcoin economy,” CoinDesk named Bitstamp 2014 the best startup in the digital currency space.

Users who report on their experiences with Bitstamp are also mostly positive about the platform and opinions are equally positive in a Bitstamp test. The wide selection of available cryptocurrencies is often emphasized. But the high-security standard also convinces users that Bitstamp is serious. A negative aspect that is often mentioned is the language: the platform is only available in English.