What is the best UK cryptocurrency exchange in 2022? We list and review the 5 best UK crypto exchanges worthy of your consideration. When trying to decide the best crypto exchange in the UK, it's not simply about ranking by volume or doing a broad comparison based on fees, accessibility, trading tools, or other common characteristics.
Most exchanges aim to support a particular type of customer based on their location, experience, payment method, need for anonymity and so on.
For example, if you are in Africa or the United States and are a first-time cryptocurrency user, you may want to start with Coinbase or bitFlyer. If you reside in Asia, you can choose Binance.
That is why we have decided to offer a list of the best cryptocurrency exchanges in the United Kingdom to cover the needs of all of our readers there.
In this guide, we will include major exchanges that offer the widest range of services. This way, every reader will be able to find the best cryptocurrency exchange for their unique needs.
What is more, this guide mentions what must be considered before relying on an exchange platform.
Without further ado, we introduce you to the five best cryptocurrency exchanges in the UK selected by AtoZ Markets.
What is the best crypto exchange in the UK?
Here are the features of 5 of the best cryptocurrency exchanges we have selected for you.
Coinbase
Coinbase is possibly the best-known exchange in the world and certainly the largest in the West. This United States exchange has grown so much that it is going to go public shortly, being valued at a very large amount of capitalization. This is to give us an idea of the size of this company.
Due to its large size, it may not be the most agile exchange on the market, but it is certainly one of the safest.
In addition to its professional trading service, it is also known for its service as a cryptocurrency wallet.
Trading commissions improve as there is more trading volume, with the standard ones being more or less the market average, although somewhat higher than competitors such as Binance. However, if you are not going to do high frequency algorithmic trading this is not relevant.
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Pros and cons
Pros
- Cryptocurrency selection
- Top-rated mobile app
- Advanced trading platform
- Earn free crypto
- Offers Coinbase debit card
Cons
- High fees on standard Coinbase platform
- Complex fee structure
Binance
Binance has been at the top of the list of cryptocurrency trading houses for many years. It is a classic when you see the rankings that they show us on sites like Coinmarketcap. This is for a reason: we are facing one of the best companies in the sector, and we are not only talking about an exchange for trading or classic buying and selling, but also as a wallet, uniting several services in one.
One of the characteristics that have always characterized this exchange is its excellent conditions for trading with commissions always among the lowest in the market, although this is not what we should be guided by when looking for a provider, but it always helps a little. not have the most expensive commissions in the market.
One thing that Binance has gotten a lot better at over the years is improving its security. The latest is about to be licensed by the FCA with an entity in the UK with the “.uk” ending. When I have this I think it will be one of the exchanges that will grow the most because that will make many people with important assets in the world decide to switch to it.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Low fees compared to other exchanges
- 25% trading fee discount if you pay fees using Binance Coin (BNB)
- Educational resources available
- Identity verification process
- Tax statement portal to help prepare crypto taxes
Cons
- History of regulatory scrutiny
- $10 minimum trade
- Lack of information on security
Cex.io
This exchange has the advantage of being based in the United Kingdom, a country that sets the standard for the regulation of global financial markets, and that is synonymous with security. But as if that were not enough, it is also regulated in the United States, where it has an important market.
The commissions it offers are also among the best in the market, with approximately 0.25%. The trading experience is flawless, and unless our strategy relies on excessive high-frequency algorithmic trading, this exchange provides the perfect trading environment.
It is one of the few crypto exchanges that has a telephone in the UK and USA for emergencies. We already know that most houses work with a "no phone" policy and only contact by form. This encourages many investors to open their account in this house, because sometimes it is better to have access to a telephone in case something strange happens, although I have to say that this is something that should hardly ever happen. The typical service experience is that nothing like that is going to be needed.
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Pros and cons
Pros
- U.S. licensed
- Crypto loans
- Crypto staking
- Wide variety of cryptocurrencies
- Strong security
- Low fees for spot trading
Cons
- Complicated fee structure
- Extensive verification process
Kraken
The exchange named after a mythological monster remains one of the most prominent in the world. After a brilliant start, it had a time when it fell behind a bit but later it took off again and positioned itself again as one of the reference players in the crypto markets offer.
What does this exchange have that makes it attractive?
Kraken is known for being one of the leading platforms for trading cryptocurrencies in the form of derivatives, with a wide range of margin trading products. In addition, it also offers attractive and innovative contracts such as cryptocurrency indices that are excellent for medium and long-term investment. Let's think of something like a Dow30 or IBEX35 of cryptos.
At the moment it does not offer too many payment methods, with the possibility of doing it with a transfer or depositing cryptocurrencies. Hopefully, this will improve soon, although it is not a very big impediment either.
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Pros and Cons
Pros
- High digital security
- High financial security
- No geographical restrictions on account holders
- Strong range of tradable cryptocurrencies
- Several fiat currencies tradable
- Low Fees
Cons
- Customer service response times
- Debit and credit cards and e-payments processors not supported
bitFlyer
BitFlyer is one the most well-known cryptocurrency exchanges. It allows users to trade, buy, and sell a wide range of digital assets. Users of all skill levels will find the platform easy to use. BitFlyer also offers a range of tools and features to make trading easier.
bitFlyer was the first cryptocurrency exchange to be granted licenses to operate in the US and Japan. Their industry-leading streak of 7 years with zero hacking incidents is an industry record. BitFlyer also keeps all crypto in cold storage.
bitFlyer: Pros and Cons
Pros
- High liquidity and one of the largest exchanges Japan
- The FSA has granted licenses to users, ensuring greater legitimacy and security.
- It offers a user-friendly platform that includes a wide range of features
- Most popular crypto exchange in Japan
Cons
- Users have complained about slow customer service
- Very few Cryptocurrencies
Best Crypto Exchanges in the UK 2024
How to choose the best crypto exchange in the UK?
Well, when looking for the best UK cryptocurrency exchange it is important to take into account the main factors when reviewing a broker or company of this type. Let's see what they are:
Security and regulation
There is no doubt that this is a key aspect when choosing an online service. Much more if we are talking about businesses where we are making exchanges with our money. In the world of cryptocurrencies, it is even more important.
Why is it so important?
Because in this case we are facing a new market that is still taking shape and that has been very difficult to regulate until now. This means that these crypto exchanges are not as heavily regulated as well-known stock, forex, CFD, or futures brokers. The latter means that we cannot give these houses a very high rating. The day they are fully regulated, we will be able to do it.
One thing is for certain: security has improved a lot since the wild days of years ago. At the beginning of the sector, hacks were quite common, not to mention cases of scams and monumental falls such as MtGox. This has changed a lot and in the last two years, the number of problems has dropped dramatically. This is undoubtedly a step forward for the consolidation of the sector and for it to be seen as a completely safe market.
The market is also becoming increasingly popular among institutional investors, who undoubtedly see the future of money in these assets. It is almost certain that in a short time we will be talking about a sector with security as good as that of traditional brokers or banks, and at that time we will put a corresponding rating.
Anyway, to score these exchanges we have taken into account things like where they are located, something very important because a crypto exchange that is in the United Kingdom is not the same as another that is on some islands in the Pacific Ocean. It will always be safer to invest with companies that are based in advanced countries, such as the US or Europe.
Platforms and tools
This is another quite important criterion to be able to choose a service of this type, especially if we have in mind to carry out a type of complex operation. Some platforms are better than others, and the truth is that most services have proprietary platforms, but in this case of cryptocurrencies, it must be said that almost all of them have the TradingView graphic services in common, the equivalent of what the Metatrader 4 is for Forex.
We are also facing a fairly equal criteria, but there are some companies that have a greater number of orders and offer some more complex capabilities, but where the most difference can be seen is in offering other types of tools to help in trading.
In general, it is a criterion that unless it is crucial for a strategy, we should not give it so much importance, especially if we want the service to buy cryptocurrencies in the medium and long term.
In this case, we can highlight Exchanges such as Binance, Kraken, or Coinbase.
Markets and products
This is a very important field because after all, it is what makes us look for one service or another. Some are looking to buy stocks, others are looking to day trade Forex, and others are looking for cryptocurrencies.
These types of companies are specialized in the cryptocurrency business. However, over the years they have been introducing other innovative products such as other marketplaces, and also additional products such as p2p lending issues, crypto mining, or token development.
Some of the products we have seen include:
- Offer of investments in precious metals with physical backing
- Tokens based on Wall Street stock prices
- Cryptocurrency Portfolio Indices
Some of the exchanges that stand out in this field are: Binance and Coinbase.
This field promises to evolve and offer more innovative products in the future.
Commissions and costs
This is perhaps the point that most concerns most users, and it is not for less. We all look for the cheapest service, why should we deny it. What happens is that we should not be so stubborn about this issue because many times we make the wrong choice just because we think that it is the cheapest service.
For example, there are many companies that offer very cheap prices but then it turns out that the service offered is very bad.
Like everything, the key is to find a balance, that is, a moderate commission with a good trading or buying and selling service. That is why we have chosen these exchanges, because they are among the cheapest on the market and also have acceptable customer service, and not least, good trading conditions, without problems when executing orders or withdrawing or moving money, for example.
All the chosen Exchanges have acceptable commissions. They are valid for all types of operations, even for high frequency, but if you have a strategy that is truly high frequency then it might be good to look for those houses that have the lowest commissions. The latter is something that should happen in very few cases because the truth is that 99% of operators will do well with the commissions in the market. One of the keys to understanding this is that it is better to trade less and trade better than not to trade too often.
Exchanges that stand out at this point are Kraken, Binance, and Luno.
Customer service
This is something quite important, but we can do little to see if a company has good customer service or not, other than to see the options it has to be able to communicate and to see the opinions that it may have in the market. The latter is problematic because there are usually many false opinions on the internet, both for the good and the bad. That is why it is a delicate subject.
In the case of exchanges, the issue of customer service is important because, due to the trend in the sector, it is almost impossible to get assistance by phone, something that annoys many people. However, I believe that this will be the trend of the future, so you have to look for providers that are efficient in their communications.
Some exchanges leave a lot to be desired, while others are very quick to respond to issues. An example is Coinbase, an exchange that is considered one of the best that from our experience has bad customer service that takes forever to answer. Other exchanges like Binance, for example, are characterized by responding quite quickly, not to mention that they have communications in the form of chat, and in some cases they can respond to us in a matter of minutes.
The exchanges that make it easier to connect with the client are: bitFlyer, Binance, CEX.io, and Coinbase.
Best Crypto Exchanges in the UK 2024
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