If not Coinbase, then what? The best alternatives for a popular crypto exchange

A Reddit user, TheDon2016, lost his patience after Coinbase blocked his account. According to him, problems with the platform had occurred before, but what happened was over the edge.

He had been using the exchange for eight years, and now he is looking for something else, something more reliable. Which is the best one? He got advice from other Reddit users.

“I’m done with them”

The author said that it had happened when he tried to make a small purchase on his debit card to add some more Bitcoin. After that, the system got locked and asked him to verify his identity. To do this, he had to send a photo of his documents. In total, the verification process took about four hours.

But that’s not all. After TheDon2016 was finally verified, the system banned him from doing anything with cryptocurrency for an unknown period.

“I go to see, and when I clicked ‘Send,’ it showed restricted. They couldn’t give me any reason why. The first guy in support service I speak with could barely communicate clearly,” he said.

Now the author liquidated everything to USD Coin, cashed it out via his debit card, and looking for a reliable alternative to Coinbase. 

What to replace Coinbase: the best alternatives

Previously, we have written about how to choose a good exchange and even made a list of six platforms that respond to the basic requirements. Let’s now look at what Reddit users are advising.

Nrgte thinks that the choice of an exchange depends on what the user wants to do:

 

• Binance/Kraken is you just want to invest in large-cap coins;
• Bybit if you want to trade futures;
• KuCoin if you want to invest in small coins.

But spartancheid117 doesn’t agree with the last one because he had a bad experience with the KuCoin exchange. He said the platform asked him to do the exact thing the author talked about. Moreover, he had to send a video. That’s why he advises users to be careful with KuCoin. He added that the platform’s spreads are absolutely terrible, too, and they won’t fill limited orders.

“We lost lots of money in that Jan crash because KuCoin didn’t execute stop losses, was forced to sell market, went back and forth with them for months, and they basically just say they don’t have to fill your orders, it’s disclosed on their website,” he said.

Sounds awful!

As for Binance, some users believe this exchange is not all good too. AvocadosAreMeh knows this first-hand. He said the platform didn’t pay out futures during the crash, which confirms they’re no more liquid than a shitty bank.

“Since I’m in the US and used them ambiguously, I have no recourse either, so I knew that when I gambled, but still a reminder they don’t have what they say they have. Probably less after spending 20 billion in advertising the last 12 months, financing Twitter deal, and continuing to be cracked down on by nations with consumer protections,” he said.

So, if you are in the US, Binance isn’t an option.

As you can see, if someone recommends a particular exchange, it doesn’t mean that it will also suit you, because everything is individual. You need to choose a platform depending on your circumstances (location, savings, etc.). As for the author, after the accident, he at first signed up for Kraken, but there is no “cash out” option like Coinbase, so he ended up with Crypto.com. Now he can just transfer his crypto from Kraken or any other exchanges to Crypto.com and withdraw money to debit.

It turns out that this platform fulfills all his requirements. Now, let’s hear it from you, which exchange do you prefer and why?