Lots of people are beginning to see the value of trading cryptocurrencies to establish themselves as investors. The tricky part is finding the right medium to use to get your feet wet and to get the experience needed to build a solid portfolio. What should you be looking for?
Which features matter most? One of the best sites out there to help you optimize your investments is Kraken.com; whether you’re a newbie or an HODLer, this might be the choice for you.
Let’s take a look at all the pros and cons for this company, and you can make a decision for yourself as to whether it’s the right choice for your particular needs.
History of Kraken.com
You don’t want to trust just any cryptocurrency exchange. Learning about a company’s history is the first step to assessing their competency and honesty.
The Founder
Kraken was founded by Jesse Powell, who began this ambitious endeavor in 2011. After witnessing the security breach of Mt. Gox, the cryptocurrency exchange, Jesse went to work on Kraken as a replacement, with the sneaking suspicion that Mt. Gox was on the verge of closing. Using this as the motivation to begin working on something better, after two years of testing and development, Kraken launched in September of 2013.
Building Blocks
When it first opened, Kraken initially offered a few cryptocurrencies for trading, which included bitcoin, litecoin, and euro trades. Not too long after that, the company added additional currencies and margin trading as well. In July of 2013, Kraken joined the Digital Asset Transfer Authority (DATA). This committee consists of American bitcoin players in the emerging digital industry with the committee’s stated purpose to be a self-regulatory body.
Top Features of Kraken.com
Kraken’s stated mission is to accelerate the adoption of cryptocurrency so that the world can achieve financial freedom and inclusion; here are some of the best features they offer to help make this mission a reality.
A Comprehensive Security Approach
When dealing in cryptocurrency, safeguarding one’s investments is of the utmost importance. Having a firm grasp on what investors want—Kraken spends their time and resources to guarantee that your personal data is protected from breaches and cyber attacks. Knowing what efforts a company is making to keep your money safe is huge, so whichever company you choose, make sure they have a reliable security approach.
Kraken has a world-class team of security experts at their disposal; these people are charged with ensuring that your cryptocurrency investments and identity stay protected. Their risk-based approach has shown to be highly effective and ensures client confidentiality.
Buy and Sell Assets in Just a Few Clicks
Convenience rules the day, so it’s no wonder that Kraken has pulled out all the stops when it comes to trade orders being executed quickly and at an affordable price. You don’t have to worry about your transactions’ speed thanks to the high liquidity exchange with Kraken. Timing is everything, and utilizing Kraken and their accessible interface will allow you the ability to be precise and punctual.
Funding Options That Better Serve You
Kraken.com makes the funding of your account easy and efficient by offering versatility. Kraken leads the way in providing a variety of fiat and crypto funding options with short processing times. With fees as low as 0 percent, Kraken offers a competitive, investor-friendly fee structure that rewards the client the more they trade. Additionally, there are no hidden fees to speak of; every fee will be disclosed upfront, which makes for a smoother process.
Kraken Commission/Costs
Costs are only incurred once an order has been executed, or in other words, when your order is matched with another client’s order. Moreover, fees range from 0% to 0.26% of the order’s total value in question.
These fees can be affected by the following additional factors:
- Your 30-day trading volume (in USD)
- The currency pair which is being traded
- Whether you are the maker or taker within the transaction.
- If your order is canceled before being executed will not incur any fees.
Minimum Trade Fee/ Margin Fees
Minimum fees are added when necessary. These fees occur as the minimum amount as per precision on that pair being traded. This particular function affects small value trades, which may not have the decimal precision necessary to create a ledger entry. Margin fees are incurred if you are a client using leverage, an optional and advanced feature that clients can use. Margin opening fee and Margin rollover fee will be applied for the use of this feature.
Customer Support
One of the most important aspects of any company is the customer service available to its clients. This is how the good companies set themselves apart from the great ones.
Global Support Offered 24/7
Investing can make you a little anxious, especially when you’re first getting started and unsure of how it all works. This is where what I would call Kraken’s best attribute comes into play; their customer support is available to clients anytime and anyplace.
When it comes to your investments, accessibility is crucial. There is a highly competent support team waiting for anyone who may need assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week at Kraken. The support team can be contacted via live chat whenever a client needs clarity or guidance. What’s more, there’s also exhaustive support documentation that can assist with finding the help you need should you opt to navigate the site a bit yourself first.
White-Glove Treatment With Kraken’s Account Management Service
For those clients who require a more hands-on experience to facilitate the help that they need, Kraken offers the White Glove Treatment Account Management Service. This particular service is offered to Kraken’s more advanced clients. Such clients will be able to enjoy one-on-one support; this is definitely a perk when you consider the more personal feel it offers to users of the site.
The customer service assistants at Kraken are knowledgeable and work hard to guarantee that they’ve addressed your concerns and given the best possible advice regarding your financial portfolios. Their friendly and accessible service reps are always there to help. It’s safe to say that this is a massive part of why the company is as successful as it is now.
Kraken Licenses/Regulation
As with anything, the authentication of a product or service is essential because there are certainly scammers amongst us. That being said, Kraken complies with regulatory and legal requirements in all jurisdictions in which they operate. Users can verify licensure because these documents are easily found on the company’s official website, Kraken.com, where you can view an extensive list of their licenses, further crediting their business acumen and professionalism.
Final Thoughts
Kraken is all about empowering investors, granting them the freedom to engage in markets that they otherwise may have been excluded from. Over time this company has provided a generation of citizens with a viable way to enter into a fair and honest trading environment. Investing in your financial future is not something that should be taken lightly.
It does take a bit of work and understanding to become successful at cryptocurrency trading; luckily, Kraken offers all the tools to achieve that success and independence.
You can be anywhere in the world and receive help anytime of day. Between this and their excellent security approach to protect your data and assets, perhaps you should look into Kraken.com for your investing endeavors; at the very least you can find a lot of good info on the site to get you headed in the right direction.