You can learn a lot of interesting things when you set out to rate the world’s crypto exchanges.



To demonstrate this, let’s look at the current highest rated exchange on Cointelligence (Gemini), and the current lowest rated exchange (CoinNest). Like all exchanges reviewed on Cointelligence, Gemini and CoinNest were both reviewed by an anonymous team of raters, and judged on the following metrics:



Performance Team Risk Usability

We feel that these factors can be objectively measured and give a clear if not 100% complete, view of an exchange’s merit.



Let’s start with the good…



Gemini exchange rating

Gemini currently has the highest exchange rating on Cointelligence, at 8.75.

Gemini gets perfect marks on their team and usability, and a very low risk factor of 1. We feel confident in this exchange’s ability to provide a safe and reliable cryptocurrency exchange platform. We also like their dedication to regulation, which we feel will keep them, and their users, on the right side of the law.



However, Gemini’s strict regulatory compliance also leads to some of their drawbacks. They have thorough AML and KYC policies and high fees that can serve as a form of gatekeeping for retail investors, and those who do trade on the exchange only have access to five major cryptocurrencies. In short, it’s a great exchange, but it’s not accessible to everyone and won’t serve every trader’s needs. Read our full Gemini review here.



Looking at the other side of things…

CoinNest exchange review

CoinNest gets a zero for their team, based simply on the fact that the only team member we could find information on was their CEO… who was arrested for embezzlement! That also contributes to the risk score of 9. It’s just impossible to trust a CEO who has already embezzled once.



Others may have come to this same conclusion, because the exchange has almost no trading volume.



It’s a shame, because they have a well-designed site that seems easy to use. But it doesn’t matter how usable a site is if you can’t trust them with your crypto assets. Read our full CoinNest review here.



The importance of rating cryptocurrency exchanges

Examples like this are why I set out to add cryptocurrency exchange ratings to Cointelligence. For too long, other sites were only reviewing exchanges on a single metric, such as trading volume or security risk. And while both of those factors are clearly important, they don’t create a full picture of what an exchange offers.



Every trader is looking for something different, and they need to find an exchange that can offer them that. Gemini has an 8.75 rating, but they don’t get a score of a perfect 10 because their policies and fee structure make them inaccessible to a lot of traders, and they’re not an ideal platform for those looking to deal in a variety of alt-coins.



At the same time, a newbie looking for a crypto exchange might easily get lured into CoinNest by their easy-to-understand UI, without being aware of the CEO’s shady past or what the lack of trading volume means.

The goal of Cointelligence’s rating system is to help people find the right exchange for their needs, while also shining a light on the unsafe exchanges, scam exchanges, and exchanges that just don’t have enough liquidity.



This is how we welcome people to the crypto community

Mass adoption is coming, and bringing with it a bunch of people who have no real idea of what a crypto exchange is and how it works. They don’t understand how to protect their crypto assets and who to trust them with.



We need to empower newcomers to the crypto economy by giving them the tools they need to make the right decision. This is why I preach about due diligence at crypto events around the world, why I offer free cryptocurrency education classes, and why I created an exchange rating system.



Let’s face it, if someone’s first experience with cryptocurrency is investing $500 in alt-coins on an exchange, and that exchange gets hacked or pulls an exit scheme a week later, that’s going to be the end of their foray into the world of crypto.



Do we blame that newbie for investing poorly? Or do we admit to ourselves that we haven’t done enough to highlight the safe, trustworthy exchanges and call out the unsafe scam exchanges?

By providing accurate and impartial exchange ratings, and making those ratings easy to find, I feel like I can do my part to improve the state of the crypto economy. My hope is that over time, this will attract more users to safe, effective crypto exchanges, and that the unsafe, ineffective exchanges will run out of traders and be forced to close down. If you believe in this mission, check out our crypto exchange list here.

Author Bio:

On Yavin is the founder and CEO at Cointelligence , the data layer of the crypto economy. He has extensive experience as a serial entrepreneur and an angel investor, as well as more than 20 years of experience in the tech industry. On uses his deep hands-on experience and knowledge of online marketing to create winning strategies for ICOs , crypto, and blockchain companies. Having earned the reputation of a crypto expert, On continues to contribute to this industry in ways that advance cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies. On has a law degree (LLB) and is also a certified Advocate by the Israeli Bar Association.

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