There are numerous platforms available for today’s aspiring cryptocurrency trader. But how do you know which one to choose? Do you go for one of the biggest players in the field, or select a smaller exchange with some nice perks? And how do you know if you can really trust them with your cryptocurrency assets?

Trust is a major concern when it comes to cryptocurrency exchanges. There are a few things that could go wrong, and we’ve seen many of them play out over the last few years:

Exchanges shut down for regulatory non-compliance

Exchanges revealed to be Ponzi schemes or other forms of scam

The extremely high-profile case of Quadriga CX, where the CEO’s death resulted in the loss of access to the funds stored on the exchange

Loss of funds due to hacks and phishing

But even aside from these major issues, there are other minor issues to be concerned with when choosing an exchange. Prospective traders need to consider how many trading pairs the exchange gives access to, how much liquidity it has, the trading fees, ease of use, and so many other factors. With all of these points to consider, how can you determine what is the best exchange for you?

Crypto exchange reviews are a good place to start your research

Before choosing a cryptocurrency exchange, find a reliable source for unbiased exchange reviews. Ideally, you’ll want to find a site that reviews the exchanges on multiple metrics – many reviews will only look at one factor, such as volume (which has recently been shown to be artificially inflated on most exchanges) or security (which is incredibly important, but doesn’t tell you much about what your trading experience will be like, only how safe it will be).

A good exchange review site can help you narrow down your search. You can safely eliminate any exchanges that have a very low rating, and then from those who have a good rating, you can compare them based on the metrics that matter the most for you, until you find your top crypto exchange pick.

Comparing Binance and Cobinhood

To demonstrate how a review could help you make a decision, let’s examine the ratings for two popular cryptourrency trading platforms: Binance and Cobinhood.

Binance Exchange Review

Since early 2018, Binance has been ranked as the largest crypto asset exchange by trading volume. Originally based in China, they moved to Malta to take advantage of the crypto-friendly legislation there which allows them to operate within full regulatory compliance.

Binance gets high marks for its usability. The platform is available on all operating systems and has web and mobile based options. Their multilingual support makes them accessible to people around the globe, in line with the dream of borderless currency exchange that is one of the underpinnings of the cryptocurrency revolution. Users can purchase crypto with debit and credit cards.

Although Binance’s founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ for short) is not the most beloved figure in the cryptocurrency world, there is no denying that he and his team have built an exchange that has made crypto easily accessible to a wide population.

Even this large and well-developed exchange is not perfect, as it has experienced hacks in the past. However, its current robust security has earned it a relatively low risk score and a high amount of trust among traders. For a full review of Binance, click here.

Cobinhood Exchange Review

After reading the above, you may be wondering why anyone would choose to go with anything other than Binance or one of its other large, reliable competitors. Smaller exchanges have to find a way to establish their own niche, and Cobinhood aims to do just that.

Cobinhood is a medium-sized exchange with a modest amount of trading volume and only 36 coins available for trading. It attempts to make up for this lack of volume by offering a variety of perks:

Bonuses for referrals and the person referred

Airdrops and chances to win free tokens

One-click listing of ERC20 tokens

They are clearly aiming to appeal to the same millennial audience as the similarly-named Robinhood investing app. Like Robinhood, they offer zero-fee trading. There’s also something of a gamification aspect, where users get “Candy Machine” tickets which allow them to attempt to win free BTC, ETH, and other prizes. This can make crypto trading feel more fun and dynamic, and less like just another dry investment.

Although Cobinhood has not experienced any high-profile hacks, trading there still carries a small aura of risk. They do not have a clear dedicated security expert on their team, so it is hard to determine how prepared they are to deal with attacks as their popularity grows. For a full Cobinhood exchange review, click here.

How do you decide which crypto exchange is right for you?

Whether you choose Binance, Cobinhood, or one of the many other exchanges available will depend a lot on what sort of trader you are and what you want out of your cryptocurrency trading experience. Those who are looking for access to a large pool of cryptocurrencies in a highly liquid market will gravitate to the larger, more established exchanges like Binance and Houbi. But traders who are looking for a more casual experience and have limited resources to commit to it may prefer a smaller market with no trading fees such as Cobinhood.

No matter how you want to trade cryptocurrency, there are a few things you should always pay attention to: regulatory compliance, risk factor, and security procedures. Even if you are entrusting only a few dollars worth of cryptocurrency to an exchange, you want to know that you can trust them to keep your assets safe.

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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 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.