Kraken VS Gemini: Ultimate Crypto Exchange Comparison Guide

Comparison
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General Information

KrakenGemini
Year of foundation20112014
CountryUSAUSA
LanguagesEnglish, Japanese, Chinese, German, Spanish, Russian, Greek, Ukrainian, Turkish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and two types of KoreanEnglish
Mobile appiOS

Depositing and Withdrawing Funds

Kraken

Users of all of these exchanges can deposit fiat money via bank transfer. Unfortunately, this is the only option available to Kraken customers.

Gemini

Gemini has a broader range of options. It allows deposits via bank transfer and debit/credit card, probably the most convenient way to fund financial accounts. Gemini accepts payments from MasterCard, VISA, and American Express cards. Another option is to use ACH transfers (only available to US customers).

Trading Volumes and Traded Pairs

Kraken

Kraken’s trading volume reaches nearly $70 million. Kraken offers a wider range of currencies. Supported cryptocurrencies include

  • Bitcoin
  • Ethereum
  • Litecoin
  • Ripple
  • Dash
  • Zcash
  • Bitcoin Cash
  • Basic Attention Token
  • Monero
  • Ethereum Classic
  • Cardano
  • Waves
  • Dogecoin
  • EOS
  • Stellar
  • Tether
  • Siacoin
  • Gnosis
  • Lisk
  • Cosmos
  • Tezos
  • Augur
  • ICON
  • Nano
  • Qtum
  • OmiseGo
  • Multi Collateral DAI
  • Watermelon
  • ChainLink
  • PAX Gold.

The total number of supported cryptocurrencies is 30. In addition to cryptocurrencies, Kraken supports 5 fiat currencies (US dollar, sterling, euro, Canadian dollar and Japanese yen).

Gemini

Gemini has a lower trading volume of just under $2 million. Gemini only supports 6 cryptocurrencies:

  • Bitcoin
  • Bitcoin Cash
  • Ethereum
  • Litecoin
  • Zcash
  • the company’s stabelcoin known as Gemini dollar (GUSD), which is only available to users from South Korea. Moreover, the platform supports U.S. dollars.

Commission

Gemini provides nice terms, although they do charge 0.5% for placing orders. Cryptocurrency withdrawals are the most expensive for Gemini users. Overall, Kraken collects the lowest fees, although competitors provide cheaper bank transfers.

Security

Kraken

Kraken is considered a secure cryptocurrency exchange. It has never been hacked, although there are cases where carefree users are hacked or phished and lose their money. The exchange could have required its users to set up two-factor authentication before using the platform to avoid these problems, but Kraken has not. Also, the platform has a record of performance issues caused by DDoS attacks and an inability to maintain stable performance with many traders. Users are advised to protect their accounts with 2fa. All data stored on the exchange is encrypted.

Gemini

Gemini is a licensed exchange. Since it cooperates with the New York City Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), users’ funds are insured. This is why Gemini is one of the most secure cryptocurrency platforms. Nevertheless, according to some online reports, trading takes place offline during high traffic times. Of course, the user experience suffers from such a problem.

Pros and Cons

Kraken is the most democratic platform of the three. It has relatively low fees. There are some adverse reports online. This means that the support team is not fast enough, but the platform continues to do its job. Gemini is geared toward institutional and active traders. It charges higher fees but provides better security in return.

Kraken

Pros
  • number of trading pairs
  • margin trading
  • age of occurrence
  • security
  • flexible verification system
Cons
  • compulsory and complex verification

Gemini

Pros
  • The activities of the exchange is fully compliant with the law.
  • It is registered in the United States. It is not an offshore zone, which increases its credibility.
  • Good reputation among large entrepreneurs and businessmen.
  • Full security of funds.
  • Conducting auctions contributes to the popularity of cryptocurrencies.
  • Funds are stored in cold wallets, which are impossible to hack.
Cons
  • No affiliate program, which is on most other exchanges.
  • Only Bitcoin and Etherium are traded on the exchange.
  • The interface is only in English.
  • Exchange works in a limited number of countries.
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