The Big picture
Coming into our review on Binance, we knew it was going to be hard to find aspects to critique as it is the most used Exchange by a factor of 10! Binance either matched their competitors or exceeded the competition in all aspects except customer support. Their unmatched liquidity paired with ample coins and pairs provides beginner and advanced traders alike a safe haven for crypto asset liquidation. Along with this, their unique approach to token auditing and a newly secured ISO 27001 certification creates a much needed level of safety with the Binance platform. Their commitment to security and transparency extends beyond auditing, accumulating a massive $1bn reserve fund; creating an exchange prepared to pay back any users affected by hacks or exploits, which was shown after they fully rapid back $40m in Bitcoin in a 2019 attack. To match their friendly trading features, extremely low trading fees offer beginner traders an easy entry point into crypto trading as they utilize Binances academy for ample resources. A lackluster customer support section held them back, with a lack of phone and email support, although our experience was concise. Overall, Binance has been here since 2018 and is here to stay. We may be seeing strong competition attempting to steal the number one spot, but Binances ability to flow with the times mean they are always at the forefront of the crypto space.
Binance Key Takeaways for 2022
- We evaluated Binance across 6 key categories (Security & Transparency, Trading experience, Fees, Deposit & withdrawal, Available cryptocurrencies, and customer support).
- Binance scored high for our ‘available cryptocurrencies’ sections due to their variety of coins and extensive market pairs.
- Fees for customers worldwide are clear and concise: Binance offers some of the lowest trading fees in the market and are overly transparent about them.
- Leading all major platforms ‘trust scores’ and ‘liquidity scores’ demonstrates how well the community accepts Binance and their commitment to transparency and security.
- Binance’s only lacking rating was customer support falling below par, due to a lack of email and phone support of which more should be expected from a top exchange.
- Binance can be seen as a stepping stone in one’s crypto journey. Their ample resources through Binance Academy, and the best liquidity on the market means beginners will always have their questions answered. However, when comparing trading experiences to the average market experience, Binance is more complex.
- Having such deep liquidity and trading pairs to match, Binance offers all the tools required for advanced traders. Moreover, the massive amount of foreign currencies accepted means advanced traders from all over the world can easily use the Binance platform.
What Sets Binance Apart from Other exchanges?
Other than being a long lasting exchange, Binance is the single biggest cryptocurrency exchange by volume and liquidity by a huge margin. Currently Binance has a 24 hour volume of $12bn. Their nearest competitor, Coinbase, has a measly $2bn – a six fold increase for Binance.
This means Binances liquidity pools are extremely strong and any coins listed will have a much better market than other exchanges, as they simply cannot compete with the massive liquidity and trading volume of Binance.This fact alone sets Binance apart as the go-to exchange regardless if you are a first time investor or veteran of the scene.
Important: Liquidity pools are crowd-sourced pools of cryptocurrencies locked in via a smart contract. Heavily used in DeFi to enable peer-to-peer trading via Automatic Market Makers, such as Uniswap.
Who is Binance For?
Being the biggest exchange for several years, Binance is obviously doing something right. But who specifically is the exchange for? The short answer is; everyone.
Binance not only quickly secured its place as the biggest cryptocurrency exchange, it managed to maintain it even in such a volatile and demanding space. Through it’s clean User Interface, which catres for beginners, Binance offers quick and easy KYC supporting a multitude of different identification methods all around the world. Their extensive guides and FAQs, such as their beginners guide, ensures beginners to experts feel welcome on the exchange.
On top of this, a rich Binance Academy provides beginners to experts clarification on old and new technology or crazes in the crypto-sphere. With the recent NFT craze, for example, Binance academy quickly released a guide educating its users about NFTs, their use-cases and how to buy and sell an NFT!
Tip: An NFT is a non-fungible token used to verify a digital asset on the blockchain. NFTs often come as images, but are also currently used for audio files and videos.
A Binance account is a must have for any serious crypto investor. Although catered to all, Binance is especially helpful for beginners in the space which will benefit from their education, low fees and simple KYC process.
All-in-all, Binance is the platform for everyone, especially those looking for high-liquidity pairs to ensure they can always liquidate their crypto assets. You can always count on them to evolve with the market, instead of stagnate in old practices.
Binance Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|
|
[exchange-category-score category=security-and-transparency]
Security and transparency are of utmost importance for users when thinking about what exchange to use, which is why Binances security and transparency high ranking shows just how committed they are. Although they lack exact clarity of offline funds and geo key locations, their squeaky clean record, along with instant repayment after a 2019 hack demonstrates their dedication to security and transparency. Individual token auditing and ample self-security methods such as 2FA, email verification and anti-phishing codes help maintain user trust and safety when storing their assets with Binance. To top it all off, an insurance fund of $1bn means you will always have your cryptoassets repaid, under the unlikely circumstances that they would go missing.
Security
Being the biggest exchange, Binance boasts excellent security for its customers; such as a $1bn insurance fund for its customers. Their commitment to Anti-fraud measures extends into Binance Academywith specific articles on how to notice and avoid cryptocurrency scams.
After relocating from China, their headquarters were moved to the Cayman Islands whilst their physical servers are spread around Korea and Japan. Currently, there is no insight into the location of their geo keys; something which the Kraken exchange does excellently, but is not an expected feature.
Binance has gone through extra lengths to ensure their cyber security is as best as it can be. After all, cryptocurrency users often have a heightened awareness of security. Although they have confirmed they keep a large amount of users’ crypto assets in cold storage, there is no definitive percentage. Based on previous news articles, we can assume at least 90% of crypto assets are stored offline.
Inside the platform users are able to set simple, yet effective, cyber security measures such as ‘anti-phishing codes’. These codes ensure whenever Binance sends you an email, included is a memorable word set by you, allowing you to instantly recognize whether the email is a phishing email. Other security methods include 2FA (2-Factor Authentication), email codes and SMS login.
Tip: Phishing is a type of fraud where the email is pretending to be from a reputable company, in this case Binance, to attain valuable information like your username and password.
In 2019, Binance was hacked for $40 million in Bitcoin through a ‘well orchestrated’ attack, to quote Binance founder Changpeng Zhao. This is the only notable hack on Binances squeaky clean record and all Bitcoin lost was promptly reimbursed to the affected users through their SAFU foundation (Secure Asset Fund for Users). Zero-hassle reimbursement is another reason why Binance scored so high in our security category.
Furthermore on CER ,Binance achieved an AAA security rating, comparable to Kraken and Crypto.com, some of the leading platforms in user security. To do this, Binance was confirmed to have received recent penetration testing, proof of funds and a bug bounty program which rewards bug-finders if they can show how they beat the system. Their Bug Bounty program is one of the most extensive in the industry, on par with Krakens, with over 240 bugs found and solved from.
Moreover, Binance has a unique token auditing procedure which has been completed for all ERC20 and BEP-20 tokens currently listed on the exchange. Binances Protect Shield thoroughly scrutinizes projects based on compliance and other factors whilst conducting on-going reviews on existing projects.
Tip: Exchanges which are regularly audited are proving their legitimacy in the space by allowing external auditors to verify liquidity and safety on the exchange.
Lastly, Binance was awarded the strongest level security standard, ISO 27001, after being audited by DNV GL, a Norwegian based auditing company.
Transparency & Reputation
Simply put, Binance has one of the best reputations in the exchange market being a prominent exchange for over five years. A prominent and outspoken leader in Changpeng Zhao, their community trust is shown in multiple exchange and coin aggregator sites. Coin Market Cap and CoinGecko scored Binance almost maximum marks; whilst Crypto Compare gave them their highest ranking .
Binance has built this reputation on top of a bed of years of transparency, which can be hard to find in the crypto-sphere. Complete transparency on fees, failures of the platform and easy access to Binance Academy means a user is never left searching for answers.
Regulation
We gave Binance a high score for our regulation section, but that doesn’t mean they are without faults. Over the recent years Binance has been at the front-end of scrutiny from many governments after not following Anti-Money Laundering Laws. However, the CEO of Binance has routinely fought back against these claims.
In the UK, for example, Binance was ordered to ‘cease all UK regulated activity’ in June of 2021 over fears of money laundering and consumer protection rights, which Binance ignored.
On the other hand, Binance has strict, yet fast KYC protocols, requiring all customers to verify on their exchange. On top of this, Binance is constantly applying for regulatory licenses, and updating them, in the jurisdictions of their customers.
[exchange-category-score category=trading-experience]
Although not a platform entirely dedicated towards advanced traders, Binance offers a great range of tools and features which caters for all wants and needs. Their extensive technical indicators, time frames and available charts make it easy to see any data you want. Importantly, traders from all over the world can use the platform as it is compatible with such a large amount of different cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies. Their User Interface, which may lack a bit of clarity to beginners, is bolstered by their extensive videos and articles making it easy for each user to understand how to use the trading platform and what each order means! Lastly, completely transparent fees and a clear trading log means, if needed, traders can quickly compile their trades and understand the exact amount of fees being paid.
General Overview
To use all of Binances Trading features, you must have completed their Know Your Customer protocols, which only takes 5-10 minutes to complete. The process is straightforward and Binance is known to accept KYC requests promptly.
Trading features on the biggest exchange are as expected. Marker orders and Limit orders are traders best friends and the most commonly used on Binance. You can find a full list of orders available here. As any large crypto exchange should have, Binance also offers Peer-to-peer trading and futures for those wanting a little extra risk!
Peer-to-Peer trading is done directly from investor to investor, avoiding any intermediary. Users can trade both crypto or fiat between eachother, where blockchains are used to create a trustless environment.
Their referral program is directly linked with trading. You will receive a percentage of all trading fees that the users you refer accrue. Each Binance user will have a Spot and Futures referral link, referring to their respective markets.
Binance is not offering anything special when it comes to their trading features, but they make sure they have the essentials covered for beginners and advanced traders alike. To bolster up their trading platform they have introduced several other platforms, such as their NFT and Launchpad platform.
Finally, like most centralized exchanges, users store their crypto on Binances own hot wallets for each individual customer. This means you don’t need to supply your own self-custodial wallet, such as a Metamask wallet.
Desktop Trading
Their straight forward Limit, Market & Stop-limit orders are reasonably clear to find and understand, but may be overwhelming for beginner traders. Each feature is explained clearly when prompted, which helps beginners inside their crowded trading screen.
Different pairings are easy to find in the top-right corner with favorites and price-alerts to match. Once a specific cryptocurrency is favorited, push notifications can be activated to ensure you are always trading at your desired price.
[exchange-cta]
Performing a buy or sell action on the spot or future markets is straightforward with entry price and fees paid clearly shown to the customer. Having the most liquidity out of all exchanges, market orders are executed rapidly and with minimal spread.
Your integrated wallet for each market can be clearly seen in your ‘wallet overview’. Providing a clear overview of your total crypto assets, what’s available to trade and which are locked in orders.
Binance also provides quick and easy guides for new users to understand the platform, learn about different order types and trading features.
For those wanting to try out trading risk-free on a demo account are not in luck. Binance, like most crypto exchanges, do not currently offer a demo account for their users.
Mobile Trading
The Binance mobile app, available for IOS and Android, offers all the same functionality the desktop app provides just from your pocket. Features such as favorites, price alerts and push notifications are all possible through the app.
Trading features are also not slimmed down. All timings and technical indicators are available to use as well as market, limit and stop-limit orders.
On-top of this, quickly selling or buying cryptocurrency is straightforward on the mobile app. You can even trade peer-to-peer directly through the mobile app. (Binance acts as escrow)
Having an equally good desktop and mobile app is another major reason why we scored Binance high for our trading experience category.
[exchange-category-score category=fees]
One of the reasons why, among many, Binance has been able to dominate the cryptocurrency exchange market is their amazingly low fees. Compared to other major exchanges like Coinbase, Binance fees are extremely competitive at just 0.10%, justifying their high ‘fee’ ranking. On Top of this, they offer free crypto withdrawals with Binance Pay, allowing instant mobile crypto payments to non-Binance users. Although their VIP program is locked by high trading volume, their consistent fees make it one of the best platforms for high volume trading. You can find a full breakdown of Binances Fees here.
*When covering trading fees with BNB, Spot trading fees are reduced by 25%. (BNB is the native token of the Binance Smart Chain)
Maker & Taker Fees
Maker and Taker fees are what Binance charges you for each trade. Maker fees are charged when you sell a crypto asset whilst taker fees are when you buy a crypto asset. The maker/taker model is based around providing and taking away liquidity.
Maker/Taker fees are a flat 0.10% for each maker or take trade you do on the Binance exchange, making them some of the best in the industry. If BNB deductions are being used, they drop down to 0.075% per trade.
| Spot Trading Fees | Maker | Taker |
| With BNB 25% | 0.075% | 0.075% |
| Without BNB 25% | 0.10% | 0.10% |
Binance offers even lower maker/taker fees when using their VIP program, something we will touch on at the end of the section.
Any fees paid during trading, depositing or withdrawing are clearly stated by Binance inside the trading screen as they aim to be completely transparent. Another reason why Binance scored highly on our ‘fees’ section.
Wallet Transfers
Transfers, deposits or withdrawals done using cryptocurrency are feeless on Binance, other than the network fee native to the token.
For example: You will pay gay fees when depositing Ethereum into your Ethereum Binance wallet, but don’t pay specific Binance fees.
Binance users also take advantage of Binance Pay which grants instant crypto transfers to any wallet, regardless if they are a Binance user.
VIP Schedule
Lastly, Binance offers a VIP schedule for high volume traders, often called ‘whales’. Maker and Taker fees can be reduced down to 0.02% and 0.04% respectively, but large trade volume and BNB holdings are required.
To even achieve VIP level one, you need a 30 day trading volume of $1,000,000, which is unrealistic for most traders and therefore limited to a select few traders.
[exchange-category-score category=deposit-and-withdrawal]
In this section, we awarded Binance top marks for a multitude of reasons. Although the exchange lacks a variety of deposit and withdrawal options for USD, they are extremely competitive with other fiat currencies. On Top of this, their minimum deposits are on-par with other major exchanges such as Coinbase; which Binance beats in minimum withdrawal amount. Finally, Binance makes it easy for newcomers to understand how to deposit, withdraw and receive cryptocurrency, as well as transfer assets from one trading wallet to another completely free of charge. Combining these aforementioned benefits with their free crypto deposits and withdrawals (minus the network fees!) bolster Binance up the rankings.
Withdrawal & Deposit Fees
Tip: Minimum deposit and withdrawal amounts are $10! Cryptocurrency deposits are free whilst withdrawal limits are subject to change based on the network!
Deposits
Depositing Fiat currency or cryptocurrencies is straightforward on the Binance platform. For USD, there are two different methods;
- Bank transfer using SWIFT which is feeless;
- Debit Card (1.5% fee)
Both options are competitive when compared to the industry standard. For comparison, Coinbase currently charges 2.5% on debit card deposits, with free bank transfers.
For cryptocurrency deposits, the industry standard is feeless, which is what Binance offers.
Tip: You still will pay the network fees associated with your cryptocurrency!
As there are over 100 different Fiat currencies accepted on Binance, it would be impossible to list them all here! Find the full list of deposit and withdrawal fees for each currency here. Currencies or deposit methods are often suspended for various circumstances on Binance, so ensure you are kept up to date.
The Euro for example, has many more deposit options than the US dollar.
To access ACH deposits and withdrawals, you must use Binance.US.
Withdrawals
Getting fiat currency off Binance is a problem for many users as the only withdrawal option for US dollar is a bank transfer with SWIFT, costing $15.
In terms of use, similar to most actions on the Binance platform, it is incredibly straightforward and clean. Fiat currencies such as GBP boast withdrawal fees as low as £1 which blows exchanges like Kraken out the water.
Although all cryptocurrency deposits are free, withdrawals generate costs on the blockchain which are subsidized by the user and are constantly changing. Binance never imposes extra fees on top of cryptocurrency withdrawals.
Maximum withdrawals are currently $8,000,000 BUSD; not a problem for most Binance users! Cryptocurrencies on the other hand have varying withdrawal limits which you can find here.
Receiving & Transfering
Receiving and transferring cryptocurrency is simple on Binance. Simply head to your main wallet on Binance and click Withdraw if you wish to send or Deposit if you wish to receive.
When withdrawing cryptocurrency, you should be visited by a page such as:
Your current balance of the token will be shown and the estimated network fee. For example our estimated fee is 0.002 ETH which is $6 as of writing.
Tip: Remember to double check the recipient’s address and desired network to ensure the transaction is successful! If you are sending large amounts, always do a test transfer first!
To receive cryptocurrency on Binance the same procedure takes place. Each token on your account will have their own unique wallet address, which only that token should be sent to!
Your address should look similar to: 0x7A904dbE1D8C225Af…
Accepting crypto on mobile can also be done through QR codes accessible on their mobile platform.
Transferring
Finally, transferring cryptocurrency between different trading accounts on Binance is made easy. Internal transfers are completely feeless on Binance.
After selecting transfer, you will be asked to choose which wallet you are sending the funds to. For example; sending Ethereum from Fiat and Spot to Margin.
In our eyes, Binance has made these processes intuitive even for beginner traders with a clean interface and straight forward instructions.
[exchange-category-score category=available-cryptocurrencies]
In terms of available cryptocurrencies, Binance is competing with the best. Although they carefully select and audit new coins added to their exchange they still boast almost 400 different coins for traders, combining for a total of more than 1,600 trading pairs.
New tokens and fiat currencies are often added weekly; with over 100 different fiat currencies being accepted as deposit payments. Overall, Binance perfectly balances the want of more coins and trading pairs, with the legitimacy of the projects; which is they highly on our available cryptocurrencies category.
The Range of Cryptocurrencies Available On Binance
By offering almost 400 different cryptocurrencies, Binance’s range is excellent. On Blue Chip cryptocurrencies there is incredible market depth with hundreds of trading pairs. For reference Coinbase, the second largest exchange by trading volume, supports just over 100 different coins.
Binance also caters for those wishing to trade niche tokens such as $BEAM, $MOVR or $APE. Their markets section allows easy search and navigation for all cryptocurrencies listed as well as a useful market overview.
Do they Support The Main Cryptocurrencies?
Being the biggest exchange, Binance supports all large or prominent cryptocurrencies as you can see via the image below:
Along with major blue chip cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, Binance users can trade the majority of major stablecoins not exclusive of; BUSD, USDT, UST and DAI. Binance even has their own guide on Stablecoins and how to buy them here.
Binances Native Token (BNB)
Within the Binance ecosystem is BNB, the token which powers the Binance Smart Chain (BSc), one of the most heavily used blockchains in the crypto-sphere. The token is not a necessity for Binance users, however Binance incentives its use through rewards such as:
- Lower spot and margin trading fees
- Reduced future trading fees
- VIP program benefits for HODLing BNB.
To constantly burn BNB tokens, the Binance exchange uses ⅕ of its profits every quarter to buy and burn BNB from it’s treasury.
The Binance Smart Chain hosts over 3M transactions everyday and is used more widely than just a utility token. For example:
- Book hotels with BNB through trip.io
- Buy music copyright on MachiX
- Buy a smartphone with BNB through HTC
[exchange-category-score category=customer-service]
Scoring low for our customer service category, it may be the only mediocre aspect about the Binance platform. A majority of the Binance support center is focused around automation. Binance has used ZenDesk for its support services which leads to many users having a conversation with a ZenDesk employee, not a Binance one. Their lack of direct email and phone support is problematic for such a large exchange, one which we could not look past. A heavy reliance on more public mediums of support such as Reddit and Twitter is a negative sign for such an established exchange. Fortunately, their customer support is the only major hurdle holding them back from excelling in all categories!
What Support Channels Do Binance Offer
Binance currently boasts customer support in an impressive eight languages, common for most large exchanges, such as Crypto.com or Coinbase.
Users struggling with traditional customer support options can turn to the Binance subreddit, r/Binance or tweet @BinanceHelpDesk for quick responses.
Phone Support
Unfortunately, Binance offers zero phone support for its customer service. Many Binance users have complained about this, being unable to solve more complex problems surrounding their accounts or orders.
Completely lacking phone support is a main reason why we scored Binance a 2.5/5 for our customer service category.
Email Support
Similarly to phone support, we were unable to find a confirmed Binance support email which users can use to resolve their problems. Customer support seems to be a major problem with Binance, forcing all users through their ‘live chat’ system.
Live Chat
Binances live chat system revolves around the support center. Their FAQ covers anything from deposit and withdrawal problems to security and API queries. It is clear they have attempted to automate as much support as possible; but this doesn’t always work!
There is no option to instantly speak to a live agent, as most questions are automated by their bots. We had to specifically ask ‘’How Can I Speak To a Live Agent’’ to be let through. Once confirmed though, we were contacted by a support agent almost instantaneously.
Although there have been negative reviews from their live chat, our experience was fast and responsive.
Automated questions and answers are the backbone of the Binance support system, which is helpful for simple issues, but frustrating for more complex ones.
There have been several complaints about Binance customer support, such as long waiting times or a simple lack of help. The reddit community around Binance has been extremely vocal about Binance support and how it simply does not meet their expectations; especially for the biggest exchange in the world!