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Kucoin vs Newton: What Works Better For Canadians in 2024

Oleg Galeev

Last updated October 9, 2024

Kucoin and Newton are two popular cryptocurrency exchanges used by traders worldwide and in Canada. However, while Kucoin is a global platform, Newton is a Canadian exchange offering a wide range of crypto assets. 

Description

Kucoin is a sort of Canadian-friendly cryptocurrency exchange that offers peer-to-peer crypto trades, lending, and futures trading. Kucoin is suitable for more advanced traders looking for advanced charting and order types. Kucoin has 8 million

Newton prides itself on being Canada’s first no-fee cryptocurrency exchange. They claim their exchange is 2-3x lower than most other exchanges.

Coins

500+ coins

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, XRP, Stellar, Bitcoin Cash, Dogecoin, USDC, USDT, Chainlink, Aave, Uniswap, Polygon, Compound, SushiSwap, Curve, Synthetix, Dai, Polkadot

Fees

  • Low maker/taker trading fees ( 0.005%/0.025% to 0.1%/0.1% for class A coins)
  • Free deposits
  • Variable withdrawal fees
  • KCS holders get 20% discount on trading fees
  • 0% CAD funding
  • 0% CAD withdrawal
  • 0% crypto deposit/withdrawals (up to $5 network fee waived)
  • No commissions or trading fees
  • 0.40% to 0.72% spread

Pros

  • Low fees
  • Wide range of altcoins available
  • Advanced order types
  • Crypto lending
  • Futures trading
  • Fast crypto purchases
  • Peer to peer exchange
  • Anonymous trading
  • No fees at all
  • Wide selection of coins available
  • You can export a T5 statement
  • Sleek interface
  • Newton Pro for advanced traders in Beta stage

Cons

  • Platform is confusing for beginners
  • No fiat to crypto pairs
  • Must buy USDT to trade
  • Previously hacked
  • Not compliant in Ontario (but you can still use it though)
  • Very high spreads
  • No live chat support
  • No credit card deposits. Debit must be pre-approved.

Account Limits

Low

  • $10,000 max daily Interac e-Transfer deposit/withdrawal
  • $70,000 max weekly Interac e-Transfer deposit/withdrawal
  • $5,000 electronic funds transfer deposit
  • $50,000 electronic funds transfer withdrawal
  • $1M wire transfer deposit/withdrawal
  • $5M daily trading limit

Methods to buy

  • Credit/debit card 
  • Third party Bank transfer
  • Interac e-Transfer
  • Wire transfer
  • Connect bank account

Security

  • $275 million stolen in 2020 hack
  • 2FA available
  • Daily exchange backups
  • Third-party custody of assets, mostly offline
  • Direct bank intergration to reduce fraud

Mobile and Desktop Trading

Kucoin's mobile app is highly rated on both the App Store (4.6) and Google Play Store (4.3), providing a smooth user experience and various trading functionalities. Its desktop platform is known for its advanced trading features.

Newton's iOS app has a decent rating (4.6) with more than 17k reviews. Some Android users have reported issues with deposits and customer service.

Kucoin

Kucoin is slightly different than your average crypto exchange. You won’t be able to deposit Canadian dollars directly. You’ll have to go through a third-party such as Banxa to deposit fiat. Kucoin does, however, accept credit and debit card payments, but you’ll need to check if your Canadian bank allows crypto transactions.

There are no fiat to crypto pairs, so you cannot buy bitcoin or other crypto directly with your dollars. You’ll need to first purchase Tether USDT on Kucoin and then trade that for the crypto you want.

The Kucoin exchange can be quite confusing for beginners.

There are advanced charting and order types available, plus you can trade on margin and trade futures contracts if you wish.

To buy USDT quickly, go up to the top menu and select the “Fast Buy” option. Here, you can purchase USDT using your credit or debit card or via the P2P exchange, or via a third party transfer. Once you have your USDT, then you can trade it on the Kucoin exchange under “spot trading”. Select the trading pair e.g. USDT/BTC and then choose your order type e.g. market order.

The Kucoin app has a 3.7-star rating from over 2,000 reviews on the Apple App Store and a 2.7-star rating from over 12,000 reviews on Google Play. Many people complain that the app crashes or that there are certain features lacking such as the ability to filter order history by trading pair.

Kucoin’s app is a bit more simple than its desktop exchange but it’s still confusing for beginners. There are lots of features, tabs, and menus. Buying USDT is easy since you do not need to verify your account. Simply sign up with an email and you can buy crypto in seconds using your credit or debit card under the Fast trade option. From there though, you will need to navigate to the spot trading page and select the trading pair you want.

Kucoin crypto exchange desktop interface

Kucoin desktop interface

Kucoin desktop app (Fast Trade)

Kucoin desktop app (Fast Trade)

Kucoin app screenshot

Kucoin app interface

Kucoin app while trading

Kucoin app interface while trading

Newton

Newton has a user-friendly interface and a modern, clean look. It’s simple and easy to use.

Newton’s overall design is clean and modern. They also usual casual and friendly language. It doesn’t seem to take itself too seriously, which is refreshing. At first glance, Newton seems user-friendly and fairly simple.

Its iOS app has a rating of 4.4 stars with 5.6k reviews, and its Android app has a rating of 2.8 stars with 800 reviews.

Newton desktop interface

Newton desktop interface

Market order with Newton

Market order with Newton

Newton mobile app #1 (welcome screenshot)

Newton app interface

Newton mobile app #2 (cryptocurrencies available)

Newton app interface while trading

Security Compliance

Kucoin provides world-class security meaning your coins are in relatively safe hands. It has two-factor authentication, so you can prevent unauthorized access to your account.

Keep in mind, $275 million worth of crypto was stolen from Kucoin by North Korean hackers in 2020. Later, $200 million of the stolen funds was recovered. Still, it doesn’t bode well for Kucoin. If you have funds on the exchange, it’s best to move them to a private crypto wallet

Newton does daily backups to minimize risk and states on its website that customer data is stored in Canada. They also perform daily site backups, have offline third-party storage for digital assets, and they allow their customers to directly connect their bank account to reduce fraud.

Kucoin utilizes multiple security measures, including industry-level multilayer encryption, dynamic multifactor authentication, and dedicated internal risk control departments, which review and enforce platform security.

On the other hand, Newton complies with FINTRAC regulations in Canada, provides daily site backups, offline third-party storage for digital assets, and mandates two-factor authentication for users.

Regulatory Compliance

In June, 2021, the Ontario Securities Commission stated that Kucoin was illegally offering its residents securities and derivatives trading, but Kucoin did not respond to this. As a result, Kucoin is still available in Ontario as well as the rest of Canada. You can use Kucoin at full capacity whether it’s a simple buy order at market price or a more advanced order type. Bear in mind, Kucoin does not allow Interac e-Transfer to deposit Canadian dollars to your account. Instead, you will have to use a debit or credit card or a SWIFT transfer with USD.

Newton is fully compliant with FINTRAC regulations in Canada

In 2022, Kucoin was restricted from operating in Ontario by the OSC for failing to comply with local regulations. Nonetheless, some Canadian users still trade on it.

Newton, being a Canadian platform, abides by the regulations of the Canadian financial bodies, such as FINTRAC.

Customer support

Kucoin offers helpful FAQs and online ticketing service for their customers as well as 24/7 support and a live chat option.

Newton has FAQs and a knowledge center on the website. Customers can message the support teams either online via their support pages or through email. Newton does not have a phone and live support.

While Kucoin provides 24/7 customer support via multiple channels, including email, live chat, and a hotline, the support seems to struggle with delayed responses. In contrast, Newton has a solid support structure that responds impressively within four hours. However, contacting Newton's support might be less intuitive as it requires visiting the knowledge center and clicking the "submit a request" button.

Conclusion

Both exchanges have their advantages and features that appeal to different types of traders. However, considering the need for regulatory compliance, ease of use, customer support responsiveness, and zero-fee stance, Newton seems more favorable for Canadian users. Despite this, Kucoin remains a popular choice due to its wider user base, variety of available cryptocurrencies, and advanced trading features.

When comparing Newton to Kucoin, one notable advantage is the Recurring Buys feature. This allows users to automate crypto purchases at regular intervals, making it easier to invest consistently over time. Additionally, Newton has partnered with Koinly, a leading crypto tax platform, simplifying tax reporting with seamless integration. These features are especially beneficial for users looking for a hands-off approach to crypto investing and tax management, giving Newton a distinct edge over many competitors that don’t offer these conveniences.

When comparing Kucoin to other exchanges, KuCoin stands out for its enhanced transparency through the Proof of Reserves (PoR) system, which verifies that the platform can fully cover all user assets, reinforcing trust in its financial stability. Additionally, KuCoin has stepped up its game in customer service by offering 24/7 support, making it easier for users to get timely assistance compared to many other exchanges. This level of transparency and customer care makes KuCoin a strong contender among its competitors.

We recommend choosing Kucoin over Newton for your cryptocurrency trading needs. By opting for Kucoin through our referral link, you support us in conducting comprehensive independent analyses of crypto trading options for Canadians.

If you find that neither Kucoin nor Newton meets your requirements, we encourage you to explore our monthly-updated list of the best exchanges for Canadians to trade crypto. This list provides a range of alternative options that may better suit your specific needs and preferences.

Author

Oleg is a Canadian citizen & crypto expert who has been trading since 2016. He started out with Coinbase, Kraken and Peer-to-Peer exchanges. After some time, centralized exchanges started charging crazy fees to their users.

He decided to review different crypto exchanges that operate in Canada and start a Youtube channel in order to educate Canadians on what kinds of things are going inside each one while giving them unbiased advice. On top of that, Oleg also has experience with NFT, airdrops, and crypto staking and he is constantly checking on new crypto assets.

His writing has been featured in popular Canadian media sources such as Toronto Sun and Ottawa Citizen.