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Netcoins vs. Shakepay: What Works Better For Canadians in 2024

Oleg Galeev

Last updated December 27, 2023

In this review, we’ll compare two of Canada’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, Netcoins and Shakepay, to determine which platform offers the best services to users. Both platforms have unique features, such as Netcoins’ larger selection of cryptocurrencies and Shakepay’s innovative rewards program, but there are notable differences in areas like security, compliance, and customer support.

Description

Netcoins is a Canadian crypto exchange owned by a publicly-traded company called Bigg Digital Assets. Netcoins was founded by Mitchell Demeter who created the world’s first Bitcoin ATM in 2013.

Shakepay is an easy way for Canadians to buy Bitcoin and Ethereum. Offering fast and free account deposits, Shakepay allows Canadians to sign up and buy crypto in minutes. Shakepay has 600,000+ users.

Coins

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Stellar, EOS, USDC, Algorand, XRP, Avalanche, Ethereum Classic, SHIB, DOGE, MATIC, AXS, Cardano, Solana, Polkadot

Bitcoin, Ethereum

Fees

  • Free deposits
  • Free fiat withdrawals
  • 0.5% trading fees
  • Free crypto withdrawal 
  • Free account deposit/withdrawal 
  • Trading fee spread: 1.2% - 2.5%

Pros

  • Free fiat and crypto deposits
  • Free fiat withdrawals
  • Interac e-Transfer available
  • Phone support
  • Instant verification
  • Licenced and regulated in Canada
  • Educational resources available
  • Great customer service
  • Assets stored in cold storage
  • User-friendly
  • Interac e-Transfer available
  • Funding your account takes minutes not hours
  • Can transfer coins to a private wallet
  • Free to deposit/withdraw
  • Set up automatic recurring buys
  • Referral program gives you free Bitcoin every day Crypto visa card with Bitcoin cashback

Cons

  • Few cryptocurrencies available
  • No credit/debit card purchases
  • CAD only
  • High trading fees
  • Fairly high spread
  • Users do not hold private keys within Shakepay 
  • Only two cryptocurrencies are available

Account Limits

  • $10 min for Interac e-Transfer
  • $500 min for wire transfer
  • $50 min for online bill payment

Deposit up to $10,000 via Interac daily

App

Methods to buy

  • Interac e-Transfer
  • Bank wire
  • Online bill payment
  • Debit card
  • Interac e-Transfer
  • Wire transfer

Security

  • 2FA available
  • Registered with FINTRAC
  • Assets are held in cold storage (percentage unknown)
  • Users can withdraw crypto to private wallets

Mobile and Desktop Trading

Both Netcoins and Shakepay offer robust mobile and desktop platforms for cryptocurrency trading. Netcoins' mobile app boasts a 4.0-star rating on the Apple App Store and a 4.0-star rating on Google Play Store, indicating a generally positive user experience. Similarly, Shakepay's mobile app has a 4.6-star rating on the Apple App Store and a 4.5-star rating on Google Play Store. The desktop versions of both platforms are user-friendly and provide a seamless trading experience, making it easy even for beginners to navigate the crypto market.

Netcoins

Netcoins’ trading platform is simple to use with a sidecar offering all you need including options to buy, sell and trade. Your dashboard has two big options to either deposit funds or deposit crypto.

Buying crypto with Netcoins is easy thanks to its simple trade feature.

The Netcoins app has a 4.1-star rating from 171 reviews on the Apple App Store. It has a 3.6-star rating on Google from 127 reviews. 

The app is easy to use and beginner-friendly. It is almost an exact copy of the desktop platform but optimized for mobile.

Netcoins trading screen

Netcoins Desktop App (trading screen)

Funding money to our account with Netcoins

Netcoins Desktop App (funding account)

Netcoins vs Coinsmart trading mobile app

Netcoins Mobile App (balances)

Netcoins vs Coinsmart bitcoin transaction in mobile app

Netcoins Mobile App (trading)

Shakepay

Shakepay offers a simple and beginner-friendly way to purchase Bitcoin and Ethereum via its desktop platform or its mobile app. Shakepay’s app is available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play. The app has a 4.5-star rating with 12,000 ratings on the App Store and a 4.6-star rating with 7,000 ratings on Google Play. 

Shakepay’s app is incredibly simple to use, just like its desktop platform. Since it is a beginner-friendly crypto exchange, there aren’t many features that will confuse you. It offers a simple and clean interface with basic charting for Bitcoin and Ethereum. Funding your account and purchasing crypto is easy with just a few clicks. 

Shakepay main screen on desktop app

Shakepay desktop interface

Shakepay mobile app screenshot

Shakepay app interface

Shakepay app while trading

Shakepay app interface while trading

Security Compliance

Netcoins utilizes the services of Bitrank and QLUE to stay compliant by monitoring wallet addresses and transactions for fraud and connections to criminal enterprises.

Two-factor authentication is available to help keep your account secure.

Shakepay hold users’ funds in cold storage, though they do not publicize the percentage. Shakepay has existed since 2015, and so far, never has been hacked.

Shakepay states on its website that digital assets are backed by an insurance policy, though it does not mention any details. 

Shakepay also offers two-factor authentication (2FA) for their customers, so you can be sure no one else is accessing your account. With Shakepay, you will also need to confirm via email when withdrawing funds. If you set up 2FA for your email account, you can be pretty sure no unauthorized person is withdrawing funds from your account.

 

While both Netcoins and Shakepay prioritize user security, Netcoins provides more transparency. Netcoins discloses that it stores 95% of all cryptocurrency in cold storage, providing a high level of security for user assets. Shakepay, on the other hand, does not detail the percentage of assets held offline. However, it does mention an insurance policy, though the specifics of the policy are not disclosed.

Regulatory Compliance

Netcoins is fully regulated in Canada. It is registered as a Money Services Business (MSB) with FINTRAC. Since Netcoins is also owned by Bigg Digital Assets, a publicly traded company, you can be sure that Netcoins is a safe exchange.

Shakepay is regulated as a Money Service Business (MSB) by FINTRAC. Shakepay is based in Montreal and is allowed to operate in every Canadian province. 

Both Netcoins and Shakepay are registered as Money Service Businesses (MSBs) with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), demonstrating compliance with Canadian federal laws and regulations. Being registered with FINTRAC ensures that these platforms implement strict measures to prevent money laundering and other illicit financial activities.

Customer support

Netcoins has excellent customer support with an impressive 85% excellent customer service reviews on Trustpilot with a 4.5-star rating. Netcoins offers email support, live chat and phone support, which is rare for crypto exchanges.

Shakepay offers chat support, helpful FAQs and access to customer support via their website.

Shakepay claims it has “customer service that cares.” It offers a useful support section on its website that can answer some of the most common questions and you can contact support via email at help@shakepay.com. Shakepay claims that support tickets can be answered within hours, even on weekends. We reached out to the support team via email to see how quickly they would respond. We received a reply the next day, less than 24 hours later. 

Netcoins and Shakepay both offer comprehensive customer support through email. Netcoins boasts an impressive average response time of 2 hours, while Shakepay claims to respond within a few hours, even on weekends. This commitment to customer service means that users on both platforms can expect prompt assistance whenever they encounter issues or have questions.

Conclusion

While both Netcoins and Shakepay offer solid platforms for cryptocurrency trading, Netcoins edges out as the winner in this comparison. Its transparent security measures, broader selection of cryptocurrencies, and excellent customer support make it a compelling choice for both novice and experienced traders. Though Shakepay has unique features like its "ShakingSats" referral program, Netcoins' overall offerings provide a more comprehensive and secure trading environment.

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

If you find that neither Netcoins nor Shakepay 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 Galeev

Cryptocurrency Specialist

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. 

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