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Newton vs. VirgoCX: What Works Better For Canadians in 2024

Oleg Galeev

Last updated December 27, 2023

Both Newton and VirgoCX are well-established Canadian cryptocurrency exchanges. They offer access to a wide range of cryptocurrencies, with Newton focusing on low fees and a streamlined interface, and VirgoCX offering additional features such as an NFT marketplace and Over-The-Counter (OTC) trading.

Description

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

VirgoCX is based in Ontario, and offers Canadians an easy way to trade crypto. They have an NFT marketplace, OTC services to trade large amounts of crypto, and a foreign currency exchange should you wish to convert your fiat. 

Coins

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

VirgoCX offers Canadians the ability to trade over 50 cryptocurrencies.

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
  • Free CAD deposits and withdrawals
  • Free crypto deposits
  • High spreads

Pros

  • 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
  • Free deposits and withdrawals
  • Interac e-Transfer available
  • OTC Desk
  • NFT marketplace
  • Insurance for crypto assets
  • Fully regulated in Canada
  • USD and CAD accepted
  • Crypto education portal
  • Advanced trading features
  • Quick Trade available

Cons

  • Very high spreads
  • No live chat support
  • No credit card deposits. Debit must be pre-approved.
  • Advanced trading platforms can be confusing for beginners
  • Relatively higher spreads than other exchanges

Account Limits

  • $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
  • Interac e-Transfer deposit maximum is $10000/day (same for withdrawals)

Methods to buy

  • Interac e-Transfer
  • Wire transfer
  • Connect bank account
  • Interac e-Transfer
  • Wire Transfer
  • Bill Payment
  • Credit & Debit card

Security

  • Daily exchange backups
  • Third-party custody of assets, mostly offline
  • Direct bank intergration to reduce fraud
  • $1 Million in crime insurance coverage
  • Cold storage
  • All fiat assets are held with their Canadian banking partner
  • FINTRAC and PIPEDA compliant

Mobile and Desktop Trading

Newton has an easy-to-use mobile app with a 4.6-star rating on Apple App Store. It also provides a simple and clean desktop platform that's beginner-friendly. VirgoCX, on the other hand, has a 3.6-star rating on Apple App Store, and its Google Play rating is not available, but it has many positive reviews. The VirgoCX platform, available on both desktop and mobile, offers advanced charting tools and various order types for more experienced traders.

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

VirgoCX

VirgoCX has a mobile app for both iPhone and Android users. On iOS, the VirgoCX app has a 3.6-star rating with over 50 reviews. On Google Play it does not currently have a rating but has many positive reviews. Some reviewers say the verification process takes a long time, but others say the app is easy to use and reliable. 

Advanced trading with VirgoCX

Advanced trading with VirgoCX

Main dashboard on VirgoCX

Main dashboard on VirgoCX

Quick trade and Advanced trade on VirgoCX mobile app

Quick trade on VirgoCX app

VirgoCX mobile app

VirgoCX mobile app view

Security Compliance

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.

VirgoCX offers $1 Million in crime insurance coverage with Coinbase Custody. Should the exchange be compromised, VirgoCX could potentially refund any customers’ stolen coins. 

VirgoCX’s crypto assets are held in cold storage with Coinbase Custody and only a small amount are kept on the platform for trading. All fiat assets are held with their Canadian banking partner, though it is not mentioned who the partner is. However, we always recommend transferring all the funds to your own Canadian crypto wallet.

Both Newton and VirgoCX prioritize security. Newton leverages 2FA and utilizes regular third-party security audits to ensure the safety of user assets. VirgoCX also offers 2FA, and in addition, provides insurance coverage with Coinbase Custody, with most of its crypto assets held in cold storage.

Regulatory Compliance

Newton is fully compliant with FINTRAC regulations in Canada

VirgoCX is registered with FINTRAC and PIPEDA. Therefore, it is fully compliant in Canada. VirgoCX also has regular audits which prove that its reserves exist. 

Both exchanges are compliant with Canadian regulations. Newton is registered with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) as a Money Services Business (MSB). VirgoCX is also registered with FINTRAC and PIPEDA and conducts regular audits, demonstrating its commitment to regulatory compliance.

Customer support

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.

If you need help, you can contact VirgoCX’s support team via email or live chat 24/7. They also offer multi-language support. Not many exchanges offer live chat.

Newton provides customer support primarily through email, and users have reported responsive and helpful interactions.

VirgoCX stands out in this area, offering 24/7 customer support through both email and live chat, and provides multi-language support.

Conclusion

Both exchanges offer unique benefits to Canadian users, with Newton providing a straightforward and low-cost trading experience, and VirgoCX offering a broader feature set including an NFT marketplace and OTC trading. However, considering the overall user experience, security, compliance, and customer support, the winner in this comparison would be Newton, primarily for its user-friendly interface and low fees, making it a great choice for both new and experienced investors.

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

If you find that neither Newton nor VirgoCX 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.