The announcement of Binance’s departure from Canada has sent shockwaves through the crypto trading community in Canada. With over 10,000 Canadians actively trading on Binance, the news has created a sense of urgency to find suitable alternatives before September 30th. Fortunately, there are several crypto exchanges available that offer similar features and user interfaces for Canadian traders. We have taken the initiative to test and evaluate some of these alternatives, and now we’re excited to share our findings with you.
1. Bitget
Bitget is a top Binance alternative for Canadians due to its impressive range of features, making it a preferred choice for advanced traders. It offers futures trading, lending, copy trading, and bot trading, catering to the diverse needs of experienced traders. Bitget stands out with its comprehensive charting, order book data, advanced order types, and competitive fees, making it ideal for frequent traders.
With hundreds of available cryptocurrencies, Bitget serves as a reliable platform to buy altcoins. Trading fees are attractively low at just 0.1%, and using their native token BGB for fee payment can further reduce fees. Furthermore, users can conveniently deposit USDT commission-free through Interac e-transfer using the P2P marketplace feature.
The interface of Bitget closely resembles that of Binance, ensuring a familiar experience for former Binance users. Moreover, Bitget is available in every Canadian province, providing nationwide accessibility. As an added bonus, when signing up using our referral link, users can enjoy a generous offer of receiving 50 USDT as a bonus for deposits exceeding 500 USD.
2. Kucoin
KuCoin Canada is a popular cryptocurrency exchange known for its extensive selection of altcoins and low fees. With thousands of altcoins available, KuCoin attracts traders who are looking for a diverse range of cryptocurrencies to trade. The platform’s design closely resembles that of Binance, making it familiar to users who have previously used Binance.
KuCoin boasts a large user base of over 8 million global users. It offers a range of features, including futures trading, lending, and advanced order types, catering to advanced traders who require charting and order book data, as well as advanced order functionality.
One important aspect to note is that KuCoin does not offer fiat pairs, meaning you cannot directly purchase cryptocurrencies using fiat currency. Instead, you need to buy USDT or another cryptocurrency first and then trade it for the specific coin you want. USDT can be purchased directly on KuCoin using a third-party bank transfer or a credit card, or you can buy it from another exchange and transfer it to your KuCoin account.
Trading fees on KuCoin are low, starting at just 0.1%. It’s worth mentioning that while KuCoin and Binance share similarities in terms of features, appearance, and layout, they are separate entities and not affiliated with each other.
KuCoin provides a range of advanced features for Canadian users, including margin trading, lending, futures trading, and more. Additionally, users can deposit coins into liquidity pools to earn high interest yields, participate in raffles to win cryptocurrencies, or even create trading bots to automate their trading strategies. It’s important to note that many of these features are advanced and may not be suitable for beginners.
Important Update (23 June, 2022): KuCoin has now been banned from operating in Ontario. The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) fined KuCoin $2,000,000 plus its investigation costs for continuing to operate in the province without complying with the OSC’s regulations. Jeff Kehoe, Director of Enforcement at the OSC said, “Foreign crypto asset trading platforms that want to operate in Ontario must play by the rules or face enforcement action." However, still, many Canadians people keep using it but there are chances they can leave Canada soon similar to Binance.
3. Kraken
Kraken is another prominent cryptocurrency exchange that offers a wide range of popular cryptocurrencies.
Kraken is available worldwide and accepts deposits in multiple fiat currencies, including Canadian dollars. However, it’s important to note that Kraken can be relatively expensive for Canadians due to certain fees associated with using the platform.
For instance, if you choose to buy $100 worth of Bitcoin using a debit card on Kraken, you would incur a 1.5% trading fee, in addition to the card processing fees. As a result, you would end up with approximately $94.58 worth of Bitcoin and pay around $5.42 (or 5.42%) in fees.
When depositing $100 via Interac, there is a 1.5% fee, meaning you would receive $98.50 in your Kraken account.
To illustrate the cost further, let’s consider an example where $100 is used to buy Bitcoin using Kraken’s Pro platform. With this scenario, you receive 0.00318 BTC or $98.04 worth of Bitcoin. Consequently, you pay a fee of $0.46 (or 0.46%), while the spread amounts to $0.20 (or 0.20%), which is relatively lower compared to other exchanges reviewed.
If you sell your Bitcoin back to CAD, there will be another small fee incurred. Additionally, Kraken charges a $10 fiat withdrawal fee, resulting in receiving $88.06 back in your bank account. In this particular example, the loss incurred exceeds 10%.
It’s essential to consider these fees and costs associated with trading on Kraken as they can have an impact on your overall investment.
Despite the higher costs for Canadians, Kraken remains a reputable exchange with a range of features, including staking and futures trading. The platform also offers 24/7 customer support to assist users with their queries and concerns.