If you know anything about cryptocurrency, you’ll know full well that you can’t just walk into a bank and buy it – or sell it for that matter. Rather, what you’re looking for is a crypto exchange, which is a type of online platform that lets you buy and sell digital assets using fiat money.
No one’s stopping you from going to one of the world-famous heavy-hitters like Binance, Coinbase or Kraken, but smarter traders know there are advantages to be had by checking out some of the newer, up-and-coming exchange platforms. That’s because, to try and compete with the illustrious big boys, they often go above and beyond in their efforts to attract new users.
In other words, you can get lower fees, more security and a superior user experience by taking a chance on some of the lesser known crypto trading platforms. Don’t believe us? Well, see for yourself when you check out the following five exchange upstarts, which all offer unique features and benefits that you won’t find anywhere else.
1: GMX – Low Fees, High Security & User Governance
One of the best known decentralized exchange platforms around, GMX stands out for its use of its own native tokens. It has not one, but two, in the shape of $GLP and $GMX, which are coins that serve to attract liquidity to the platform and allow users to participate in governance. Through its clever use of these assets, it can help to optimize trading costs while reducing the risks of liquidation.
GMX is also praised for its user-friendly interface, a rarity in the DEX world, which makes it simple to trade in a very safe way, minimizing the risks of mistakes. It’s safer too, because as a DEX platform, users never have to send their funds to it. Instead, they retain custody of their assets at all times.
As a decentralized platform, GMX can offer much lower trading fees than most CEX platforms, while providing users with the rights to submit proposals (such as which new tokens to list or features to add) and then vote on them. It also supports advanced trading features including perpetuals, offering leverage of up to 50x, and its unique multi-asset liquidity pools help to support its low swap prices and ensure minimal price impact on trades.
2: XBO.com – Rewards-Driven Exchange That Pays You To Trade
The rewards-driven XBO.com is a platform that enables traders to get paid for doing what they love most, with a constant stream of trading bonuses as they level up, and some significant fee discounts for those who hold and stake its native asset.
XBO.com intends to incentivize trading activity, which it does by providing significant rewards for holding the $XBO token. The way it works is, the more $XBO tokens you hold and stake, the more XP you earn as you trade, allowing you to level up faster and obtain better discounts on its trading fees as you progress. Ultimately, by the time you level up to the Diamond Trader status, you’ll enjoy maker and taker fees as low as 0.18% and 0.32% on many assets.
There are other perks too. As you level up, XBO.com will reward you with free fiat deposits, free withdrawals and additional discounts on spot trading fees. You’ll also be allowed to obtain an XBO card, which makes it possible to spend the crypto you hold on XBO.com in any physical store that accepts debit cards.
With its user-friendly interface and more advanced functionality for experienced users, such as its staking portal, where you can earn interest on tokens such as ETH, TRX, SOL and AVAX, to name just a few, XBO.com provides a truly differentiated experience that ends up rewarding its users the more they trade.
3: IDEX – Full DeFi Functionality With Hybrid Trading Model
The second DEX on our list is IDEX, which first launched on the Ethereum blockchain and has since expanded to Binance Smart Chain and Polkadot. IDEX is notable for its hybrid exchange model that incorporates a traditional orderbook system with an automated market maker, enabling for rapid-paced trading and high liquidity to reduce price slippage.
A number of self-custodial wallets are supported, including Coinbase Wallet, Trust Wallet, MetaMask, WalletConnect, BitKeep, Keystore File and hardware wallets such as Ledger.
Besides trading of more than 40 cryptocurrency tokens, IDEX supports various DeFi features, so users can deposit funds in its liquidity pools to earn a share of the trading fees, engage in yield farming, and stake their funds on various proof-of-stake blockchains, providing tons of passive income opportunities. It also rewards users for making referrals, offering discounts of up to 50% on swap fees.
Add to that, its real-time insights on crypto market conditions, gas-free transactions and one-click onboarding, and it’s easy to see why IDEX is fast-becoming a favorite of crypto traders.
4: Upbit – Asian Powerhouse With Vast Liquidity
One of the older exchanges on our list, Upbit makes the cut because it has recently made efforts to expand its platform globally. It launched in South Korea in 2017, and having become the dominant trading platform in its home market, it’s now looking to make its mark further afield.
Upbit is backed by Dunamu and is known for its enormous liquidity, especially for Korean won-based pairs. It also supports a vast number of crypto tokens, including many memecoins, with fees of 0.25% or less.
Alongside its slick user interface, Upbit offers features including hot and cold storage, multi-signature wallets and is registered with South Korean banking authorities, meaning its tightly regulated too.
5: BloFin – Advanced, KYC-Free Trading
The big thing about BloFin is that it’s a KYC-free centralized exchange platform that makes it simple for traders located anywhere to get started trading almost instantly. It supports numerous token pairs, including many of the top trending assets, with numerous new listings.
BloFin also supports numerous payment mechanisms, including Simplex and Alchemy, although depending on your location, it may not support Visa or Mastercard payments.
While this may cause friction for some users, those who can deposit funds will find lots to like, with premium features such as copy trading that allow users to mirror the trades of top traders on its platform and essentially match their profits. Staking is another big thing, with support for assets such as ETH, SOL, AVAX, XLM and USDT. Perpetual trading is also present, with leverage of up to 75X for certain assets. A range of trading bots are also available for experienced traders looking to automate their trading strategies.
Final Thoughts
While you can’t really go wrong with a platform like Binance or Coinbase, there are many newer crypto trading platforms around that offer much more exciting trading opportunities with novel perks you won’t find elsewhere.
As the crypto market evolves, the industry is shifting to more user-friendly platforms with enhanced security and better rewards, so be sure to be a part of that shift.
