Poloniex Review 2019: Pros, Cons, Fees, Features, and Safety

Poloniex is a popular cryptocurrency exchange for the retail trader. Many beginners have learned how to trade cryptocurrency on the exchange that “ takes the crypto out of crypto”. Since it launched in 2014, however, the exchange’s leading market share has slipped as over 200 exchanges have entered the market. In 2018, Poloniex’s fortunes began to change when social payment company Circle bought it for $400 million. Circle is integrating its payment services and institutional trading with Poloniex’s retail trade platform.

Can this one stop crypto trading shop regain a marketing leading position? We have conducted an in-depth review of fees, features, and pros and cons to assess how the newly formed Circle-Poloniex compares to other crypto exchanges. Our conclusion is a fully integrated retail and institutional trading business will allow Poloniex to better compete with improved services, liquidity and pricing.

 What is Poloniex?

Poloniex is in the midst of major changes. The unregulated crypto-to-crypto exchange is adding trading features for large traders and plans to become the first regulated crypto exchange in the US. With these changes, Poloniex seeks to regain its perch as a leading crypto exchange. In 2016, Poloniex was a top 10 exchange to buy cryptocurrency. Poloniex, now a division of social payment service Circle, offers over 100 crypto pairs to trade.

With the acquisition of Poloniex, Circle is creating a platform for OTC cryptocurrency trading and payments for hedge funds and big banks like JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, a part owner of Poloniex. Circle has significantly enhanced the offerings of Poloniex. Poloniex began promoting the availability of institutional accounts two months after being bought by Circle. Circle has an active OTC service for institutional traders with monthly volume in excess of $2 billion. Circle Research provides in-depth crypto market analysis and how-to tutorials.

The OTC, block trading and other trading resources being introduced by traditional retail crypto exchanges is a clear indication that the most active exchanges are seeing demand from hedge funds and investment banks. The exchange plans to follow the regulated model espoused by New York’s Gemini exchange but also will compete with the deregulated Kraken exchange on the West coast.

Poloniex is a top 100 crypto exchange, ranking 83rd with a market cap of $14 million on Coinmarketcap.com.

 How does the Poloniex exchange work?

Poloniex provides cryptocurrency-to-cryptocurrency trading on over 100 pairs, margin trading and lending on a desktop and app. Verified users can apply to list tokens on the Poloniex exchange, which also provides access to large traders through co-listing on the Circle Invest and Circle Trade exchanges. Poloniex is the only exchange to trade and redeem ICO ATOMS. ATOMS are the tokens of Cosmos, a network of interconnected blockchains aiming to solve current blockchain interoperability and scalability challenges. Poloniex will provide BTC and USDC markets in ATOMs.

 What cryptocurrencies does Poloniex support?

In addition to the cryptocurrency majors and alt coins, Poloniex trades the Circle USDC stablecoin. Traders can now buy ETH and BTC USDC pairs. Poloniex is also the main exchange to buy Ripple . About 5 percent of Ripple volume is on the Boston-based exchange.

Traders can choose from the BTC, USDC, ETH, XMR or USDC base cryptocurrency to trade against the following coins:

🏳️Supported countries

Poloniex is a US-based cryptocurrency exchange offering cryptocurrency trading globally.

Fees & limits

Trading fees for buyers (makers) and sellers (takers) decline on a siding scale based on increasing trading volume.

Margin Lending Fees are 15% of earned interest by the lending customer.

Poloniex Dashboard

The novice trader will appreciate the well-organized layout of the Poloniex dashboard. The pair being traded appears on the top-left of the screen (1). The box to the right displays the base currencies and below, the currencies available to trade (2). The chart is powered by Trading View (4) and includes over 80 indicators (4). The order form provides three order types: Buy, Sell and Stop-Limit (5). The order book below makes it easy to follow the market action while placing a trade. Below the order form is the Maker Depth chart, Open Orders, and Trading History (not shown).

How to Buy Cryptocurrency on Polloniex: Step-by-Step Tutorial

By registering for a Polloniex account, you can gain full access to the crypto-to-crypto exchange to trade, trade on margin and use your coins to act as a margin lender. The base currencies are Bitcoin, Ether, Monero, USDT and USDC. To trade USDC, though, you first need to open a Circle account and go through its strict sign up process. Circle-Polloniex could improve the user experience by streamlining this process between the two exchanges.

Trade cryptocurrency on Poloniex

Step 1: Register your account

Click on the Sign Up icon and fill in basic information. You will be asked for your country of residence. Follow the link in the confirmation email to activate your account. You will then be asked to fill in your address, phone number and other personal information. Confirm.

Step 2: Verify your identity

The Start Identity Verification page pops up. Press Start. You will require a Passport, National ID or Driver’s license. Upload or take a photo of the ID. Next, take a photo of your face for face verification. To keep your account secure, remember to set up two-factor authentication. This is done by downloading the Authy or Google Authenticator app. The app will generate a code to use with your email and password to sign in.

Poloniex does not allow you to start trading with a basic account without verifying your identity. But once you complete the verification process, you have the assurance of knowing that all traders on the exchange are verified.

Step 3: Fund your account

From the trading screen, under Balances on the top-right, click Deposit. A list of all coins on the exchange will appear. Click on Deposit beside the coin you want to deposit. A deposit address will be generated. Go to your wallet, choose the coin you are depositing and copy the deposit address.

Step 4: Buy cryptocurrency

Choose the base currency you want to trade (as shown in the desktop preview). From the Order Book, click on the price you want to buy, in this example, the ETH/USTC pair at (1). At a price of $1,670.049, 10 ETH are for sale. Click on the price and it appears in the Buy order box (2). Enter the amount you want to buy (3). We are going to buy 1 ETH. The cost in USDC is $167.49. Since each USDC is backed by $1, the price is USD 167.49. Click Buy (4) to place the order.

Step 5: Withdrawal your funds

To withdraw, click on Withdraw beside the coin you want to withdraw. Ensure you have a wallet that accepts the coin you want to withdraw. Fill in the amount you want to withdraw. Enter the address of the wallet you want to withdraw to.

Visit Poloniex

Is Poloniex regulated?

Poloniex is not a regulated exchange. In 2018, it withdrew its margin and lending products for US customers to comply with US securities regulations. Under its new owner Circle, Poloniex plans to become the first regulated US exchange.

Is Poloniex safe?

In the ICO Ratings Exchange Security Report, Poloniex ranked an impressive third on security among 135 exchanges. Poloniex was one of only three exchanges to pass all four benchmarks of user security, domain and registrar security, web security and DoS protection.

🔐 Uses two factor identification, email confirmation of exchange actions, and checks for weak passwords

🔐 DoS attack protection

🔐 Uses role accounts to protect private information and registry lock to prevent changes on the website

🔐 Cryptographic signatures to protect the DNS cache

🔐 Strong web security against web attacks, including robot infiltration

🔐 Cold storage wallets with no “air gaps,” meaning the wallet is not linked to the internet

🔐 Facial recognition. Individual account holders can optionally activate two-factor verification.

Is the Poloniex wallet safe?

Poloniex does not have its own digital money wallet. As a general rule of safety, keep only the money you are using to trade in an exchange wallet. Keep in mind when you are using Polloniex that if you use USDC coin, you will need a wallet that supports it. The popular TrustWallet and Ledger wallets are among nine wallets that accept USDC listed by Circle.

Does Poloniex have an app?

Poloniex has introduced a redesigned mobile app. A convenient improvement over apps that tempt you to invest 25 percent, 50 percent or more of your assets, the Poloniex app allows you to choose the exact amount by moving your finger along a slider. The app does not skimp on trade features. The order book, charts, market depth and order form, and trade history are available. On the app, these features are conveniently located in separate tabs rather than on one screen. The app is available for Android and IOS.

Is Poloniex customer service reliable?

If you are new to Poloniex, three starter videos demonstrate how to deposit funds, trade bitcoin and withdraw funds. If you need more guidance, check:

Support FAQs – FAQs are provided on all aspects of the Poloniex exchange in its knowledge base.

Email support – Contact Poloniex by email through Submit a Request.

Poloniex Pros and Cons

Why We Recommend Coinbase Over Poloniex

Poloniex has added over 100 crypto-to-crypto pairs to move beyond bitcoin trading and create a global crypto exchange. The teaming up with Circle brings professional trading capacity to the
exchange. Direct OTC trading for large investors who want to trade over $100k is one of the new perks. There is still confusion, though, over Poloniex’s new identity. Both Poloniex and Circle have different apps. The need for Poloniex users to register on both exchanges to buy the USDC coin is an example of trading friction created by a lack of full integration.

Traders are coming to expect easy access to popular stablecoins available on most major exchanges today. Coinbase, for example, has announced a new crypto exchange with eight fiat-backed stablecoins. In addition to fiat-backed coins, investors will be able to tokenize art, real estate and other assets. These stablecoins will be sold over Coinbase’s regulated exchange and backed by futures.

The addition of crypto assets to the social trading platform allows traders to copy trades and portfolios of top-ranked traders. Six cryptos and 37 trading pairs have been introduced. The exchange has established itself as a leader in social trading, and reputable and trusted broker among traders since it launched in 2007.

Poloniex has added onboarding service for large traders who want to use the OTC trading functions. It is a timely addition as some of Poloniex’s retail traders grow in sophistication and also seek more professional trading tools, as long as Poloniex makes it easy for its traders to access Circle products for large traders.

Here is why we think Coinbase is the better exchange for many beginner traders.

✅ Regulated by multiple jurisdictions globally, including the UK FCA and CySec

✅ Leading social trading platform to develop trading skills

✅ Top performing traders easily copied with CopyTrader™️ and OneClick trading

✅ Top performing cryptocurrency portfolios by theme easily copied with CopyPortfolios™️

✅ Secure multi-currency wallet granted a Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) licence from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC)

✅ Trading tips from social feeds

✅ Low fees

✅ Good educational resources for the beginner trader

✔️Conclusion

After introducing many traders to cryptocurrency investing, Poloniex is connecting the crypto and real economy. The Circle-Poloniex platform has enabled Poloniex to instantly add institutional-level trading features while many crypto exchanges are building out these features at a slower pace. The integrated payments platform is making it easy for traders to spend their crypto in the real economy. Future integration should make these features easier to use across the two platforms.

In the meantime, traders have other options for cryptocurrency trading on a regulated exchange. Coinbase is one of the first exchanges to license cryptos. The new multi-signature wallet is also licensed by Gibraltar, providing a safe place to store crypto and private keys in cold storage. Our Coinbase review takes an in-depth look at how investors are already using the social trading platform to trade cryptos, and multi-asset crypto-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat portfolios.

FAQs