Six years ago, in 2011, the Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange was founded in San Francisco, in the United States by Jesse Powell. Kraken has maintained its headquarters in this city ever since its establishment. As a cryptocurrency exchange, Kraken set itself apart from other crypto exchanges by the desire to remain the most efficient cryptocurrency exchange in the world. Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange serves as an intermediary between the buyers and sellers of cryptocurrencies, providing a host of other services to their clients.
What is a Cryptocurrency Exchange?
Much like a foreign exchange (forex) market where international currencies are traded and exchanged, a cryptocurrency exchange is an online meeting point where potential buyers and sellers of cryptocurrencies (or digital money) carry out their trade. One very distinguishing factor between a cryptocurrency exchange and the forex is that the foreign exchange market permits the trading of fiat money, while the cryptocurrency exchange, powered by the digital age, permits the exchange of one cryptocurrency for another, or the exchange of fiat money for cryptocurrency, and vice versa.
Kraken Exchange: A Broad Review of Trading
As a top cryptocurrency exchange, Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange trades in different foreign currencies such as the euro, the Canadian dollars, the US dollars, the British pound sterling and the Japanese yen, in the making it easy for their clients to make exchange these international currencies for ownership of cryptocurrencies. Kraken also undertakes another different form of exchange, offering also crypto-to-crypto exchange.
Standing as an intermediary between potential buyers and sellers of cryptocurrencies, Kraken works with a host of staff under its employment as a private trading entity, imitating the forex or stock market in its composition. By that implication, the cryptocurrency exchange charges transaction costs for trading.
For a potential user of the Kraken exchange platform, the first step is creating an online account Kraken crypto exchange. Further, carrying out transactions depends on the user depositing fiat money, like the US dollar for example, into his/her Kraken exchange Account. Depositing fiat money costs as much as $5 for users in the United States, and this is basically done through bank transfer or PayPal. However, being a user outside the United States, deposit or withdrawal charges into the Kraken account would cost as much as $10, £10, or €10. Using the Canadian dollars exempts a user from such charges.
Advantages of Using Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange
According to a website for cryptocurrency users (bestbitcoinexchange.io), there are certain advantages, and downsides, of using Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange. These serve as a distinguishing mark between Kraken and other online cryptocurrency exchanges.
The Kraken advantages include, but not limited to:
- Kraken is a popular platform for intermediate and professional traders, recognized in most parts of the world and it considers itself the best cryptocurrency exchange in the world.
- On the Kraken exchange trading platform, there are free deposits for users who are depositing or withdrawing using the Canadian dollars or the Japanese yen.
- Kraken has a cheaper withdrawal fee compared to most other cryptocurrency exchanges.
Not minding these benefits, there are still a few disadvantages to the users of Kraken cryptocurrency exchange for trading. These shortcomings, often based on user complaints, are here listed:
- The user interface is not beginner friendly. This means that new users of the Kraken trading platform often find it hard fully grasp the system setup. Quite often, it becomes discouraging to new cryptocurrency beginners.
- The Kraken exchange often charges as much as $15 fees for every fiat deposit and withdrawal through SWIFT.
- Kraken holds the private keys to your accounts crypto address. In this case, no matter how safe you are assured of your account’s existence, it just may not be to safe from staff hacking, especially an aggrieved staff.
Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange: a legal entity?
Over the past few days, the server of Kraken had remained shut down due to unexplained reasons, stoking anxiety among subscribers and crypto traders under the exchange. But, the outcome of this trend, although not new to cryptocurrency exchanges, is yet to be known.