Kraken Review

Kraken is a cryptocurrency exchange founded in 2011 with the aim of accelerating the adoption of cryptocurrencies. Kraken has expanded rapidly over the years, adding new trading instruments while operating under a strict regulatory framework.

Kraken is one of the oldest, most secure, and trusted exchanges for buying, selling, and trading cryptocurrencies in the industry. Over the years, the platform continued to expand, upgrading its infrastructure and adding other prominent crypto companies under its wing.

Kraken Features Review

Kraken Security Review

Kraken has implemented a series of remarkable security practices making its security framework one of the best in the crypto industry, safeguarding the user’s funds at the highest possible level. Adding more to the good reputation of Kraken is that the global team is made of professionals with rich experience in the security industry.

The platform servers are located in cages that are monitored around the clock by armed guards and have strong video surveillance. Nothing goes in or out without rigorous evaluation and review by the team. This is one of the exchanges that has never fallen victim to hackers, but some user accounts have been compromised over the years, but the fault lies with the users who have not secured their accounts with all available options.

Sensitive account information is heavily secured and controlled, and only a limited number of employees have access to it. Regular penetration and security tests are carried out on the exchange by a team of experts dedicated to this task. Kraken also has a bug bounty program, which ensures that users have the incentive to report bugs and helps to strengthen the stability of the platform.

Kraken stores 95% of the deposits in offline cold stores located in different geolocations, the remaining 5% are kept in the hot wallet to allow immediate access to cover customers’ withdrawal requests.

Security options

• 2FA (Google Authenticator or Yubikey)
• Email confirmation for withdrawals
• A customizable granular API key
• PGP signed and encrypted email for secure communication
• Constant real-time monitoring
• Configurable account timeout
• Global settings time lock
• SSL encryption
• Zero settlement risk
• Sensitive data fully encrypted
• 24/7 Support for urgent cases

Where is Kraken Located?

The headquarters of Kraken are located in San Francisco, California, United States (USA).

Is Kraken Regulated?

Kraken meets the regulatory requirements of all jurisdictions in which it operates. The exchange is registered as a Money Service Business (MSB) in:

• USA – FinCEN, Registration Number 31000136371793.
• Canada – FINTRAC, Registration Number M19343731.

Kraken Futures is registered and regulated by the FCA in the UK – Registration number 757895.

KYC

Due to the AML (Anti-Money Laundering) requirements, the platform has an extensive KYC process with 3 options available on the website The 3 levels of verification will decide your limits for deposits and withdrawals.

• Starter
• Intermediate
• Pro

Starter Level – Low limits

To acquire the Starter Level, you must provide your Full Name, Email Address, Primary Address, and Phone Number. Passing KYC Level 1 allows access to deposits and withdrawals with certain restrictions on cryptocurrencies, buy, sell, spot trade, and margin trading. 

Deposit Limits

Crypto

• Daily – Unlimited
• Monthly – Unlimited

Fiat deposits are not available with the starter level KYC.

Withdrawal Limits

Crypto

• Daily – 5000$
• Monthly – Unlimited

Fiat withdrawals are not available with the starter level KYC.

Intermediate Level – Higher Limits

To reach a higher level and gain access to much higher limits and the ability to deposit and withdraw, buy, sell, trade against fiat currencies, higher financing limits and trade futures, you will need to present profession, government-issued ID, proof of residence and an ID confirmation photo.

Deposit Limits

Crypto

• Daily – Unlimited
• Monthly – Unlimited

fiat

• Daily – $100 000
• Monthly – $500 000

Withdrawal Limits

Crypto

• Daily – $500 000
• Monthly – Unlimited

fiat

• Daily – $100 000
• Monthly – $500 000

Pro Level – Highest Limits

Acquiring the Pro Level gives you access to personalized funding limits, higher-margin and API limits and OTC (over the counter) trading. You need to provide AML verification and Financial statements.

Deposit Limits

Crypto

• Daily – Unlimited
• Monthly – Unlimited

fiat

• Daily – $10 million+
• Monthly – $100 million+

Withdrawal Limits

Crypto

• Daily – $10 million+
• Monthly – Unlimited

fiat

• Daily – $10 million+
• Monthly – $100 million+

Note: Kraken also provides institutional accounts.

Deposits and Withdrawals

Kraken operates worldwide and thanks to its positive relationships with banks, you can deposit and withdraw 6 different types of fiat currencies:

• Canadian Dollar (CND)
• Euro (EUR)
• Pound Sterling (GPB)
• Swiss Franc (CHF)
• US Dollar (USD)
• Yen (JPY) 

You can deposit and withdraw 25+ cryptocurrencies on Kraken:

• Augur (REP)
• BAT
• Bitcoin (BTC/XBT)
• Bitcoin cash (BCH)
• Bitcoin SV (BSV)
• Cardano (ADA)
• Chainlink (LINK)
• Cosmos (ATOM)
• Dai (DAI)
• Dash (DASH)
• Dogecoin (XDG)
• EOS
• Ethereum (ETH)
• Ethereum Classic (ETC)
• Gnosis (GNO)
• ICON (ICX)
• Lisk (LSK)
• Litecoin (LTC)
• Lumen (XLM)
• Melon (MLN)
• Monero (XMR)
• Nano (NANO)
• OmiseGO (OMG)
• PAX Gold (PAXG)
• Qtum (QTUM)
• Ripple (XRP)
• Siacoin (SC)
• Tether USD (USDT)
• Tezos (XTZ)
• USDC
• WAVES
• Zcash (ZEC)

Example for withdrawal minimums:

Bitcoin (BTC) 

• Withdrawal minimum – 0.005 BTC

Ethereum (ETH) 

• Withdrawal minimum – 0.01 ETH

Deposit and withdrawal limits depend on the verification level. The minimum deposit for each cryptocurrency is different, usually, it is around $10.

Trading Instruments

Kraken is a diversified exchange that offers a good number of instruments for trading, buying and selling cryptocurrencies, margin, and bitcoin futures trading.

You can margin trade the following cryptocurrencies with up to 5x leverage:

• BTC
• ETH
• USDT
• XMR
• ETC
• REP
• XRP
• BCH

Over-the-counter (OTC) trading is present on Kraken and offers high liquidity and a service tailored towards high-net-worth individuals. Kraken OTC supports 4 types of fiat currencies and 6+ cryptocurrencies. OTC trading is available for the highest verification level (Pro) with few terms set in place:

• Minimum order size – $100 000 (Possibility for negotiating lower limit is possible)
• Kraken OTC does not act as a custodian of the assets belonging to the trading counterparties
• AML/KYC is mandatory for OTC trading through Kraken

Futures trading

Trading futures with up to 50x leverage is available to those users who take their account verification to the intermediate level. Perpetual, monthly and quarterly time frame contracts are available for the following trading pairs:

• BTCUSD
• ETHUSD
• LTCUSD
• BCHUSD
• XRPUSD
• XRPBTC

A separate and completely different user interface is created on the platform specially designed for futures trading with very high leverage. 

Order types

Kraken has the following order types:

• Market
• Limit
• Settle position
• Stop loss
• Take profit

The orders are accompanied with advanced order options like:

• Good until Cancelled
• Good this day
• Good this week
• Good this month
• Custom (You set your own parameters)

User Interface

Recently Kraken has introduced an updated version of its user interface that provides a more user-friendly environment with two versions available – Standard and Pro. The design of the Standard version is more focused on providing an environment for buying and selling cryptocurrencies. It is not customizable, it offers only a white interface, but it fulfills its purpose to a great extent.

Pro UI design is the exact opposite, offering a much more suitable environment for professional trading sessions and a wide range of customization options. It is one of the most robust and customizable user interfaces in terms of color schemes, but you cannot fully customize the tabs to your personal preferences. 

You have 14 options for adjusting the UI color:

• Standard
• Albuquerque
• Ballmer
• Blueprint
• Bushido
• Candy Cane
• Delek
• EPaper
• Ishihara
• Kraken Dark
• Kraken Light
• Frankenstein

Besides colors, you can customize the interface with advanced options from the settings tab.

Overall the design of the Pro UI is good, not flashy, it does the perfect job for those who want to trade on a high profile, a compliant bitcoin exchange.

Kraken positions itself between Coinbase and Bitpanda. When it comes to design, it is completely different and unique. The Standard version is balanced between simple and technical at the same time, while the Pro version remains true to a highly technical design and offers a higher standard trading environment.

Kraken Mobile Application

The mobile app is available for both Android and iOS, has a friendly user interface and offers full control over the capital held on the exchange. All options for effective Bitcoin and Altcoin trading are included in the app.

Kraken exchange fees

Cryptocurrency deposits are free for most digital assets, with a few exceptions where you must pay a fee to set up the address. Withdrawal fees are different for all of the available cryptocurrencies, and there is a required minimum that must be met prior to withdrawal. 

Example:

Bitcoin (BTC) 

• Withdrawal fee – 0.0005 BTC

Ethereum (ETH) 

• Withdrawal fee – 0.005 ETH

Fiat deposits and withdrawals fees

Deposit and withdrawal fees for fiat depend on the method you will use. Please note that Kraken reserves the right to change the fees at any given moment without any notice.

USD (US Dollar) deposit options

USD (US Dollar) withdrawal options

Spot trading fees

Kraken has a flexible fee structure based on your trading volume during a 30 day period. The more you trade on Kraken – the lower Maker and Taker fees will become. A flexible fee structure helps to increase activity while creating a friendly trading environment that benefits both the platform and the trader.

Margin trading fees

The margin fee varies between 0.01 – 0.02% depending on the asset you wish to trade. Spot trading fees are also charged when trading with leverage. Compared to some of the competitors like Bybit, Deribit, or Bitmex, Kraken is much more expensive than a dedicated leveraged trading platform.

Kraken’s exchange fees are flexible and well structured and offer one of the best environments in terms of trading and exchange fees for Bitcoin and various cryptocurrencies.

Kraken brands

Over the years, Kraken has acquired a few crypto start-ups, thus diversifying its company portfolio and securing a better position in the crypto industry.

Kraken owns the following crypto companies:

• Cryptowat.ch
• CryptoFacilities.com
• CryptoFinance.ai
• Interchange

The exchange also sponsors two podcasts – “What Bitcoin Did”, Stephan Livera Podcast, and is a donor to the Coin Center. 

Kraken exchange volume

The volume on Kraken is at the upper end of the spectrum for the crypto industry, with around 140 million dollars flowing through the crypto exchange every day. If you are a trader with large capital, you can safely trade on Kraken due to the available high liquidity. The most active pairs on the exchange are BTC/EUR and BTC/USD, followed by ETH/USD and ETH/EUR.

Affiliate Program

Kraken has introduced an affiliate program that you have to apply for in order to use it. The partner program offers a revenue-sharing model, where 20% of the trading fees paid by the referred users are collected. The negative side of the Kraken affiliate program is that the affiliate program has set a limit of $1000 that you can be rewarded for each referral. The program itself has no expiration date but is quite limited compared to other competitors in the crypto industry like Binance, KuCoin or Bybit.

Kraken Review Conclusion

Kraken has managed to build up an exchange with a high number of instruments and at the same time to stay on the ground for almost a decade. Kraken follows the strict regulatory requirements of the jurisdictions in which it operates, while at the same time creating a slight entry barrier for the retail investor. Overall, Kraken is a very good exchange if you are willing to go through an extensive KYC process to unlock its full potential.

Min. Deposit: 10$

Kraken is a cryptocurrency exchange founded in 2011, gradually adding more crypto pairs and margin trading while growing to be one of the most versatile exchanges in the crypto market.

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