Bitvo review

Finder ratings: Bitvo

Supported cryptocurrencies
Transferring money or assets
Fees and costs
Ease of use
Customer service
Staking/earn rating
Trustworthiness/security
Overall score

Overview of Bitvo

Bitvo is a Canadian cryptocurrency exchange based in Calgary, AB and founded in 2018. It is led by a small team with decades of experience in the fields of technology, banking, capital markets, security, financial services and transaction processing.
Bitvo aims to be a premium cryptocurrency exchange through a foundation of superior customer service, zero trading fees and quick easy funding and withdrawal options. It is currently offering 11 different cryptocurrencies for exchange as well as a Bitvo Cash Card and a personalized OTC desk for large volume users. Finder’s Bitvo review will help you decide if it fits your needs.

• If this is your first exchange: Bitvo has done a good job integrating legacy banks to make the movement of funds to and from the exchange very fluid.
• If you’re switching exchanges: Bitvo’s Cash Card is a useful option for frequent traders who may want to access funds when traveling outside of Canada.

What to know about Bitvo

Bitvo is a smaller cryptocurrency exchange. It currently has 11 cryptocurrencies listed, and the team’s experience and contacts in the legacy-banks system allow for a more fluid movement of funds to and from the exchange. Bitvo engages in best practices for its security and is registered with FINTRAC. It has not experienced a successful hack to date.

Despite excellent customer service and a quick and easy funding option, the exchange does not offer as much for smaller investors as its competitors. The overall feel of the exchange is more akin to a legacy bank than a cryptocurrency exchange. It does offer zero fees on trades and deposits, but it charges a 1% withdrawal fee, a spread on bid/ask transactions and fees associated with its Bitvo Cash Card.

Supported cryptocurrencies

Bitvo currently offers 11 different cryptocurrencies. The selection of cryptocurrencies is mainly focused on financial cryptocurrencies for providing payment options and resolving transactions. There is also the addition of some other level one blockchains, such as ETH, ADA and UNI, that facilitate smart contracts. DOGE is also listed as one of the cryptocurrencies that are offered. The following assets are offered:

Transferring fiat and cryptocurrency

Bitvo guarantees that all funds will be deposited into users’ accounts the same day for both withdrawals and deposits. Cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals depend on network congestion but are executed immediately. If Bitvo fails to deposit your funds within the day, it credits you the withdrawal fee.

Bitvo Fees and costs

Bitvo does not have any deposit fees, but it charges a 1% fee for all withdrawals with a minimum of $15 on all withdrawals. There are fees for every time you use the Bitvo Cash Card too.

Fiat withdrawal and deposit fees

Crypto withdrawal and deposit fees

What is it like to use Bitvo?

• Bitvo learning centre

  Bitvo has an education section for the exchange where you can read articles on the most recent developments in the industry along with a FAQ page. Here, Bitvo gives a quick overview of each of the cryptocurrencies it offers and how to purchase them.

  

• Bitvo Cash Card

  The Bitvo Cash Card is one of the main attractions of the exchange. The exchange gives you the ability to easily move funds between your legacy bank and the exchange. You can then either move your funds between fiat and cryptocurrencies or fund your cash card. The main advantage of the cash card is that it can be used worldwide for purchases, which gives you the ability to use cryptocurrency indirectly through it. Some fees are associated with the card.

  

• Bitvo same-day guarantee

  Typically, the Canadian cryptocurrency ecosystem has a relatively positive reputation – at least in terms of government regulation. The legacy-banking infrastructure, however, has been pretty reluctant to embrace it, often making it difficult to fund an exchange. Bitvo proudly proclaims its team has decades of experience in the fields of technology, banking, capital markets, security, financial services and transaction processing. These experiences, along with the connections that come with them, allow Bitvo to guarantee same-day transactions and registration with the legacy banks.

  

• Bitvo OTC trading desk

  One of Bitvo’s main attractions is its 24/7 customer service. The OTC (over-the-counter) desk offers a further level of customer service for large traders. This level of personal service is something that competitors are not offering to this degree. New traders who are more familiar with legacy banking may feel more comfortable going through this kind of service.

  

Does Bitvo have good customer support?

One of the main attractions to Bitvo over other cryptocurrency exchanges is the responsiveness of its customer support service. It boasts a 24/7 support team that can be reached via phone, live online chat or email.

	Support offered	Contact	Wait times
Email		support@bitvo.com	30 mins
Live chat		Help chat (bottom right of every page)	Instant
Call		1-833-86BITVO (1-833-862-4886)	Instant
FAQ		Bitvo support page	Instant

Trading on Bitvo

One of the major benefits to Bitvo over some of the larger competitors is that it does not charge trading fees. It operates with a spread between the bid and ask pricing for the cryptocurrencies it lists, but these are reasonable differences.

Price spreads

Bitvo does carry a spread that can be easily seen when buying and selling cryptocurrencies.

Trading fees

Bitvo operates with zero trading fees.

Bitvo promotions

For a cryptocurrency exchange still in its relative infancy, there are few promotions or opportunities for new users to take advantage of outside of the Bitvo Cash Card. Unfortunately, the Bitvo Cash Card feels more like a service from a legacy bank rather than a promotion from a cryptocurrency exchange.

Bitvo Cash Card

The Bitvo Cash Card is a tool that Bitvo users can take advantage of. Unfortunately, unless you have funded your Bitvo account with $25,000 in the previous 12 months, there will be a registration and activation fee associated with it. ($10 plus applicable taxes).

The Bitvo Cash Card operates as a prepaid Visa that can be loaded from your Bitvo account. Even though the Bitvo exchange can only operate within Canada, the cash card can be used worldwide anywhere that Visa is accepted.

The cash card does come with fees attached to it that you should familiarize yourself with.

Bitvo trust rating

Bitvo is fully compliant and registered with FINTRAC. It participates in best practices for handling cryptocurrencies between hot and cold wallets and has not experienced any hacks to date on the exchange.

Past hacks

Bitvo has not experienced any hacks to date.

Security audits

Bitvo has carried out Exchange Due Diligence Reports through the third-party intermediary Blockchain Intelligence Group as recently as September 29, 2021.

Insurance

Bitvo keeps 95% of its digital assets in cold storage with BitGo Trust Company. It has US$100 million in insurance through BitGo Trust Company in the event of a hack.

Signing up on Bitvo

Step 1: Register
On the Bitvo homepage, click “Register” in the upper right corner. Enter an email and password, agree to the terms and submit. Verify your email address through the link it sends. Then log in to continue.

Step 2: KYC
Fill out the information requested by Bitvo. Once the information is entered, KYC is complete.

Step 3: Link bank or deposit crypto
The next step is to fund your account. If you have crypto, you can deposit supported assets and begin trading. If you need to link a bank account, it is a simple process where you connect your bank account to Bitvo. This step effectively fully verifies your identity. Once funded, you can begin trading.

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