Sam Bourgi is a contributing writer to Finder.com, where he specializes in financial markets. He has spent the past nine years focused on economics, markets and cryptocurrencies. His work has been featured in and cited by some of the world's leading newscasts, including Barron's, Yahoo, CBOE and Forbes.
Disclaimer: This information is not financial advice or an endorsement of cryptocurrency or any specific provider, service or offering. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and high risk. Do your own research and seek financial advice before buying. Please check with providers if their services are available in your state.
The fees below are accurate as of May 31, 2021. All dollar figures are listed in US dollars.
Direct buy and sell fees These transaction fees apply when placing a cryptocurrency buy or sell order through the Gemini website or mobile app. A 0.5% “convenience fee” applies to all transactions.
Order size
Fee
All
0.5% spread
≤ $10
$0.99
$10 to ≤ $25
$1.49
$25 to ≤ $50
$1.99
$50 to ≤ $200
$2.99
> $200
1.49%
Marketplace ActiveTrader fees
These transaction fees apply when buying or selling from the Gemini continuous order books, or the Gemini auction, via the ActiveTrader interface. You can switch the ActiveTrader interface on or off in your account settings. The direct buy and sell fees listed above will apply when ActiveTrader is switched off.
30 day trading volume
Maker fee
Taker fee
Auction fee
0 to $499,999
0.25%
0.35%
0.25%
≥ $500,000
0.15%
0.25%
0.2%
≥ $2,500,000
0.15%
0.25%
0.1%
≥ $5,000,000
0.1%
0.15%
0.1%
≥ $10,000,0000
0.1%
0.15%
0%
≥ $15,000,000
0%
0.1%
0%
Deposit and withdrawal fees
Gemini does not charge any deposit fees, but there may still be fees associated with bank deposits (USA only) and wire transfers (available both inside and outside the USA). Forex fees may also apply when transferring currencies other than USD.
Gemini charges nominal fees, broadly equivalent to cryptocurrency network fees, for crypto withdrawals. It does not charge any fees for bank or wire withdrawals, but there may still be fees charged by banks involved in the procedure.
Other fees and when they apply
Gemini offers special custody accounts, designed largely for institutional customers like hedge funds who may be required by law to store their digital assets with a licensed custodian.
In custody accounts, customer digital assets are segregated in unique addresses and stored offline in Gemini’s proprietary cold storage system. Gemini is a qualified custodian, is a fiduciary under §100 of the New York Banking Law; and is held to specific capital reserve requirements and banking compliance standards.
These fees and conditions apply to custody accounts only. Your regular everyday accounts are not custody accounts.
Custody fee
0.4% annually
Minimum balance
None
Minimum annual fee
None
Withdrawal fee
$125
Liquidity
1 business day
The Gemini auction is a daily event for certain trading pairs, designed to foster increased liquidity and facilitate price discovery. All registered Gemini users can participate. And as you can see, the fees are lower for auction orders than regular orders. how do It essentially works by letting people place auction orders throughout the day, both buy and sell, and then matching them up at the auction time and filling as many as possible. The Gemini website illustrates it like this:
Gemini block trading is a digital peer to peer block trading system, designed for trading larger amounts with reduced slippage outside the normal Gemini order books.
It essentially works by letting takers place orders, for market makers to fill if desired. A block order price must be within 5% of the market midpoint at the time of the order submission.
Cryptocurrency
Minimum order
Maker fee
Taker fee
BTC
10 BTC
0%
0%
ETH
100 ETH
0%
0%
ZEC
200 ZEC
0%
0%
LTC
500 LTC
0%
0%
BCH
100 BCH
0%
0%
The fees for API trading are slightly different to the ActiveTrade fees. These apply to orders placed via API.
30 day trade volume
Maker fee
Taker fee
Auction fee
$0 to $499,999
0.1%
0.35%
0.2%
≥ $1,000,000
0.1%
0.25%
0.15%
≥ $2,500,000
0.075%
0.2%
0.125%
≥ $5,000,000
0.075%
0.15%
0.1%
≥ $7,500,000
0%
0.125%
0.075%
≥ $10,000,000
0%
0.1%
0.05%
How fast will my funds be available?
Deposits
Up to 5 days
Wire transfers may take up to 3 business days, or longer depending on the situation.
Bank transfers can take up to 5 business days to clear.
Cryptocurrency transfers
within minutes
Cryptocurrency transfers can be completed within minutes, depending on the cryptocurrency.
Withdrawals
Up to 5 days
Wire transfers withdrawals can take several business days to clear, depending on the banks involved.
Bank transfer withdrawals can also take several days to go through, depending on the situation
Is Gemini safe to use?
Regulation. Gemini dubs itself “the regulated cryptocurrency exchange.” It’s one of very few cryptocurrency exchanges with a New York BitLicense, regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services. This is one of the world’s strictest bodies of cryptocurrency exchange regulations, encompassing a robust set of AML/KYC, market surveillance, capitalisation and security requirements.
Verification process. Only verified users can trade on Gemini. Verification requires providing some personal details, and documentation to support it.
Security features. Gemini was the first exchange to pass SOC 1 Type 1 and SOC 2 Type 2 examinations, demonstrating a high level of security compliance in protecting user data and funds. It also uses a proprietary cold storage system, and has insurance for assets in custody.
Gemini may be one of the world’s highest security cryptocurrency exchanges. Rather than simply following security best practices, Gemini leads them by working with Nasdaq, regulators and other institutions to create these practices.
Gemini itself has never been hacked, although some Gemini users have been hacked through SIM swapping.
Visit the Gemini homepage and click Get Started. Select your account type — personal or business — and enter your country on the next screen.
Once you’ve selected your country, enter your name, email and chosen password.
After signing up, you’ll receive an email. Follow the prompts in it to verify your email address.
Once you verify your email, you’ll need to verify your identity before you can start trading. This involves uploading some documents — such as a valid state-issued ID or driver’s license — to the Gemini site.
Once your identity has been verified you can link your debit card or bank account and buy or deposit cryptocurrency.
You can now start trading across Gemini’s many different order types, such as direct buys or through the ActiveTrader interface. You can also participate in Gemini auctions, place block trade orders and use cryptocurrencies such as Gemini Dollar.
Gemini was founded by the Winklevoss twins, who have been closely involved with Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies since at least 2013.
Gemini was founded in 2014 and is their most prominent cryptocurrency project to date. It’s regularly included in the ranks of the world’s top cryptocurrency exchanges and works closely with regulators and traditional financial institutions.
It’s a New York trust company and is regulated by the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYSDFS).
In a nutshell
Pros
Highly regulated. Gemini is one of the most tightly-regulated cryptocurrency exchanges in the world.
High security. Gemini is actively developing industry-leading security practices.
Multiple trade types. Between direct buys, the ActiveTrader interface, the auction and fully electronic block trades, Gemini offers many options.
Deep liquidity. Gemini has highly liquid order books.
Cons
Higher fees than other exchanges. Fees can be as low as 0% in some cases, but can also run considerably higher than other exchanges for equivalent trade types.
Compare Gemini against other exchanges
Frequently asked questions
Gemini is available in 50+ countries, including the USA, Canada, UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea and Australia.
You can find Gemini customer service in the help section, and send messages to the support team if needed.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrencies are speculative, complex and involve significant risks – they are highly
volatile and sensitive to secondary activity. Performance is unpredictable and past performance is no guarantee of
future performance. Consider your own circumstances, and obtain your own advice, before relying on this information.
You should also verify the nature of any product or service (including its legal status and relevant regulatory
requirements) and consult the relevant Regulators' websites before making any decision. Finder, or the author, may
have holdings in the cryptocurrencies discussed.
I have a Coinbase account now. Because I am a Canadian resident, they won’t allow me to use my Wells Fargo bank for deposits.(U.S.) I have been dealing in u.s. Funds. Can I sign up with Gemini and continue to use my U.S. Bank? Also if I withdraw funds, can I transfer back to my U.S. Bank?
Thanks for getting in touch with finder. I hope all is well with you. :)
Gemini accepts US dollars via Automated Clearing House (ACH) deposits or wire transfers. For this reason, you can use your US bank account to deposit money to your account given you use the aforementioned methods.
As of now, you can only withdraw crpyto coins from Gemini and not fiat money.
For more information, you may want to directly get in touch with Gemini’s customer support.
I hope this helps. Should you have further questions, please don’t hesitate to reach us out again.
Thank you for visiting finder, we are a financial comparison website and general information service.
There are no limits on deposits or withdrawals for Individual or Institutional Accounts for Wire transfers. You may also get additional information via Gemini’s Zendesk support.
You can buy Ripple as you would buy any other cryptocurrency: from an online exchange. Most require you to go through a verification process but once done you just buy the XRP as you would any other product online. Finally, transfer the coins to your wallet for safekeeping.
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