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Kraken review 2023

Trade a wide range of cryptocurrencies on the prominent, feature-filled Kraken exchange.

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Werner Vermaak
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Our take on Kraken

Kraken is a veteran crypto exchange that provides crypto newbies and pros alike with ample resources.

For those new to the crypto space, Kraken has a “Learn” section in which it provides written, video and audio tutorials to help you along as you wet your feet in crypto waters.

For the more seasoned crypto investors, Kraken offers more advanced trading options like futures contracts and margin trading.

And given Kraken’s upstanding reputation, it has proven to be a good centralized option for staking your crypto to earn a yield on it.

While some may not find Kraken's minimum withdrawal amounts for fiat and crypto convenient, just about every other dimension of the exchange is user-friendly and engineered to support you.

5

Finder Rating

★★★★★

About Kraken – company history and background

Kraken is a centralized, US-based cryptocurrency exchange. Kraken makes it easy for both new or experienced crypto traders to buy or sell a variety of well-known tokens, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and many others. For experienced traders who are confident in their market predictions, Kraken also allows trading in futures or on margins. The company offers a variety of detailed guides that help traders further understand the intricacies of spot or leveraged trading, and as little as $10 can be enough to get started. Originally launched in 2013 in San Francisco, Kraken was one of the earliest platforms in the industry. It has maintained its legacy status by educating users and constantly improving security, usability, and adding cryptocurrencies.

Kraken landing page

Listed Kraken crypto exchange assets

Kraken supports over 182 cryptocurrencies, but some notable assets are missing. Namely, Binance USD, BNB and LEO Token, which are in the top 20 cryptos by market cap. In total, 16 of the top 20 cryptos are available on Kraken.

Popular assets on Kraken
Avalanche (AVAX)
Binance USD (BUSD)
Bitcoin (BTC)
BNB (BNB)
Cardano (ADA)
Cosmos Hub (ATOM)
Dai (DAI)
Dogecoin (DOGE)
Ethereum (ETH)
LEO Token (LEO)
Lido Staked Ether (stETH)
Polkadot (DOT)
Polygon (MATIC)
Ripple (XRP)
Shiba Inu (SHIB)
Solana (SOL)
Tether (USDT)
TRON (TRX)
USD Coin (USDC)
Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC)

Kraken fees

Many fiat deposit methods are free, though the max fee otherwise is US$10. Fiat withdrawals all incur fees apart from ACH. Crypto deposits are free apart from network fees, while crypto withdrawal fees vary by asset. There are minimum withdrawals for both fiat and crypto.

Kraken charges a 1.5% trading fee for using a stablecoin to buy a cryptocurrency, such as if you use USDT to purchase Bitcoin. It charges 0.9% for using fiat or a stable coin to purchase a different stable coin. Fees are charged on a per-trade basis. This is through the instant buy option.

Kraken Pro offers trading discounts on maker and taker fees that decrease as 30-day trading volume increases, starting at 0.16% for maker fees and 0.26% for taker fees. They can go as low as zero for makers and 0.10% if enough capital is traded during the 30-day period.

Deposit methods
  • Bank transfer
  • Apple Pay
  • Google Pay
  • SWIFT
  • Visa and Mastercard debit/credit card
  • ACH online banking
  • Digital Wallet purchases

Kraken deposit and withdrawal fees

Transaction type Fee
Deposit funds Fees vary
Withdraw funds Fees vary

Kraken trading fees

Type Fee
Maker 0.00-0.16%
Taker 0.10-0.26%

Maker fee explained. A maker fee is the fee charged when you propose an order for other traders to take. In other words, this fee is charged when you place a limit order to sell an asset, but that order is not filled immediately.

Taker fee explained. A taker fee is a fee charged when a buy order is matched immediately with a sell order on the books. This is the fee charged when you place a market buy order.

How to sign up on Kraken

  1. Register email and password
    The first step to trade crypto on Kraken is to create an account by registering your email and password.
  2. Verify your email
    Once your account is created, a security email will be sent to your address to confirm that it belongs to you. Once confirmed, your Kraken account is now at the base level, meaning you can access trading options, but not participate in spot trading until your ID is submitted and verified.
  3. Confirm your identity
    The next step in KYC (know your customer) is to submit a copy of your government-issued ID. Once accepted, you will be able to begin depositing and trading cryptocurrency.
  4. Increase account security
    Now that assets are stored on your Kraken account, security should be increased to prevent your crypto from being stolen. Kraken supports 2FA and email confirmations for withdrawals, and these should be utilized.
Create a Kraken account

About the Kraken app

Kraken’s mobile app is informative and can track daily volume, market cap and 15-minute price changes. The app can be used as a complement to the website, allowing trading on the go, and it can even be a suitable choice for traders who only use a phone or tablet.

It’s available for iOS and Android and aims to offer a complete mobile trading experience on both the Kraken spot and futures markets.

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Is Kraken exchange safe?

Kraken has so far been safe from hacks for a decade and is backed by a $100 million fund in case the exchange is compromised.

  • Past hacks. In its 10-year history, Kraken has not had any hack take place on its platform. A majority of assets managed by Kraken are kept offline, making it extremely difficult for hackers to locate and steal them.
  • Security audits on Kraken. Kraken is often audited by independent accounting firms, most recently by Armanino on 31 December 2021. Kraken accounts come with standard modern security features, such as SMS codes to confirm withdrawals, email confirmation, as well as 2-factor authentication (2FA).
  • Kraken Insurance. Digital assets stored on Kraken are uninsured, as digital assets are not subject to federal deposit insurance. While Kraken has never been hacked, it has prepared a $100 million fund in the event the exchange is breached. If assets are ever stolen, users will be compensated from the fund.

Listed Kraken crypto exchange assets

Kraken supports over 182 cryptocurrencies, but some notable assets are missing. Namely, Binance USD, BNB and LEO Token, which are in the top 20 cryptos by market cap. In total, 16 of the top 20 cryptos are available on Kraken.

Popular assets on Kraken
Avalanche (AVAX)
Binance USD (BUSD)
Bitcoin (BTC)
BNB (BNB)
Cardano (ADA)
Cosmos Hub (ATOM)
Dai (DAI)
Dogecoin (DOGE)
Ethereum (ETH)
LEO Token (LEO)
Lido Staked Ether (stETH)
Polkadot (DOT)
Polygon (MATIC)
Ripple (XRP)
Shiba Inu (SHIB)
Solana (SOL)
Tether (USDT)
TRON (TRX)
USD Coin (USDC)
Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC)

Kraken customer support and reviews

Kraken offers multilingual customer service available 24/7 every day of the year, including major holidays. Kraken support is very accessible and can be reached in a variety of mediums depending on the urgency or the difficulty of the issue.

Phone support is available from 6am to 6pm EST, and chat support is available 24/7. However, among the positive feedback, there are also many user reviews where people complain of Kraken customer service being readily available but unable to address their issue.

Kraken has a unique and personal customer support system that is helpful to people who trade often or have questions about the platform. Kraken has excellent phone and chat support, and frequent traders are assigned a personal account representative who will receive questions and requests.

Google Play ratings and downloads18.8K ratings, 4.3 stars, 1M+ downloads
Apple Store ratings and downloads2K ratings, 4.7 stars

How to reach Kraken customer service

  • Contact us form
  • Email
  • Facebook page
  • Phone support
  • Live chat
  • Linked In
  • Twitter
  • Discord

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6 Responses

    Default Gravatar
    JohnNovember 15, 2018

    Is it true that EPC, the European Property Coin, will be launched at Kraken on 23rd November? What is the registration fee for my holding of EPC?

    Reply
      Avatarfinder Customer Care
      JhezelynNovember 16, 2018Staff

      Hi John,

      Thank you for your comment.

      Upon checking, there has been no official statement as to having EPC in Kraken. You may continue to check back on updates.

      Should you wish to have real-time answers to your questions, try our chat box on the lower right corner of our page.

      Regards,
      Jhezelyn

      Reply
    Default Gravatar
    TradingFebruary 10, 2018

    I have been waiting to deposit money to start trading but it will not allow me to do so until I have been verified. I have been waiting for almost a month so please let me get in so I can start trading, I see the coin going up to all time highs and lows and want to be apart of it. How long will it take to be verified? Please.

    Sincerely,

    Troubled man.

    Reply
      Avatarfinder Customer Care
      RonFebruary 14, 2018Staff

      Hello,

      Good day! Appreciate you contacting finder for your inquiry today.

      Please note that you have reached finder and we do not represent Kraken. An email was sent separately about an article from the Kraken website which you can refer to on how long it takes for an account to get verified. You may find it useful in regards to your situation.

      It seems that they have no phone support at the moment which you can call to directly follow up on the status of your account verification. As adviced on the support page sent to you, closely monitor the email associated on the account setup as Kraken will communicate with you through it for any additional details they may need for verification.

      Hope this helps!

      All the best,

      Ron

      Reply
    Default Gravatar
    PaulJanuary 25, 2018

    I signed up this AM, but am unsure if I fully completed my sign on.
    I then tried to sign on again with another ID, but you sent me a message that I was already signed on. Please tell me if there is anything else I need to do .

    Reply
      Default Gravatar
      joelmarceloJanuary 26, 2018

      Hi Paul,

      Thanks for leaving a question on finder. Please note that we are a comparison website and we do not represent any of the providers on our page. I have sent the contact details for Kraken to your email so you can directly follow up with them. If you need anything else, please send me a message.

      Cheers,
      Joel

      Reply
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