Any digital or virtual currency, also known as cryptocurrency, can be abbreviated to crypto. To ensure that transactions are secure, cryptocurrency uses cryptography as a means of security.
Cryptocurrencies don’t have a central issuing or regulating power. Instead, they rely on a decentralized system for recording transactions and issuing new units. As such, it doesn’t rely on banks to do transactions.
What is it used for? It relies on a peer to peer system that allows anyone to send and receive money from anywhere. This currency exists purely as digital entries and is recorded on an online database that describes specific transactions.
Every transaction made with cryptocurrency funds will be recorded in the public ledger. Every owner of cryptocurrency keeps their funds in a digital wallet.
Cryptocurrency’s name is derived from its use of encryption to verify and keep transactions. This is why cryptocurrency can only exist in the digital and virtual space, as it uses encryption methods that only computers can understand.
This advanced coding used to store and transmit crypto data provides security and safety as transactions between wallets, and public ledgers are happening.
The first ever Cryptocurrency was called Bitcoin and was founded in 2009. It is still the most well-known cryptocurrency today. It is not the only cryptocurrency. Some others include: DogeCoin, Ethereum, BNB (Binance Coin), Tether, Solana, and Polkadot.
To trade or exchange these currencies, one would need to use the services of a crypto exchange or digital currency exchange (DCE).
A Cryptocurrency exchange is a business that allows customers to trade cryptocurrencies and digital currencies for other assets like other digital currencies or fiat money.
Crypto exchanges have functions that are similar to online brokerage platforms. You can use them to purchase and sell digital currencies or tokens for various cryptocurrencies.
Crypto Exchanges accept wire transfers and credit card payments in exchange for digital currencies.
Binance is one such dedicated cryptocurrency exchange.
Binance and Overview Binance Silvergate
Beau Troxclair’s YouTube channel 0xBeau has a video review of Binance. For those who like a visual experience, this is the video. You can still read our article for a complete overview of Binance.
Binance is still the best cryptocurrency exchange in the world when it comes to cryptocurrency trading. It has the highest trading volume of any crypto exchange by offering users the most cryptocurrency trading pairs.
Binance got its start in 2017 through Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. It was initially based in China but was quickly moved out of the country due to crypto restrictions getting stricter and stricter. Since then, it has moved from Japan and Malta but did not have a permanent place to call home.
However, news has come out that the company signed a memorandum with Bermuda and Malta to finally establish its home base. Binance Silvergate
Binance’s popularity was due to its user base who liked the low fees, availability of cryptocurrencies and innovative products. Currently, the platform offers a multitude of crypto-based products.
You can access services such as exchange, earn and staking, derivatives loans, payments credit cards, NFTs and more from Binance.
Binance has its own unique tokens, cryptocurrencies and coins. BUSD is a stablecoin. BNB is a strong performer because of its low fees.
However, Binance has its problems and dark sides.
In 2021, the company was investigated by the United States Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service on allegations of money laundering and tax offenses.
The Financial Conduct Authority of the United Kingdom ordered that the platform stop all regulated activities in June 2021. However, this ban had a limited scope and non-registered companies can still interact with UK customers.
Earlier that year, it was set up to launch its own digital asset marketplace in Britain, but it withdrew this application due to not meeting anti-money laundering requirements.
In the same year, Binance was also reported to have shared client information, including addresses and names, with the Russian government. The Russian government justified this as a way to help them fight crime.
Binance Perks
Large Crypto Selection
Given that the company is among the biggest cryptocurrency platforms in the market. Hence, it is no surprise that many cryptocurrencies and other digital currencies are available. Some of them include decentralized finance (DeFi) tokens, stable coins, alt coins, and popular cryptos.
A few examples of this include:
- Binance Coins (BNB)
- VeChain, (VET).
- Harmony (ONE)
- VeThor (VTHO).
- Dogecoin (DOGE)
- Matic Network (MATIC).
Binance offers support for popular cryptocurrencies like:
- Dash (DASH)
- Compound (COMP).
- Bitcoin (BTC).
- Ethereum (ETH).
- Litecoin (LTC)
- Cardano (ADA)
- Cosmos (ATOM)
Low fees
Trading currencies and tokens are not offered free on any platform. However, choosing Binance as your trading platform will give you deals that may as well be free. Comparable to other cryptocurrency exchanges, which charge commissions and fees, this is quite a difference. So far, the highest spot trading fee is 0.1%.
The platform employs a maker/taker fee structure, and fees will vary depending on trading volume and Binance Coin (BNB) balance. As a rule of thumb, the higher the volume of your trade, the lower the fees your trades are subjected to. Binance Silvergate
Users can get discounts on certain services, and this is not all. Such as:
- Using Binance (BNB) coins in trades
- If you achieve Very Important Person (VIP status) by trading a certain amount of assets.
That said, Binance users are still subject to other fees. Different fees will apply depending on which type of withdrawal you make and what payment method you use. The chart below is an example.
| Payment Type | Fees |
|
|
We can discuss more about fees in a later section.
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Passive income from crypto assets
Binance allows you to earn from your crypto assets. Of course, these come with varying degrees of risk. A few options include earning 50% APR or more on certain cryptos in its staking program or putting assets into flexible savings accounts for lower but more consistent rates.
The platform offers more staking options. They even pay higher rates than most other exchanges.
For riskier opportunities, you can try to earn income by adding liquidity on pairs of tokens. It is up to you to decide if these risks are worth taking. Before you jump into these opportunities, you need to be aware of what is at stake.
Advanced Trading Tools
Binance’s advanced trading tools provide an easy way to customize your trading options. It is simple to set a limit on the price at which you can buy or sell crypto. With its “convert” function, it even caters to beginners.
For veteran traders, the charting tools in the advanced trading interface are something to behold. A Bitcoin futures section allows people to speculate on the price of Bitcoin.
The platform allows you to sell leveraged tokens in connection to earning opportunities with inherent risk. Customers can multiply their currency positions by selling leveraged tokens. This strategy is risky because it can increase losses and even cause traders to lose their whole position.
The Binance Shortcomings
Not for Newbies
Binance is definitely not for beginners. It is a complicated platform created with experienced and veteran traders in mind. The general aim of the platform is to have these earners maximize their profits.
We have already discussed the risks Binance offers its users in order to make passive income from their crypto holdings. The thing is, most of these features will only be useful when you know what those things mean and what you are doing.
The most risky opportunities are where novice traders and beginners lose their money. To understand the hidden and inherent risks that trades can carry, it takes years of experience.
It can be difficult to navigate the vast market selection and in-depth dashboards offered by the platform, especially for those just starting out in crypto investing.
Once you are comfortable with the platform, it will be very simple to manage your assets. Also, for what it’s worth, Binance has a simpler interface designed for first-timers. It also provides a sizable educational resource.
Binance isn’t very beginner-friendly, but it has many resources that can help those who are interested. It is still not a platform where you just buy Bitcoin and then sit back and relax. Binance Silvergate
Regulatory Attention
As we have already mentioned, Binance has faced many problems. It is currently in the crosshairs of several countries, including Japan, Canada, Singapore and Thailand.
The United States authorities are currently investigating the platform in regard to possible money laundering, tax fraud, and insider trading. So far, no charges have been filed, and Binance has denied any wrongdoing. Only time will tell if anything comes out of this.
Binance took steps to improve its compliance team, and keep regulators in line. This could be difficult as many of the products that Binance customers love are also those that attract regulatory attention.
Not Available in the U.S.
Due to US regulations, Binance.US was created as a separate platform for U.S. customers. The U.S. version Binance offers fewer features and less cryptocurrencies.
Binance.US also trades over 120 cryptocurrencies and does not offer futures trading or leveraged token. It is also not available in all countries. It is not available in Hawaii, New York or Texas.
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How it All Works
We’ve seen the positive and negative aspects of Binance. Now we can talk about how it all works.
As we know, Binance functions as a cryptocurrency exchange. It has a huge range of services. Some of these include:
- Buy, Sell, or trade cryptocurrency
- Set up recurring buys
- Earn passive income
- Access advanced features such as crypto derivative products, limits orders, and peer-to-peer trading
- Trade non-fungible tokens (NFTs)
- Participate in Binance’s Launchpad and Launchpool to get exposure to new cryptos
- Get portfolio insights and live tracking, as well as alerts
- Its tax reporting tool will help you keep track of all your tax obligations
It is important to remember that many regulatory agencies around the globe have been focusing on Binance’s wide range of products. On their side, Binance does warn users of the risks involved with investing in the platform.
It also has an anti-addiction setting just in case users become too involved with trading. When a trader suffers heavy losses or a continuous losing streak, the system reminds the user of the risk involved in derivatives trading. It encourages them to rest and hold back on their trading activities.
The platform believes that responsible traders must be critical and maintain control to avoid compulsive trading and gambling.
These are just reminders. Retail investors will ultimately decide how to manage risk and where they should invest their money.
Sign up for your Binance account
It takes just minutes to create and register your Binance account. There are two types of accounts available: unverified and verified.
For Unverified users:
- Click the register button on the Binance homepage
- Enter your email address
- Create a password
- Accept Binance’s Terms of Use
- Click “Create an Account”
- Confirm registration through email
For Verified Accounts
- Register for an unverified account.
- Login to your account
- Click Identity Verification in the User Center
- Choose Personal
- Please fill in your details
- Choose an ID type for document verification, such as a Passport or Driver’s license
- Upload a file or take a picture of the document
- Take a picture of yourself
- Click confirm after you have uploaded the document and image.
- Binance will then review your submission as soon as they can. Binance Silvergate
To verify your account, you will need to wait for Binance to send an email.
Trading Experience
As we’ve mentioned, Binance offers a variety of trading tools. Some of these tools include their real-time charting tools with moving averages and exponential moving averages. Trading is also convenient and accessible, as users can place trades through the Binance app, Binance website, or Binance desktop app.
The platform allows traders to view their trade history and portfolios. They can view the order book and price charts. The platform also gives users a selection of order types. You can place stop orders, limit orders and stop-limit orders.
Users can also choose from different trading views to better understand data and view it in the way that they prefer. Views range from classic to margin and OTC views.
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Trust Wallet
Binance provides a custodial wallet through its platform. Trust Wallet is also recommended by Binance, which supports thousands upon thousands of cryptocurrencies across all major blockchains. It is easy to withdraw from Binance to a Trust Wallet or other external crypto wallet.
Withdrawals are usually completed in 10 minutes and the fees are very low. To verify your account, you will need to enter some personal information. You can use Binance on a variety of platforms, including mobile and desktop.
Fees
We all know that one of Binance’s selling points is its low fees. However, this does not mean that users are free from all charges. Binance users are still subjected to some fees needed for the platform.
Deposit and withdrawal fees
The currency used to pay and the method of payment will determine how much deposit fees are charged. Although bank transfers are usually free, debit card payments will often incur fees.
Binance may allow you to make credit card or debit card payments, bank transfer, and peer-to-peer payments depending on where you live.
As for withdrawing money, you can do so as a fiat currency to a bank account. You can also withdraw cryptocurrency to a wallet, or another exchange. These withdrawal fees and minimum amounts are determined by your currency and method. Binance Silvergate
Trade Fees
Your trading fee percentage will depend on your trading history in the past 30 days and the volume in the past 30 days. The amount of BNB you hold will also matter.
Maker orders, which add liquidity to the market, will get lower fees than taker or remover orders.
The platform also encourages the use of its own native currency, the Binance Coin (BNB). Anybody who does so will receive a 25% discount on their trading fees. Binance also offers 0% trading on selected Bitcoin and Binance USD (BUSD) pairs.
The chart below shows how VIP status, the 30-day trade volume, and maker/taker are related.
| VIP | 30-Day Trade Volume (BUSD) | Maker/Taker |
| 0 | Less than 1,000,000 | 0.10%/0.10% |
| 1 | 1,000,000 to 4,999,999 and at least 25 BNB | 0.09%/0.10% |
| 2 | 5,000,000 to 19,999,999 and at least 100 BNB | 0.08% / 0.10% |
| 3 | 20,000,000 to 119,999,999 and at least 250 BNB | 0.07% / 0.10% |
| 4 | 120,000,000 to 199,999,999 and at least 500 BNB | 0.07% / 0.09% |
| 5 | Between 200,000,000 and 499,999.999 and at most 1,000 BNB | 0.06% / 0.08% |
| 6 | 500,000,000 to 999,999,999 and at least 1,750 BNB | 0.05% / 0.07% |
| 7 | Between 1,000,000,000 and 2,499,999.999999 and at most 3,000 BNB | 0.04% / 0.06% |
| 8 | 2,500,000,000 to 4,999,999,999 and at least 4,500 BNB | 0.03% / 0.05% |
| 9 | More than 5,000,000,000, and at least 5,500 BNB | 0.02% / 0.04% |
Security
Since Binance handles multiple sensitive and high stakes data, and it should be expected that the platform has good and robust security measures to protect its assets as well as their client base.
Binance offers two-factor authentication via the Google Authenticator app, or a short message service for customers. It also uses address whitelisting, device management, and the ability to restrict device access.
Binance also claims to have its own insurance fund made by storing 10% of all trading fees in a secure fund. This insurance fund is supposed to protect against hacking losses, which Binance is well-versed in (more later).
This insurance is not the same as having a third party doing it, but it does give users some protection.
Lastly, as its main security feature, Binance keeps most of its funds offline in cold storage. This is done to prevent hackers from getting in touch.
Customers should be cautious about Binance, however, as it has a poor track record in security. The platform was hacked in early 2019 for $40 million in BTC. It also suffered another major hack in October 2022, this time costing them $570 million in BNB.
There is a silver lining to this. Sometimes, it would be more beneficial for exchanges to experience these incidents so that they can determine which part of their security to fix. The customer side can at least see how the platform handles them and their customers when these incidents occur.
In Binance’s case, they quickly responded and immediately reimbursed anyone affected by the hack through their Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU). This cold storage wallet keeps enough capital to cover users’ losses.
Customer Service
Binance provides three options for customer support. You can submit a ticket, ask a basic question through chat, and reach out via Twitter.
You simply need to fill out a form on the Binance website for tickets. You will be able to get email assistance by submitting a ticket.
If you are approaching them through Twitter, you only need to tag or mention Binance on their Twitter account (@BinanceHelpDesk) for support. Binance has been known to encourage users to tweet their issues through this channel as it has more visibility.
If you need to get in touch with Binance directly, there is a chat box at the bottom right corner. You can access this on the Binance website.
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Binance Pros and Cons
Pros
- Low Fees
One of the reasons why Binance is among the top choices for crypto exchanges is its low fees. This is no surprise. After all, if a platform asks for lower fees, crypto traders and investors get to keep more of their investments and earnings to themselves.
- You have the ability to make passive income in many different ways.
It is impossible to not desire passive income. Binance offers many opportunities to make passive income. It’s like being paid for nothing. That said, these opportunities also carry inherent risks in them. These opportunities are not for the weak-hearted. Binance Silvergate
- Wide selection of Cryptocurrencies: From Bitcoin to Dogecoin and Etherium, there is no shortage of cryptocurrency you can buy from Binance. And that number is growing, with newly added cryptos like Fish(FISH) and Fanverse (FT).
BNB is the platform’s crypto. These multiple selections allow crypto traders and investors flexibility in their choices.
- Advanced Trading Tools
A trading platform will only be as good as the tools it provides its users. In the case of Binance, it gives users enough tools for a more flexible trading experience. Investors and traders will have no trouble trading on the platform.
- Multiple ways of Depositing Money
You cannot start trading if you have no money at stake. Binance makes it easier to start crypto trading by making it easy to deposit funds through its many ways.
- Flexible trading Options and Order Types
Bear in mind, trading is like a gamble. The assets and stock own may be valuable now, but you will never know when their values will drop. As such excellent trading platforms like Binance should provide users the flexibility to do their trades in a matter, they see fit. Binance Silvergate
Cons
- Platform can seem overwhelming to beginners.
Of course, multiple options and advanced tools are not always a good thing. A multitude of choices can overwhelm beginners and make it difficult to choose from. Some experienced traders even claim they are intimidated by Binance’s many available options.
- Regulation issues in many countries
Binance has faced several regulatory and legal issues. This is a major issue that many investors are considering switching to other exchanges.
That said, the platform has been trying hard to remedy these regulatory issues and doing its best to meet the requirements to comply with and solve these issues.
- Not available in the United States
Binance was temporarily banned in the United States due to problems with US regulatory bodies. Binance U.S. was created by the parent company to provide a U.S-exclusive version.
However, Binance U.S. is more limited than the original Binance. Furthermore, it is also not available in some U.S. states like New York and Vermont.
- There is no built-in digital wallet
Most popular cryptocurrency exchange platforms have their digital wallets built-in and included in. For some reason, Binance does not. Instead, it recommends Trust Wallet, a third-party service. Although it is a well-respected service, they may not be able to offer sufficient support. Binance Silvergate
Binance Last Thoughts
Let me begin by saying that I’m a complete beginner when it comes crypto. All my knowledge comes from a few youtube videos, an article here and there, and some Reddit threads.
Binance was the best platform for me because it charges very low fees. I entered cryptocurrency because I wanted to see what the fuss was all about. This is not something I intend to take seriously.
It took me no time to create my account and verify it. In a matter of minutes I was able to view the UI and all the features offered by the platform. Let me tell you…..
With confidence, I can say that Binance is not for beginners. I can tell you that the myriad of choices presented to me by Binance was pretty intimidating and overwhelming. I needed a friend to help me understand the complexities of all this stuff.
With his assistance, and some tutorials from Binance Support, it was easy to get my bearings and start trading. Although it is still confusing at times, I am slowly getting the hang of trading.
Right now, I hope I bet on the right horse, not the wrong one.
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Common Questions about Binance Binance Silvergate
Is Binance Safe?
Yes, it is safe, but it does not have a good track record.
Binance does have its own security measures, but it has been hacked twice. The company did beef up its security, but in the end, time will judge if these security measures can survive attacks.
How do you decide if Binance is right for you?
To be honest, it is difficult to pinpoint which platform is right for you until you read their reviews and try the services yourself.
However, for the sake of having an answer, you may deem Binance is a right fit for you if:
- You are not a newbie in crypto trading, and you have intermediate to the advanced crypto trading experience.
- You need a service that is affordable and can accept many currencies.
- You are looking for a service with many advanced features.
- You are an institutional trader carrying a high or ultra-high net worth.
- You live outside the U.S.
Does Bianance Offer FOREX Trading?
No, Binance does not offer traditional Forex (Foreign Exchange Trading).
The main reason is that it lacks the amount of currency pairing needed to join the FOREX exchange. To enter FOREX-only exchanges, a company needs access to thousands. This is quite a distance from Binance which has only 50 currency pairs.
Does Binance Offer CFD Trading?
Unlike FOREX trading, Binance does offer CFD (Contracts for Difference) trading.
These are still controversial in the crypto industry, as many prefer to own native assets. These assets, unlike CFD’s can be easily withdrawn to a personal account. However, CFDs have their advantages. For one, they can be very liquid.