KuCoin, a large cryptocurrency exchange, allows you to trade, buy, and sell cryptocurrencies. The platform provides basic trading options as well as margin, futures and peer-to-peer trading. To earn rewards, users can choose to lend or stake their crypto. KuCoin is a more attractive alternative to other competitors because it charges very low trading fees.
Be aware that investing in cryptocurrencies, Decentralized Finance, (DeFi) and other Initial Coin Offerings is highly risky. The markets can also be volatile. Before making any financial decisions, consult a qualified professional. This article does not recommend that you invest in cryptocurrencies by Investopedia, nor is it a guarantee of its accuracy and timeliness.
What is KuCoin?
KuCoin allows you to buy, sell and store a variety of cryptocurrencies. You can use the web interface or use the popular mobile app to access your cryptocurrency accounts. KuCoin’s native token, KCS (or KuCoin), can be purchased to lower fees and earn rewards.
It is not necessary to verify your account. Crypto traders can use their email address to trade with the platform. As mentioned above, you will need to verify your account if you wish to access its advanced features. Due to U.S. crypto regulations, Americans cannot do this.
KuCoin provides both custodial as well as noncustodial services. This means that you can store your crypto assets on KuCoin or connect a third party wallet and trade directly from the exchange. This is an excellent option for people who want to control their crypto.
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Cryptocurrency assets are volatile in nature. Buy and trade at your own risk.
73% of retail investor accounts lose money trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Trading with financial instruments carries high level of risks that is not suitable for all investors. Before making any investment decisions, you should seek advice from independent financial advisor to ensure you understand the risks involved.
Trading with financial instruments carries high level of risks that is not suitable for all investors. Before making any investment decisions, you should seek advice from independent financial advisor to ensure you understand the risks involved.
It also has some lesser-known features like trading bots and leverage.
KuCoin Cryptocurrencies
KuCoin provides over 600 cryptocurrencies that users can trade, buy, or sell. This exchange offers a broad range of assets for those who are looking to buy, sell and trade. Below is a partial listing of the cryptocurrencies currently available on KuCoin:
Trading Experience
KuCoin customers can access their accounts via an online portal and mobile apps. Both are available for Android or iOS. The mobile app and desktop site offer a wealth of tools and features.
KuCoin users who have logged in to their account on mobile or desktop can click to view market data, buy and sell crypto, trade crypto, lend crypto, etc. There are four types of orders available on KuCoin: market, limit, stop–limit, and stop–market. Some users may find margin, futures and P2P trading a benefit. KuCoin also supports staking. Recently, KuCoin introduced a Trading Bot feature that simplifies the trading process. It basically acts as a robo advisor for your cryptocurrency portfolio.
Although this exchange has many options, the mobile and desktop platforms are not particularly user-friendly. However, users will find common answers in the help center.
Features
Margin trading
KuCoin is the only exchange that allows U.S. citizens to open a crypto margin account. This is a risky investment strategy that allows users to borrow money to increase their returns and potential losses. Margin greatly increases the risk involved in investing in a historically volatile and highly-risky asset. This is why it’s best to leave margin to crypto investors who are experienced.
KuCoin Token
KuCoin has its own cryptocurrency, KuCoin Token (KCS), that runs on Ethereum. Users can receive trading fee discounts and share in a portion of KuCoin’s trading fee revenue each day by owning KCS. Users must have at least six KCS tokens to be eligible.
KCS is undoubtedly an advantage to KuCoin’s platform. However, it is important to remember that KCS itself is a volatile crypto and you are not guaranteed a stable coin price.
Crypto Lending
KuCoin allows users to lend crypto assets to other margin traders. The terms and interest rates vary depending on the coin.
There are risks associated with crypto lending. Unexpected losses can occur if the price drops. The loans are secured and the recipient must keep a certain balance. KuCoin will automatically make margin calls to replenish your loaned coins when the recipient’s account falls below 97% of the amount they borrowed. KuCoin’s insurance covers any difference if they are unable to repay you fully. However, the terms of KuCoin note that it is not guaranteed to cover all losses.
Trade Bot
KuCoin’s Trading Bot lets users automate crypto trading by programming actions to execute automatically when certain conditions are met. This can be used for everything, from rebalancing your portfolio if your asset allocation is wrong to programming guardrails to allow it to take advantage of price fluctuations in your absence.
Fees
KuCoin fees can be reduced by trading more and holding at least 1000 KCS. The maker/taker fee is 0.1%, and it gets lower the higher you go. If you choose to pay in KCS, your fees will be further reduced.
Even the 0.1% highest fee is still lower than what you would get at major exchanges. You must also consider withdrawal and deposit fees.
KuCoin claims that deposits are free. This is true for crypto deposits, but fiat money (or traditional) will need to be added to your account. KuCoin is connected to several third-party service providers. It calculates the best deal based on how much you deposit, and how you pay. To convert USDT into U.S. Dollars, fees range from 1% to 3 percent by card. At the time of writing, Google Pay charged a $15 fee for deposits less than $500.
Security
KuCoin provides industry-standard security features and KYC verification, but the exchange was hacked in 2020. Over $280 million in crypto was stolen by hackers from hot wallets. Although the assets were protected by an insurance plan, a security breach of this scale is still alarming.
KuCoin provides traders a separate password to trade, in addition to multi-factor authentication and encrypted encryption. This password, in addition to regular login information, is required to trade or withdraw assets. This password is a rare security feature on crypto exchanges and adds an extra layer of protection.
Who can use KuCoin?
Before you open a KuCoin account, there is one thing you should know. KuCoin isn’t licensed to operate in the United States. However, this does not make it impossible to use in the United States. It does however mean that it is more difficult and riskier to use this platform. KuCoin is for advanced traders in the United States who need access to trading features and coins not available on other exchanges.
U.S.-based users cannot submit standard Know Your Customer (KYC) disclosures. This means that the U.S.-based users can’t be verified and are subject to certain restrictions, including lower daily withdrawal limits. Your assets could also be temporarily or permanently unavailable if the government cracks down on unlicensed cryptocurrency trading platforms, as it recently indicated.
Additionally, U.S. users can’t deposit cash dollars directly to their KuCoin accounts. You can either transfer cryptocurrency to an account or you can pay extremely high rates to purchase crypto using a KuCoin partner’s credit card. For people new to crypto, neither of these options are convenient.
These limitations are what make KuCoin so attractive. KuCoin Token (KCS) is the native currency of KuCoin Token (KCS), and it charges a low fee. It also supports trading in many cryptocurrencies. This exchange may be worth looking at for advanced crypto traders.
You should remember that cryptocurrency exchanges are volatile and unproven assets. You are taking significant risk no matter where you invest.
These risks don’t just include volatility. Hackers are often targeting crypto exchanges like KuCoin. KuCoin was the victim of a massive hack in 2020 that saw $285 million worth of assets stolen. It was able to compensate any assets that were lost through its insurance policy, almost all of the stolen coins being recovered.
Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Low fees | Not licensed in the U.S. |
| Strong user base | Payment methods are limited |
| Large range of coins | For new traders, not |
| Earn interest with your crypto | There are limited educational resources |
| Trading features | |
| Good customer service |
Conclusion
KuCoin, a large international exchange, offers many features and tools that may appeal to advanced traders. It has received poor reviews from users, and is not licensed to operate within the United States. It may appeal to those who are not from the United States and have had experience trading crypto. To ensure that KuCoin is the right platform for your needs, do your research before signing up.
