Announcement Binance leaving Canada sent shockwaves through the cryptocurrency trading community in Canada. With over 10,000 Canadians actively trading on Binance, this news has created a sense of urgency to find suitable alternatives before September 30. Fortunately, there are several cryptocurrency exchanges available that offer similar features and user interfaces for Canadian traders. We took the initiative to test and evaluate some of these alternatives, and now we are happy to share our findings with you.
1. Bitget
Bitget is the best Binance alternative for Canadians due to its impressive range of features, making it the preferred choice for advanced traders. It offers futures trading, lending, copy trading and bot trading, catering to the diverse needs of experienced traders. Bitget stands out for its comprehensive charting, order book data, advanced order types and competitive fees, making it ideal for frequent traders.
With hundreds of cryptocurrencies available, Bitget is a reliable platform for purchasing altcoins. Transaction fees are attractively low at just 0.1%, and using their native BGB token to pay fees can reduce fees even further. Moreover, users can conveniently deposit USDT commission-free via Interac e-transfer using the P2P marketplace feature.
Bitget’s interface closely resembles Binance’s, providing a familiar experience for former Binance users. Moreover, Bitget is available in every Canadian province, ensuring nationwide availability. As an added bonus, by signing up using our referral link, users can enjoy a generous offer to receive 50 USDT as a bonus on deposits over USD 500.
2. Kucoin
KuCoin Canada is a popular cryptocurrency exchange known for its wide selection of altcoins and low fees. With thousands of altcoins available, KuCoin attracts traders who are looking for a diverse range of cryptocurrencies to trade. The design of the platform is very similar to Binance, making it familiar to users who have used Binance before.
KuCoin boasts a large user base of over 8 million users worldwide. It offers a range of features including futures trading, lending and advanced order types, supporting advanced traders who need charting and order book data, as well as advanced order functionality.
Please note that KuCoin does not offer fiat pairs, which means you cannot directly purchase cryptocurrencies using fiat currency. Instead, you must first purchase USDT or another cryptocurrency and then exchange it for the specific coin you want. You can buy USDT directly on KuCoin using a third party bank transfer or credit card, or you can buy it on another exchange and transfer it to your KuCoin account.
Trading fees on KuCoin are low, starting at just 0.1%. It is worth mentioning that although KuCoin and Binance have similarities in terms of features, appearance and layout, they are separate entities and unrelated to each other.
KuCoin provides Canadian users with a range of advanced features including margin trading, lending, futures trading and more. Additionally, users can deposit coins into liquidity pools to earn high interest rates, participate in lotteries to win cryptocurrencies, and even create trading bots to automate their trading strategies. Please note that many of these features are advanced and may not be suitable for beginners.
Important Update (23 June, 2022): KuCoin has now been banned from operating in Ontario. The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) fined KuCoin $2,000,000 plus its investigation  costs for continuing to operate in the province without complying with the OSC’s regulations. Jeff Kehoe, Director of Enforcement at the OSC said, “Foreign crypto asset trading platforms that want to operate in Ontario must play by the rules or face enforcement action." However, still, many Canadians people keep using it but there are chances they can leave Canada soon similar to Binance.
3. Kraken
Kraken is another prominent cryptocurrency exchange that offers a wide range of popular cryptocurrencies.
Kraken is available worldwide and accepts deposits in multiple fiat currencies, including Canadian dollars. However, please note that Kraken can be relatively expensive for Canadians due to certain fees associated with using the platform.
For example, if you decide to buy $100 worth of Bitcoin using a debit card at Kraken, you will incur a 1.5% transaction fee on top of card processing fees. As a result, you will receive approximately $94.58 worth of Bitcoin and pay approximately $5.42 (or 5.42%) in fees.
When you deposit $100 through Interac, there is a 1.5% fee, which means you will receive $98.50 in your Kraken account.
To better illustrate the cost, let’s consider an example where $100 buys Bitcoin using Kraken’s Pro platform. In this scenario, you will receive Bitcoin worth 0.00318 BTC or $98.04. As a result, you pay a fee of $0.46 (or 0.46%), while the spread is $0.20 (or 0.20%), which is relatively lower compared to other rated exchanges.
If you sell your Bitcoin back to CAD, you will be charged another small fee. Additionally, Kraken charges a $10 fiat withdrawal fee, which results in $88.06 being returned to your bank account. In this particular example, the loss incurred exceeds 10%.
It is important to consider the fees and costs associated with trading on the Kraken platform as they may impact your overall investment.
Despite higher costs for Canadians, Kraken remains a reputable exchange offering a range of features, including staking and futures trading. The platform also offers 24/7 customer support to help users with their queries and doubts.
