Bitstamp Review 2018: Beginner’s Guide to Using Bitstamp Exchange

Bitstamp is a well-established and respected cryptocurrency exchange that was launched in 2011.

Since their launch, the exchange has undergone some changes. Bitstamp was acquired by a Belgium-based investment firm on October 29, 2018. Nevertheless, the exchange’s quality and vision remains the same.

Bitstamp provides trading services to traders around the world, and is accommodating to both intermediate and experienced traders and investors. The exchange provides their users with a user-friendly, yet intricate and advanced, trading platform with sophisticated cryptocurrency charts.

Unlike crypto exchanges such as Binance or Kucoin, Bitstamp features a rather limited range of cryptocurrency assets. However, they do allow the option to trade with fiat currencies, which can be appealing to those new to crypto.

The cryptocurrency assets available to trade on the Bitstamp platform include Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Ripple (XRP). All of these can be traded against Bitcoin (BTC) or fiat currencies including the Euro (EUR) and US Dollar (USD).

In the following Bitstamp review, we’ll delve into all the aspects and features this exchange has to offer, and how you can get started with Bitstamp today.

Why Use Bitstamp?

With so many cryptocurrency exchanges to choose from, how do you know which one to pick? In this section we’ll review why people use Bitstamp over other exchanges.

Bitstamp may not be the most popular cryptocurrency exchange available, but they are still considered one of the top exchanges to trade with. At the time of writing, Bitstamp ranks 65 out of 400 in terms of 24-hour BTC trading volume on coinmarketcap, and they have over 3 million users.

There are many reasons to use Bitstamp over other prominent exchanges. We highlight some of the most notable ones below.

• Reputation – Bitstamp was established in 2011 and has maintained a strong reputation despite a couple of hacking incidents in 2014 and 2015. Since then, Bitstamp has not suffered any prolonged trading shutdowns or hacks of the exchange.
• Security – Bitstamp has top-of-the line security due to their implementation of advanced security technologies and keeping the majority of their crypto assets offline in cold storage. Also, they use multi-signature technology for their hot wallet, where a very small portion of crypto assets are held.
• Design – The Bitstamp platform is intuitively designed and very easy to use. It can easily be navigated, as the interface is simple and quick to respond. Users can easily check key data on prices, place advanced orders, analyze charts, manage their account, and more.
• Low Fees – Bitstamp offers lower fees than most crypto exchanges for both the depositing and withdrawing of funds, as well as the trading of crypto assets. They also feature a tiered fee structure to further lower fees for high-volume traders.
• Customer Support – In comparison with most other crypto exchanges, Bitstamp blows the competition out of the water due to their high level of customer support. Traders have access to an extensive FAQ page and support ticket system. Customers can also reach support representatives via telephone, which is a rare offering among crypto exchanges.
• Charting & Analysis – Bitstamp has some of the best charting capabilities in the entire crypto exchange space. The charts are very advanced and come with a large array of drawing and analysis tools, technical indicators, time frames, and chart types. As well, traders can place orders directly from the charts, allowing for faster execution.

It’s important to note that Bitstamp is considered more a “fiat gateway” than a large crypto exchange with smaller altcoins. This means that, in addition to making cryptocurrency deposits, users can also make deposits with both the Euro and US Dollar via SEPA, International Wire Transfer, or credit card.

Therefore, Bitstamp is considered to be a competitor to Coinbase, as they both offer fiat currency deposits. However, Bitstamp does serve a different purpose and attracts a different crowd than exchanges like Binance and Kucoin, which only support cryptocurrencies.

How to Use Bitstamp Exchange

Ready to dive in? Joining and using Bitstamp isn’t as technical or confusing as you might think.

Follow the steps below to create an account, then read on for more ways to use the exchange to your benefit. Click here to go to Bitstamp (the link will open in new window so you can still follow this guide).

Step 1: Join Bitstamp

Start by going to Bitstamp.net and click “register” in the top right corner of the screen. Fill in your name, email, country of residence, and agree to Bitstamp’s terms and conditions.

You will then receive an email informing you that registration is complete and you can verify your email by clicking the verification link and then setting up a new password.

Once you do that, go back to Bitstamp.net and log in to your account. Upon logging in, you will be prompted that your password is out of date and you need to create a new password. Follow the steps to create a new password and continue to the next step.

Step 2: Verify Your Account

Once logged in with your new password, you will need to verify your account because Bitstamp follows know your customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) regulations.

First, choose either a personal or business account, then proceed to upload your verification documents and fill out the necessary personal information fields that match your identification documents.

Valid identification documents include a driver’s license, passport, or national ID. You must upload a picture of any one of these documents.  

Also, you will need to upload a picture of a proof of residence document, which could include a utility bill, bank statement, or some other government-issued document with your address and name on it.

If the documents submitted are valid, your account should be verified within 2-3 working days.

Step 3: Enable Two-Factor Authentication

This step is optional, but we highly recommend users secure their account with two-factor authentication. Bitstamp supports Google Authenticator or FreeOTP. Both applications can be downloaded for free from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store.

Simply visit the security section on your account and click “enable 2 Factor Authentication.” Scan the QR code with your two-factor authentication app, make note of the security key, and enter in the code generated by the app.

Step 4: Fund Your Account

The next step before trading will be to fund your account. You can do this by clicking the “deposit” button in the top right of your account page.

You can fund your account with fiat currency via SEPA or International Wire Transfer, and you can buy cryptocurrencies directly with credit cards.

Simply select a deposit method, follow the on-screen prompts, and fill in the necessary information to complete a deposit.

An international bank wire deposit takes between 2-5 business days to be completed, a SEPA transfer takes between 1-3 business days, and payments with credit card are nearly instantaneous.

Additionally, users can fund their accounts with cryptocurrency by sending it to the corresponding crypto wallet address on Bitstamp. This includes sending crypto from your personal crypto wallet or from a wallet on another exchange like Coinbase, Binance, etc.

Buying, Selling and Trading Cryptocurrencies on Bitstamp

Bitstamp supports all of the standard trading tools and features that are expected from a major cryptocurrency exchange. The charts are very nice and easy to understand, while at the same time offering advanced technical analysis features.

In addition to the main chart seen in the screenshot above, traders can get a good understanding of the market sentiment by looking at the volume chart at the bottom left of the screen. Furthermore, Bitstamp shows all of the current buy and sell orders to the right of the volume chart.

All in all, intermediate to experienced traders will really appreciate the trading interface, as it provides a seamless and intuitive trading experience.

Another great aspect of Bitstamp is that users have the ability to trade directly from the charts for instant order execution. Alternatively, traders can place multiple advanced order types such as instant, limit, market, stop, and trailing stop orders in the seperate order window beside the charts.

While the trading experience on Bitstamp is wonderful, one unfortunate thing about the trading interface is the inability to separate multiple different charts into different tabs. Users will physically have to open a new tab and go to the Bitstamp website if they wish to do this.

What Are the Trading Fees on Bitstamp?

Bitstamp offers their traders a dynamic fee structure that can potentially be very low and competitive with the industry standards. However, when trading with low volume, the fees are similar to other exchanges.

The trading fees charged are dependent on the monthly volume of the trader. The rate for new accounts and low trading volume accounts is 0.25% for volume of $20,000 or less. While the rates for high volume accounts can be as low as 0.10% for volume of $20,000,000 or more.

Is It Safe To Use Bitstamp?

When choosing an exchange to trade cryptocurrencies, the most important question to ask is whether the exchange is safe to trade on or not. In Bitstamp’s case, the short answer is yes.

Bitstamp has been successfully operating since 2011 with the exception of a couple hacks in 2014 and 2015. Since those hacks, Bitstamp has improved their security and they haven’t suffered any loss of funds due to hacks since.

As we stated earlier, the majority of user funds are held in cold storage and users can further secure their accounts with 2-factor authentication.

Overall, Bitstamp is a very safe and secure cryptocurrency exchange.

Conclusion

Bitstamp is a great cryptocurrency exchange for traders and investors who need a fiat on-ramp to buy and sell major cryptocurrencies.

The exchange does not offer a wide variety of altcoins like some other top-ranking cryptocurrency exchanges, but they do support fiat currency deposits and withdrawals.

To get started with Bitstamp today, click here to sign up for a Bitstamp account!