Poloniex Review
- Serves a wider population
- 90 plus supported trading pairs
- Fast account creation
- Intuitive user interface
- Low trading fees
- Supports 2-factor authentication
- Good liquidity
- Stop-limit order feature to reduce losses
- Supports margin trading and advanced orders
- With over 100 cryptocurrency options, it’s hard to keep the platform easy to navigate
- The platform is heavily crowded, and this can lead to downtimes on a busy day
- The website is not optimized for mobile
- No fiat markets
- Wide bid-ask spreads
- Terrible customer support
- Doesn’t offer futures and derivatives
Poloniex is a cryptocurrency exchange platform based in the US. Established in January 2014 by Tristan D’Agosta, it has developed at a rapid pace to become one of the big players in the digital asset exchange space. Due to its crowded nature, it’s mostly described as a place where one can’t feel lonely.
The platform is highly liquid and thus suitable for expert and mid-level traders. At any given time, there are usually more than 60, 000 traders online. Unlike some networks, there are no deposit and withdrawal fees needed on Poloniex.
Account opening with them is simple and takes a few minutes. You’ll need your original ID, residence address, email, SSN, Email or a selfie (where you’re holding your ID). These requirements vary according to the level of the account you need. For instance, level one account holders must provide their first and last name, country, and email. Level two traders need to provide their complete address, Date of Birth and phone number.
Exchange Platform
As an exchange platform, Poloniex scores big on the number of crypto coins one can trade in. It also offers advanced charts, APIs, data analysis tools and a secure environment to trade in. Since there no fiats supported, trades occur in cryptocurrencies being paired against themselves.
Fiat currency is not supported by this exchange. All deposits happen through cryptocurrencies or USDT (Tether USD), which is a USD written on the blockchain. The trading screen provides the trader with all the pairs supported, multiple-option candlesticks, multiple time frames, Bollinger bands, Fibonacci levels, and anything that can make the work of a trader easy.
There are four main markets on Polonex:
- Bitcoin (BTC)
- Ethereum (ETH)
- Tether (USDT)
- Monero (XMR)
Each market has a specified box, and their trading pairs follow right after. As for the order types, the available ones are Buy, Sell and Stop Limit. The orders are present for all the cryptocurrencies pairs on the platform.
Exchange Market
Poloniex goes uncontested on the number of crypto coins it supports. Here is a comprehensive list of a few cryptocurrencies (in no particular order) that you can trade on Poloniex:
- Bitcoin
- Ethereu
- Monero
- Litecoin
- Ripple
- Bitshares
- Zcash
- Bitcoin Cash
- Tron
- Dash
- Dogecoin
- Game
In the Poloniex community, an account exists as three in one. So one account is treated as an exchange account, lending account and margin account. All the activities can be done in a single exchange. If you have any question regarding trade, ask fellow traders through the chat box (usually going by troll box because not all the advice offered can be trusted).
Deposit and Withdrawals
The fees levied by Poloniex are very friendly. The percentage depends on whether you are a taker or maker. A maker creates an order, and a taker takes it. As a maker, the more you trade, the less you pay in fees. Deposits happen through crypto coins only; no fiat money is accepted.
Check the table below for comprehensive info on how their fees are levied (effective May 15, 2018).
| Maker | Taker | Trade Volume (trailing 30 day avg) |
|---|---|---|
| 0.10% | 0.20% | < 500K USD |
| 0.08% | 0.20% | ≥ 500K USD |
| 0.06% | 0.20% | ≥ 1M USD |
| 0.04% | 0.20% | ≥ 2.5M USD |
| 0.02% | 0.20% | ≥ 5M USD |
| 0.00% | 0.20% | ≥ 7.5M USD |
| 0.00% | 0.18% | ≥ 10M USD |
| 0.00% | 0.16% | ≥ 15M USD |
| 0.00% | 0.14% | ≥ 20M USD |
| 0.00% | 0.12% | ≥ 25M USD |
| 0.00% | 0.10% | ≥ 30M USD |
Deposits and withdrawals on Poloniex are not charged. Users are allowed to withdraw up to a maximum of $25, 000 which can be raised further by contacting admins. Video verification is required before a withdrawal can be approved.
Help and Support
Unfortunately, Poloniex’s FAQs section doesn’t address issues relating to trading cryptocurrencies. It covers coin listings, Trollbox (user chat) and other nearly irrelevant data. There are a few sections that explain margin trading and other useful stuff. The TrollBox is Poloniex’s useful information resource. You can ask questions and get answers from the community. Some comments can be untrue so be careful who you listen to.
Poloniex can also be contacted through emails and ticket messages. However, most users have lamented on their response time with others being completely harsh about it.
Security and Fairness
Poloniex’s security revolves around the 2-factor authentication and cold storage systems. Log in, and withdrawals have to pass through the 2FA before confirmation is offered. The exchange also monitors their network 24/7 for any peculiar activity.
Poloniex hasn’t escaped being a victim of security breaches. In late 2014, hackers got the better of them and took to the woods with 12.3% of their Bitcoins. By then, this amounted to a meager $50,000. The good part is they paid all the affected individuals. Since then, the company hasn’t experienced anything of the sort.
Poloniex is a registered company with offices in Boston and other cities, and therefore legitimate. It’s just that their lack of response to clients’ tickets and unexplained erroneous transactions make them look shady.
Conclusion
Poloniex is arguably one of the most reliable platforms especially for those who are looking to get a share of those small, unknown cryptocurrencies. It’s got over 100 cryptocurrency options making it a go-to for most prospective traders. Nevertheless, this doesn’t mean it is flawless; as you can see from the cons list, it still has got plenty of issues to redress. Make sure your country is supported before opening an account with them.
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