Coinberry makes buying cryptocurrencies easy for Canadian’s. It has also positioned itself as one of the most secure and regulatory compliant cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. Now, it’s opening the doors for retail and institutional investors from around the world.
Can Coinberry really compete in today’s overcrowded marketplace of cryptocurrency exchanges?
In this Coinberry review, we’ll take a look at Canada’s first FINTRAC registered & PIPEDA compliant Digital asset platform.
In this thorough review, we aim to shed some light on the Coinberry exchange, by going over their security features, fee structure, funding and withdrawal methods, and customer support. We would also like to share our opinions on the good and bad.
Let’s go ahead and jump right in.
Who is Coinberry?
Coinberry is a Canadian digital asset exchange that was created in 2017. Their focus was to make it easy for Canadians to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Conveniently located on 320 Davenport Rd Toronto Ontario.
Longterm cryptocurrency enthusiasts Andrei Poliakov and Evan Kuhn Co-founded the exchange with the primary goal of making Bitcoin easier to buy.
Coinberry, offers users the ability to buy Bitcoin with credit card or debit card, wire or Interac-Transfer, and E-transfer. Participating Canadian banks and other financial institutions are working with Coinberry in order to process transactions.
Interact includes approx 250 financial institutions as well as all major Canadian Banks. This gives Coinberry access to two thousand national merchants, including Sony, Indigo, Dell, and Adidas to make payments easy.
Ledger (the largest Crypto hardware wallet company) has recently listed Coinberry as a top exchange on their website.
Coinberry partners with Innisfil to become the first city in Canada to except cryptocurrency payments for Taxes
How safe is Coinberry?
For most users, safety and security is their number one concern in cryptocurrency investing. This is especially true in the digital asset industry because of so many hack attacks on crypto exchanges. Quadrigax was Canada’s largest Canadian exchange until it suffered one of the biggest hacks in crypto history. No wonder Canadians take security seriously.
So how does Coinbase stack up against other top Crypto Exchanges?
Compliance & Regulation
Firstly, Coinberry is the first and only cryptocurrency exchange registered with (FINTRAC) and (MSB). This means that Coinberry has gone through a number of security checks by Canadian regulators so that they can legally accept clients’ money.
On top of that, Coinberry has also received CDIC insured banking. This allows Coinberry to work with Canadian Schedule one banks and comply with all Canadian laws. One of the major requirements for obtaining these certifications is to keep customers’ funds in a separate account (where they are safe).
Because funds are held in a separate account, they are safe from funds ever being frozen. Using a segregating bank account also allows funds to be transferred much faster (1 business day).
Coinbase is also one of only two Canadian exchanges to have gone through a financial audit.
Cryptocurrency exchange security
Crypto exchange hacks and breaches have always been the biggest threats to digital currency platforms. Hence, when analyzing the security of an exchange, the number one requirement is to have a secure cybersecurity protocol.
For one, Bitcoin deposits to Coinberry are processed through a hierarchy system. Hierarchical Deterministic Wallets are cryptocurrency wallets that generate a chain-like structure of addresses or keys so that the user doesn’t need to do it themselves.
An HD wallet will generate addresses from a master seed using a variation of the 12-word master seed key. This makes it possible to automatically create an unlimited number of new addresses.
They also operate multi-signature wallets offline. This gives two members of Coinberry to access customer funds. That way if one goes missing then the customer’s funds are still safe (it’s an excellent backup).
Coinbase regularly does penetration testing hiring a top Cybersecurity firm in Canada. In the event of a breach, they utilize a redundant database that can be restored to if ever breached.
User Protection
Typically the front line of security begins with the customer. Coinberry offers a number of security tools in order to help prevent client-side hacks.
The most important security feature is mobile two-factor authentication. When enabled, you will be required to confirm your account login through a mobile device. Servers will sync to Google authenticator and generate your login credentials.
Coinbery has also implemented “Open PGP” protocol encrypted. PGP meaning “Pretty Good Privacy” is an encryption service that provides cryptographic privacy and authentication for data communication.
Coinberry Fees
One of the first things that you notice on Coinberry’s website, is 0% deposit fees, 0% withdrawal fees, and 0.5% trading fees which is actually quite amazing.
These trading fees are much lower than the average fees among other cryptocurrency exchanges, making Cionberry much more appealing. There is one exchange offering 0.4% quick buy fees at Coinsquare which I consider to be a good competitor.
One thing that you may want to consider is that Coinberry is the Market Maker for trading coins. meaning that they’re the counterparty to all of the trades on the market. That means that the buy order and sell order may be different than on other exchanges.
Despite them being the market maker, Coinberry is known to be fairly accurate with their prices.
Coinberry is one of the only Bitcoin exchanges in Canada to offer free withdrawals and deposits. This makes Coinberry so much more appealing because most exchanges are charging an average 3% one way.
If you add 3% both ways that come to 6% in fees for moving your funds on and off their exchanges. This is why Coiberry is fast becoming a top bitcoin exchange across the globe.
It’s important to note that there may also be fees that your own bank will charge on transactions. especially if you’re using credit cards.
One more thing worth pointing out is that the 0% withdrawal fee only applies to the fiat withdrawals. For cryptocurrency withdraws, you will have to pay a miners fee, which is typically very tiny.
Coinberry Asset Coverage
Currently, Coinberry is limited to only 6 coins, Bitcoin, Etherum, Ripple, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash and Stellar
This is far below the industry standard, some exchanges offer up to 400 coins for their traders to choose from. Coinberry has however revealed plans to introduce more coins at a later stage and we will keep our watch for news.
This should not discourage you from using Coinberry though. They can always be used as a gateway into Bitcoin, once you have acquired your bitcoin, you can then send it to any other exchange to buy other coins. BlockFi is another platform that you can use to earn interest on your bitcoin. I highly recommend using it, if you plan on holding Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies long term.
Customer Support
One of the most important aspects of a good crypto exchange is customer support. This is especially true when you have urgent issues that need to be corrected quickly.
One thing that I find very convenient on Coinberry is their hotline 1 (888) 997-6544. It operates Monday – Friday from 9:30 am to 4:00 pm EST. Maybe I’m old fashioned but it feels great being able to talk to a person on the phone.
If you have a generic question, you can hop on to Coinberry’s also FAQ page and find answers to basic questions, like ‘How to trade Bitcoin?’ ‘How to Buy Bitcoin with Canadian Dollars?’ ‘How to buy Bitcoin with credit card?’ etc.
Another way to ask questions is through their numerous social media accounts, like Facebook and Twitter.
How to Register with Coinberry
How to Register with Coinberry
If you have decided that you would like to try out Coinberry then it’s time to create an account. Signing up on Coinberry is a breeze and can be done a few minutes. Click the “sign-up” button on the top of this page and you will be asked for an email address and a password.
Once you have clicked “submit” on the Coinberry sign up page, you will have to confirm your email. Once confirmed, you’re required to add a phone number. This 2-factor authentication protects your account from hackers.
Unfortunately, you cannot operate an anonymous account on Coinberry. Their regulatory licenses require them to complete a KYC check on their customers.
Verification and KYC
Coinberry exchange is compliant with Anti Money Laundering and KYC requirements set by FINTRAC. This means that they’re required to verify each user.
Here are two ways you can verify your identity:
- Instant Verification – Users can provide their verification details to Coinberry’s KYC/AML division to verify their identity. This involves a credit reporting agency that has information on your financial history
- Manual Verification – If you fail the instant verification. Coinberry will require a Government-Issued Photo ID and a proof of address.
If manual verification is the only option, then you will be required to upload a government-issued photo ID. Below are the accepted identity documents:
- Canadian Driver’s License
- Canadian Passport
- Provincial or Territory Identity Card
- Permanent Residence Card
- Status Indian Card
For proof of address, you will need to submit one of the documents below:
- Utility Bill (electricity, water, phone, internet)
- T4 statement
- CRA documents or Government Benefits statement
- Canada Pension Plan (CPP) statement
- Investment account statements (RRSP, GIC)
- Provincially-issued vehicle registration
- Property tax assessment issued by a municipality
After submitting these documents, Coinberry will manually verify each document and could take anywhere from 1 to 3 business days.
Based on Coinberry’s strict requirements, it’s quite evident that Coinberry is trying to position itself as the “Coinbase” of Canada, a fully compliant Cryptocurrency exchange that offers retail and institutional investors trusted environment that sides with government regulations.
Deposits and Withdrawals
Once you have been fully verified, it’s time to fund your account. Coinbase offers a number of funding options in order to make it easy for users.
By far the cheapest and fastest way to fund your account will be to use a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin.
If you already have Bitcoin and would like to fund your account then you can send it directly to your exchange wallet.
Surprisingly, Coinberry uses unique one-time addresses for funding with cryptocurrency. This protects your transaction history from potential threats.
You can then either copy and paste the crypto address or scan the QR code with a mobile phone. Once click send it will take some time for the transaction to be posted in the blockchain. You can view the transaction in your account.
Withdrawals work similarly where you can start by will selecting **withdrawals** in your account. They will ask for your Bitcoin address to be sent to. You will be prompted for your password in order to verify the transaction.
They will ask to confirm the withdrawal one more time. Withdraws typically take no more than a couple of hours to complete, depending on the network.
Funding in Canadian dollars
Funding your account with dollars is made simple for Coinberry users. They include Interac E-Transfer, Credit Card, and Bank Wire Transfers. Below are the user limits and processing times.
– Interac e-Transfer $50 -$10,000 (Up to 3 hours)
– Credit Card $1 -$500 (Instantaneous)
– Wire Transfer $10,000- $500,000 (Up to 1 business day)
It’s useful to note, credit card funding is the quickest option, they’re instantaneous. So if you want to jump right in and get trading as quickly as possible, choose credit card.
But because credit cards have low funding limits, you may want to consider using bank transfers as they’re much cheaper as well.
E-Transfers are becoming the most popular method to fund and withdraw because the ease of use and low fees. If you have a Canadian bank, it will offer E-Transfer. Below are some of the Canadian banks offering E-transfer.
– TD Canada Trust
– RBC Royal Bank
– CIBC
– Scotia bank
– BMO
You have two options for using E-Transfers:
- You can add Coinberry as a PayeeRecipient Name & Last Name: Coinberry Limited Email: [email protected] You’re required to follow the instructions and answer security questions on your Coinberry account.
- You can “Fund Account”: Just enter how much you would like to fund the account with. they have a minimum funding of $50 and the maximum funding depends on your bank.
Once the payment has been processed it will be credited to your account within 3 hours.
If you choose to fund with a wire transfer then you will be required to use your Coinberry account number.
You must also use the same name that you verified with when creating your account. No third party transfers are allowed.
Below is some information on fiat withdrawal times and limits:
– Interac e-Transfer $50 -$10,000 Up to 1 business day
– Wire Transfer $10,000 -$500,000 Up to 1 business day
For E-transfer withdraws, select the ‘E-transfer’ and enter the desired amount of you want to withdraw. The minimum withdraw is $100 Cad.
After you click continue, you will receive a confirmation message letting you know that the withdrawal will be processed within 2 business days.
Coinberry’s Trading Platform
Coinberry’s trading platform is geared towards new investors rather than professional day traders. The interface is simple and easy to understand there is no margin trading or chart functionality, just simple buy and sell options.
Once your account has been verified, you’re now ready to buy, sell or trade Bitcoin, the first thing you’ll see are buy and sell buttons. These market orders are instantaneous purchases of cryptocurrency.
After clicking next, you will then choose which method you will use to purchase your BTC with, Credit card, Debit Card or bank transfer.
Before using credit card or debit card, you will first need to connect your bank account to the exchange account for fraud prevention.
Once you’ve bought your crypto, your balance will reflect on the in your dashboard.
How to short Bitcoin
Coinberry is the first Canadian Bitcoin exchange that offers short positions. meaning that if you can make money by shorting if the price goes down. I don’t recommend shorting if you have no experience trading, you will almost always lose your money eventually. (IMO)
Coinberry’s short-selling feature is very simple and can be completed in one click. This makes it much easier than short selling on margin trading platforms.
Because there is no margin trading that means that you cannot trade more than you have in your account.
Coinberry Mobile App
Coinberry offers a complete trading platform for mobile devices, the app can be installed on either IOS or Android for the full-featured mobile exchange. the user interface is quite slick and functions as it should.
Coinberry Mobile App
Mobile application screenshots
The mobile app is well designed, making it easy for newbs to not only buy bitcoin but also spend their cryptos at merchants that accept them. They make it easy to scan barcodes which makes spending crypto like cash easy for everyone. This unique mobile app should help Coinberry gain some major attention in the blockchain space.
Based on the reviews on Google play store, Coinberry has been accepted by the community as a great place to buy and sell cryptocurrencies.
Coinberry developers are actively responding to customers’ suggestions in the comments sections, which is quite positive for the company. They’re also using these suggestions when creating further updates to the app.
Coinberry team
It seems to be a rarity to have transparency for cryptocurrency exchange staff. It’s quite refreshing to see that Coinberry displays a bio and profile pictures for team member working for the exchange. In fact, I can’t think of any other exchanges that offer the same level of transparency.
The team includes some impressive individuals that bring a tremendous amount of skill to their company:
Co-founder Evan Kuhn: Kuhn describes himself as a lifelong entrepreneur. Starting out in the Toronto commercial real estate market, he built a multi-million dollar company before he the age of 30.
Andrei Poliakov: A seasoned entrepreneur, he’s launched and managed a number of start-ups with a that were of great success. He brings ten years of experience building and managing multinational corporations multinationals around the world.
Dimitri Giller: Operations manager. He has experience working with JP. Morgan and brings a wealth of knowledge in finance.
Diogo Biazus – Lead Developer. An experienced programmer that has developed successful application s for several Brazilian and Canadian businesses, including Nulogy, Mitre Media, and Catarse.
You can find more information on the Coinberry team by checking out their linked-in profiles.
Areas for Improvement
How can Coinberry improve?
Although I think Coinberry is a one of the best exchanges, there is still room for improvement.
The major improvement that can be done is to offer a wider range of cryptocurrencies. Other major exchanges such as coinbase have added several alternate cryptocurrencies and most exchanges are doing the same thing.it would be nice to have at least 15-20 of the top coins ranked from coin market cap.
Adding more cryptocurrencies will certainly bring more crypto trader on to their platform and would also bring more adoption for crypto in Canada.
Another thing they need to work on is adding more features for advanced day traders. margin trading and feature-rich charts can make a big difference for experienced traders looking for a Canadian exchange.
Coinberry should strategize to market its platform on a global scale and reach customers outside of Canada. Its value proposition for being a low fee exchange would be highly desirable to people from around the globe. I can see Coinberry doing very well in America if the focused some attention on marketing their.
Closing thoughts
Coinberry has built a great exchange for first-time cryptocurrency investors who live in Canada. It offers everything you need to get you started buying crypto, including being able to buy the top 10 cryptocurrencies. It offers deposits and withdraws for E-Transfer, Credit card, debit card, Wire transfer, and limited to no fees.
The crypto market is evolving quickly, and Coinberry needs to continue to find ways to stay ahead of the curve. Right now, Coinberry edge is in its high security, government and bank partnerships, and low fee trading platform.
Even though a few things could be improved, I believe they will be addressed. The Coinberry team seems to be willing to work with customers’ suggestions and are focused on building a user-friendly platform.
Now that you know a little more about Coinberry, it’s a good idea to sign up and check out their platform. get comfortable with all the features before you start trading.
So what do you think, does Coinberry sound like a good exchange?
Well, if you’re looking for an easy way to buy bitcoin, you value security and like low fees, then Coinberry is definitely worth checking out.
