Crypto Exchange Review: BTC Markets

General Information

BTC Markets is an Australian crypto exchange company primarily aimed at serving domestic clients. It was one of the industry’s forerunners, opening as early as 2012. The earliness of its foundation, along with its specific target group, means many have defaulted using BTC Markets. As such, it’s amassed quite a solid trader base and maintained relevance through its near-decade of operations. However, due to its status as a prominent and experienced exchange, we’ll be less forgiving for its shortcomings.

However, on the topic of shortcomings, there’s quite a bit to discuss. We’ll leave that for a section where it’s more appropriate, though, and introduce the exchange before that. BTC Market is a simple crypto exchange that targets beginner Aussie traders. While its features don’t cover the most significant area, they do well in fulfilling their goal of creating a stress-free atmosphere for beginners. It boasts simple buy/sell trading, as well as a quick registration process that simplifies user acquisition.

And while those features do have their positives, such as creating a gateway for newbies, they also create a few concerns. For example, since the firm has its fair share of security issues, the focus on novices comes off as disingenuous. It looks somewhat as if the exchange is luring newbies rather than putting in the effort to create a rounded experience. It also means that traders outgrow it rapidly, as there are better options for more experienced users.

Primary Features

With all its downsides, BTC Markets has to be doing something right to maintain a healthy user base for so long. As we mentioned in the opening of our BTC Markets review, that’s partially due to being established and specialized. However, only those two wouldn’t be enough for the exchange to stay afloat for so long. So let’s look at some of the exchange’s features that look the most appealing:

·         BTC Markets: Newcomer Friendly

The company’s beginner friendliness is undoubtedly the feature that’s helped it attract the most users. It has a simple platform with straightforward trading options, letting novices quickly grasp what they should be doing. Furthermore, the registration and approval processes are quick, so there are no extended periods of waiting. All that works together with the fact that numerous traders stick to what they’re comfortable with instead of exploring better options. The result is that many traders stick around way longer than they realistically should, working in BTC Markets’ favor.

·         Educational Experience

Pairing with the previous section, the brokerage does well in ensuring the beginner experience is all-encompassing. That includes providing a broad educational experience customers can use to build up their skillset from the ground up. Since the resources are right there on the website, users won’t need to seek other sources and check their validity. Additionally, it helps more unknown users get going straight away, easing the preparation process that trading involves.

·         Top-Notch AUD Funding

The largest benefit for crypto exchanges that specialize in a certain area is the ability to cater to traders. With BTC Markets being an Australian exchange, they can provide far above average funding options for AUD. Without worrying about spreading out their service and organizing a funding web, the exchange can still excel. For example, it provides entirely fee-free deposits, which is quite rare in the cryptocurrency exchange sphere.

Security 

Since the previous section of our BTC Markets review focused on the positives, it might’ve led you to believe it’s a quality exchange. However, once you start looking at the bigger picture, that image begins to rapidly shatter. All that starts with the firm’s sub-par security. An example of that is the very recent December 2020 data leak.

The leak had millions of customer emails and personal information exposed. The brokerage stated that everyone’s been affected, including both current and previous customers. BTC Markets apologized and urged those that plan on continuing to use the service to enable 2FA. While the company’s reaction was fairly quick, the mistake was quite massive, so many weren’t quite willing to forgive and forget.

The firm also had other issues in the past, but another current one is customer service responsiveness. Namely, the company states the average time is as long as ten days. Waiting for a response for so long is frustrating enough already, and it’s entirely unreasonable for a modern company. Making matters worse is the fact that clients have reported that the waiting time regularly goes over the predicted ten days.

Other issues seem to be popping up, such as the firm using a fake address and phone number. Altogether, we’re hesitant to call the organization a scam, although our trust rating is quite low.

Fees & Conditions at BTC Markets

BTC Markets’ fees end up on the higher side, excluding its fee-free AUD deposits. The firm follows the usual cryptocurrency exchange fee structure, with free crypto deposits and a maker-taker system on trades. However, even with that, its trading charges end up much higher than other prominent cryptocurrency exchanges. To achieve a rate we would consider competitive, you’d need a monthly trading volume of over 5 million AUD. Needless to say, that’s way above most traders’ comfort zones, meaning trading with BTC Markets will be more expensive compared to competitors.

Additionally, the exchange uses the same withdrawal structure as competitors. That means each cryptocurrency will have its own cost, but again, BTC Markets’ prices on average are higher than more serious competitors’.

Unfortunately, the exchange doesn’t have any standout trading conditions to justify the price. The focus on beginners means the broker entirely ignored the needs of more experienced customers. There are no sophisticated trading options, and the asset numbers are quite limited.

Funding Methods

Through our BTC Markets review, you’ve seen us commend their AUD deposit methods. However, they have definitely come at a price, as it’s the only fiat currency the exchange accepts. As such, it puts quite a heavy limit on the way users can fund their accounts.

As for the crypto funding methods, they look slightly better. Like with most exchanges, the funding is free, although both methods seem a bit slow. Namely, getting money into your accounts can take 1-3 days, which may annoy users accustomed to instant (or near-instant) transactions.

Currencies

As with other aspects of its service, BTC Markets’ coin variety is severely limited. It offers barely over ten pairs of various cryptocurrencies put against AUD or BTC. That might not bother users that only trade on 2-3 of the world’s most prominent coins, but it’s quite a limiting experience.

We should also give a small warning regarding the broker’s price webpage. Namely, it allows you to select currencies other than AUD, and the page converts the prices to that currency. However, that doesn’t mean you can make trades against those currencies, as the function is only for referential purposes. The website gives the same warning, but it’s important for you not to miss it.

BTC Markets Review: Conclusion

BTC Markets may have gotten a pass when it was newer, and the standard for exchanges was lower. Furthermore, it might’ve been in a better state before, as most user complaints and security troubles have recent dates. Be that as it may, we don’t judge exchanges on what they used to be, but what they are now.

The only win we can give to BTC Markets is that it’s nice for beginner crypto traders from Australia. Even in that narrow section, we can’t certainly say the exchange is the best option. On top of that, the small plus does nearly nothing to correct the glaring weaknesses the company has. It’s paid nearly no attention to catering to experienced customers, and it’s very basic, to the point where it seems intentionally dumbed down.

And then, on top of all of that, come the security concerns, putting the final nail in the coffin. All that said, we can’t recommend the service even to beginners, as it’s not secure, and they’re likely to outgrow it quickly. For veterans, the oversimplicity is even more of an issue, and there’s no merit to using the service at all.