In this post, I would like to introduce cryptocurrency exchanges that are available for U.S. based customers. Coinbase/Coinbase Pro, Bittrex, Bitflyer, Gemini, Kraken, Binance US are briefly; all of them accept depositing and withdrawing in US dollars. Explanation on Robinhood and Paypal are also added.
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1. Things You Need to Know Before Opening an Account with Cryptocurrency exchanges
First of all, a cryptocurrency exchange is an exchange where you can buy and sell cryptocurrencies (virtual currencies).
Each exchange has its own rules regarding residents of which countries (or state) can open an account and make transactions. For example, in the case of exchanges in the US, they need to obtain license from each state where they desire to conduct business, and if the license cannot be obtained, residents of a such states cannot even open an account. Similarly, in the case of overseas exchanges, U.S. residents may not be able to open an account if the overseas exchanges so determined.
Which cryptocurrencies we can deposit/withdraw differ depending on which exchanges we wish to use. Also, we can send/receive fiat currencies such as US dollar or Japanese yen to some cryptocurrency exchanges, while we cannot do so to some exchanges. Below, I examined U.S. based cryptocurrency exchanges which allow users to deposit/withdraw U.S. dollars to their accounts.
Concurrency exchanges listed below are just examples and there are countless cryptocurrency exchanges. If you are interested, please check CoinMarketCap which lists around 300 cryptocurrency exchanges in the order of market volume.
２．U.S. Based Cryptocurrency Exchanges Which Accept Deposit and Withdraw of US Dollar
2.1 Coinbase
Website: https://www.coinbase.com/
If you are thinking about starting cryptocurrency trading and ask for an advice regarding where to start, I think 10 out of 10 people would recommend to open an account with Coinbase.
You can send cryptocurrencies to Coinbase. Coinbase also allow you to deposit US dollars from your bank account (ACH, Wire Transfer, debit card), and to exchange US dollar to cryptocurrencies. (Source: Coinbase: Payment Methods for US Customers)
For withdrawal, you can not only send US dollar to your bank account but also to your PayPal account (Source: Coinbase: PayPal FAQ)
When I opened an account with Coinbase (at the end of 2017), Coinbase only handled four cryptocurrencies, which were BTC (Bitcoin), BCH (Bitcoin Cash), ETH (Etherieum), and LTC (Litecoin). As of the December 5, 2020, in addition to the above 4 currencies, you can trade around 40 currencies. In the case of New York residents, however, only limited currencies can be traded. (Source: Coinbase: Supported Cryptocurrencies)
In trading at Coinbase, you can only use market order (limit order at current rate). However, if you use Coinbase’s smartphone app, you can set up to receive notifications on your smartphone which will notify you when it reaches a certain price.
In trading cryptocurrencies, you can either specify dollar amount (how much you want to spend to buy the cryptocurrency) or in a number of cryptocurrencies (how many cryptocurrencies you intend to buy at the current price). It is an easy-to-use exchange for beginners.
2.2 Coinbase Pro
Website: https://pro.coinbase.com/
When a customer open an account with Coinbase, account for Coinbase Pro (previously called GDAX) will be automatically opened. Password for Coinbase Pro is same with that of Coinbase.
At Coinbase Pro, a customer can use not only market orders, but also limit orders and stop orders.
The cryptocurrency you can traded in Coinbase Pro is almost the same as Coinbase with slight differences. If you’re a New York resident, same with Coinbase, cryptocurrencies your can trade is restricted compared to residents of other states.
2.3 Binance US
Until Binance announced that they will suspend transactions with citizens and residents of the U.S. in September 2019, I have used Binance. Although Binance was founded relatively new in 2017, it is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange and has been well received by users, so I think Binance US is also easy to use.
- Webiste: https://www.binance.us/en
- This is a site for US Citizens and US residents that started trading in September 2019. Their main site is https://www.binance.com/en, which does not accept trading by US citizens and US residents.
- Cryptocurrencies available for trade: You can trade over 50 cryptocurrencies. Also, new cryptocurrencies are being added frequently (Reference: Binance US: New Listings)
- Funding: You can deposit and withdraw in US dollars (Wire transfer, ACH, debit card) and send and receive cryptocurrencies （Binance US: Deposit & Withdrawal Guidelines）
- Binance US does not offer services to residents of the following States: Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Louisiana, New York, Texas, Vermont, Washington (Reference: Binance US: States That Binance.US Does Not Currently Support)
2.4 Kraken
- Website: https://www.kraken.com/
- Cryptocurrencies available for trade: Customers can trade 50 cryptocurrencies.
(Reference: Cryptocurrencies available on Kraken ） - Funding: Kraken accepts deposits and withdrawal in US dollars. It might not accept deposit/withdraw through ACH transfer.
(Reference: Fiat currency deposit options (fees, minimums and processing times) and Cryptocurrency withdrawal fees and minimums） - Kraken does not offer services to the State of New York as well as State of Washington in the US.
(Reference: Geographic Restrictions: Can I use Kraken if I’m from …?)
2.5 Bittrex
- Website: https://bittrex.com/
- Bittrex is an exchange for U.S. citizens and US residents. There is a separate exchange (Bittrex Global) for non-US based customers.
- Funding/Withdrawal: Not all, but customers of most states can deposit or withdraw in US dollar. Those states which cannot use US dollar should obtain USDT, BTC or ETH first, then deposit those currencies. (Source: Bittrex: Fiat (US Dollar) Trading, Deposits and Withdrawals)
- Cryptocurrencies available for trade: Listing extensive number of cryptocurrencies. For details see https://bittrex.com/home/markets.
- US based customers became unable to trade 32 cryptocurrencies from June 21, 2019. Also additional 42 cryptocurrencies will become unable to trade from June 28, 2019. These 74 cryptocurrencies will continue to be available at Bittrex International. (Source: Bittrex: Market Availability Changes for U.S. Customers)
- Bittrex does not offer services to residents of the following States: Connecticut, Hawaii, New York, Vermont. (See Bittrex: State-Specific Disclosures).
2.6 Bitflyer USA
- Website: https://bitflyer.com/en-us/
- Bitflyer has separate exchange for Japanese residents, and Bitflyer USA is designed for US residents.
- Cryptocurrencies available for trade: Bitcoin (BTC)、Ethereum (ETH)、Ethereum Classic (ETC)、Litecoin (LTC) Bitcoin Cash (BTC) are abavlabe for trade. (Reference: Fees）
- Funding: Customers can deposit/withdraw US dollars to/from bank accounts. (See Bitflyer: Q&A Deposit/Withdrawal)
- Residents of all 50 states and D.C. can traded at Bitflyer USA. (Reference: Bitflyer: States Where We Operate)
2.7 Gemni
- Website: https://gemini.com/
- Currencies available for trade: Depending on the states where customers resides, there are some differences, but basically, customers can trade BTC, ETH, KTC, BCH, ZEC and GUSD.
- Funding: Customers can deposit/withdraw in US dollars. (See Fiat (USD) Transfers)
- Residents of all 50 states and D.C. can traded at Gemni (See Gemini: Areas of Operation)
3. Other methods to Trade Cryptocurrencies which Allow Customers to Deposit/Withdraw US dollars
3.1 Robinhood
It is not a cryptocurrency exchange, but using the investment app “Robinhood” might be the easiest way to trade cryptocurrencies . This app is popular for stock traders (mainly millenniums) because it allows customers to trade stocks for free.
Trading cryptocurrencies is also free. However, since the app does not allow customers to send and receive cryptocurrencies from outside, it is for people who want to enjoy purely trading cryptocurrency.
- Site: https://robinhood.com/
- Cryptocurrencies available for trade: Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Bitcoin SV (BSV), Dogecoin (DOGE), Ethereum (ETH), Ethereum Classic (ETC) and Litecoin (LTC) are available for trading (Source: Robinhood : Available Cryptocurrencies)
- Deposits and withdrawals: You can deposit and withdraw in US dollars. You need to link your Robinhood account to a bank account (Source: Robinhood: Bank Transfers & Linking)
- Sending and receiving of cryptocurrencies is not currently allowed. (Source: Robinhood: Cryptocurrency Transfers and Deposits)
- Robinhood does not offer services of Crypto trading to residents of the following States: Nevada, New Hampshire, West Virginia and Hawaii. (Source: Robinhood: Available States)
3.2 PayPal
This is also not a cryptocurrency exchange, but you can now trade cryptocurrencies with PayPal. To be honest, I don’t recommend it, but I’ll add it to the list for comparison.
Like Robinhood, you cannot send or receive cryptocyrrency. Also, unlike cryptocurrency exchanges, it does not seem to be expected to be traded frequently, with a weekly trading limit of $ 10,000 and an annual trading limit of $ 50,000, which are quite low.
- Website: https://www.paypal.com/us/home
- Cryptocurrencies available for trade: Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ethereum (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC) are available for trade (See : Cryptocurrency on PayPal FAQ）
- Funding and withdrawal: You can deposit and withdraw in US dollars. Must be linked to your bank account or debit card.
- Sending and receiving Cryptocurrency is not currently accepted. Also, at this time, you cannot use cryptocurrencies to pay with PayPal. It seems PayPal is planning to enabling to do so sometime in 2021.
- Cryptocurrency trading is not available for residents in Hawaii.
- Transaction Fees: (see PayPal: PayPal Consumer Fees)
4. [Reference] New York Residents
If you live in New York state, you can only trade cryptocurrencies with venders who had obtained BitLicense from New York State Department of Financial Service.
Among the exchanges listed in section 2 above, Coinbase/Coinbase Pro, Bitflyer USA and Gemni are the ones who have acquired Bitlicenses. Also, Robihood and PayPal introduced in section 3 also have acquired Bitlicense.
In case of Bittrex, they used to allow New York residents to open account and trade, but starting from April 11, 2019 the rule has been changed.
＜Email from Bittrex＞
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I am a Japanese, residing in the US. I am trying to find a way to earn stable income at home through investments in stocks or other products as well as some sort of internet business.
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