The following companies, services and products are widely available to the public. Each service has been reviewed with listed pros and cons. I have personally tested and had a good experience with everything on this list.
Celsius
Referral link: Earn up to 10% on your Crypto with Celsius
Celsius is like a bank for cryptocurrencies, only better because the interest rates are actually meaningful. The current interest rate for bitcoin deposits are 6.2%, giving hodlers an easy, secure way to compound their holdings over time. Celsius makes collateralized crypto loans to primarily institutional borrowers. The interest earned is shared with depositors as interest. Individuals may take loans using cryptocurrency as collateral, providing a source of liquidity without capital-gains tax. Cel-pay allows crypto payments to be send and received from the same app. All services are available on a well designed, intuitive mobile app.
Binance U.S.
Referral link to earn $10 free bitcoin: https://accounts.binance.us/en/register?ref=35041627
Summary: Binance is a rapidly growing international exchange, which launched its U.S. branch in 2019. The experience on the website and mobile app is a little less intuitive compared to Coinbase. However, the trading fees are lower. Additional trading fee discounts are available if you choose to pay fees in Binance’s native token, BNB. A wide variety of cryptocurrencies are available and traders may view level 2 market data and specify limit and market orders. On exchange staking is available for select proof-of-stake coins for no fee.
| PROS | CONS |
| – Very low fees – Save 25% by paying fees with BNB – Simple, secure website and app – Good selection of cryptos – Zero fee on-exchange staking | – The on-exchange charts are annoying to work with – Not yet available in all states |
Kraken
Kraken is an established U.S. based exchange founded in 2011, and have recently received a bank charter. They offer low trading fees on 40 digital assets as of September 2020. For those who want to gamble with outlandish levels of volatility, margin and leveraged futures trading is available as well.
| PROS | CONS |
| – Low fees – Wide selection of cryptos – Zero fee on-exchange staking – Margin and futures trading is available – Kraken holds a bank charter | – May be complex for beginners to crypto |
Uphold
Uphold is a unique company which offers trading of cryptos, multiple fiat currencies, precious metals and a small selection of stocks. Instead of wallets, users create a “card” for each type of holding, which basically functions as a wallet for crypto. Those interested in XRP should be aware that Uphold is currently 1 of 7 services supporting the Spark token airdrop (in which XRP holders will receive a new smart contract token called “spark” in a 1:1 ratio). If you’d like exposure to gold, silver and Swiss Francs to balance out your dollar inflation hedge, Uphold is worth a look.
| PROS | CONS |
| – Diverse and innovative investment offerings – Low fees – Opportunity to earn interest on crypto holdings – Spark airdrop for XRP holders | – Non-intuitive web design for first time users – Uses 3rd party for interest earnings |
Easiest for Beginners: Coinbase
Coinbase is one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges and was founded in 2012. Coinbase offers an extremely user-friendly website and mobile app. They are often criticized for maintaining high trading fees. On exchange staking is available for select proof-of-stake coins for a 25% fee. The ‘Coinbase Earn’ program allows new users to earn $115 or more simply by watching educational videos about crypto projects and completing a short quiz. For more experienced users, ‘Coinbase Pro’ offers additional trading features, a wider variety of assets and lower trading fees.
| PROS | CONS |
| – Very simple to use – Earn free crypto by learning about new projects | – Extremely high trading fees – 25% Fee for staking on the exchange – Platform crashes during spikes in volume |
Decentralized and No-Account Exchanges
Change Now
Change Now offers rapid non-custodial exchange between 200 different assets. Crypto purchases with fiat currency is also accepted. Fees are very low. There is no KYC, making transactions hassle-free. Change Now is partnered with several major crypto companies, including Binance, Ledger, and Trezor.
I have personally had an excellent user experience with Change Now and have partnered with them to offer rapid, secure exchange of digital assets. Change Now is one of the few exchanges offering Theta token, for those interested.
Affiliate Link: https://changenow.io?link_id=10c8a4614e7504
Kyber Swap
Kyber Swap allows quick crypto to crypto exchanges via the Ethereum network through a compatible wallet. You must connect your wallet to the exchange to complete transactions, adding a little more user friction compared to Change Now.
Other Products
Grayscale Investments
Grayscale Investments has grown to manage several billion dollars in their various cryptocurrency investment trusts. Share of Grayscale Bitcoin Investment Trust, for example, are publicly traded on the stock market and can be easily held in IRAs or Roth IRAs. Cryptocurrency trusts operate similarly to gold trusts, where 1 share of stock is equivalent to a certain amount of the underlying asset held in custody. Grayscale has been one of the largest institutional buyers of Bitcoin since 2019. Grayscale’s products are ideal for those who would like exposure to cryptocurrencies without holding them directly. The purchase is as simple as buying a stock or ETF. More information can be found at https://grayscale.co/.
| PROS | CONS |
| – Allows exposure to crypto without the hassle of direct custody – Shares trade just like a stock or ETF – Widely available – No learning curve | – Shares sometimes trade at a large premium to the net asset value |
Ledger
You’ve heard the saying “not your keys, not your coins”. A ledger hardware wallet allows you securely store your private keys which removes any risk of assets being lost by an exchange or 3rd party. Hardware wallets are analogous to holding physical gold bullion as opposed to shares of a gold ETF. You have direct control of the asset, but also assume all of the risks and responsibility for safekeeping. Both the ledger x and ledger nano-s are extremely popular, user friendly, and secure. Not all cryptos are supported, but I recommend either for the typical hodler. Ledger supports staking and trading from it’s ‘Ledger Live’ platform.
| PROS | CONS |
| – Highly secure – Supports multiple cryptos – Allows staking of select coins – Trade through Ledger Live | – Losing your password and recovery phrase means you lose access to your crypto |