Binance is the world's largest crypto exchange by trading volume. It was founded in 2017 and has many interesting features, such as advanced charting tools and access to its Binance Earn and Binance Visa Card. However, because Binance doesn't accept Canadian dollars (and charges high currency conversion fees), I can't suggest using it as a Canadian.
The best crypto exchange in Canada is Kraken, both for its high level of security and for its extremely low fees. Kraken charges 10-20x less than other Canadian exchanges, so if you're looking for a secure, cost-effective way to buy and sell crypto in Canada, I can't recommend Kraken highly enough.
What Is Binance?
Binance is an international cryptocurrency exchange and is currently the world's largest crypto exchange by volume. Headquartered in the Cayman Islands, Binance began operations in 2017.
The founder of Binance is Changpeng Zhao, a software developer who previously developed high-frequency trading software. The platform began operations in Hong Kong but has relocated its headquarters to the Cayman Islands due to increasing intervention in cryptocurrencies coming from the Chinese government.
Binance Features
1. Advanced Trading Platform
Binance's trading platform is very robust, offering a range of helpful features for experienced traders. It has built-in advanced charting tools, allowing traders to place market, stop-loss, take-profit, and other more complex orders to limit potential losses and secure profits.
In the screenshot of Binance's trading platform above, you can see the current market price on the left side, with the sell orders above it in red (ascending in price) and the buy orders below it in green (descending in price). On the right side, there's a list of other cryptocurrencies you can buy and sell.
There's a lot more going on on that screen as well—far more than I can cover here—so rest assured that if you're looking for a powerful crypto trading platform, Binance has you covered.
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2. Binance Visa Card
The Binance Visa Card lets you spend your crypto immediately and without difficulty. The Binance Visa Card exchanges your crypto into fiat when the transaction occurs, so retailers don't need to accept crypto or buy any special hardware to accept the card.
The Binance Visa Card supports Google Pay and Samsung Pay, and gives you additional exposure to crypto by exchanging your crypto at the last possible moment. This means that rather than making frequent and costly crypto-to-fiat transfers, you can hold your crypto all the way up until you spend it.
After you've received your card, you just need to move your cryptocurrency from your spot wallet to your funding wallet inside Binance. After that, you'll be able to use your card wherever Visa is accepted, anywhere in the world.
3. Binance Earn
Binance Earn allows you to stake your crypto and earn rewards at an APY rate of 0.8% to 123% depending on the coin and how long you stake it for.
Users can stake 6 different cryptocurrencies on Binance right now: Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Tether (USDT), Binance Coin (BNB), Axie Shards (AXS), and Binance USD (BUSD). Stakers can also earn double payouts in instant trading and pooling tokens on Binance Liquid Swap, an extra bonus for staking your coins.
4. Binance Mobile App
Binance's mobile app is available in the Canadian app stores, and it's well-rated on both iOS and Android:
- In the Google Play Store, Binance maintains a 4.6/5 rating across more than 800,000 reviews.
- In Apple's App Store, Binance scores a 4.7/5 rating across more than 100,000 reviews.
However, some of the features the app advertises—such as converting fiat to crypto with zero fees—doesn't hold true for Canadians, since Binance doesn't accept Canadian dollars and charges hefty currency conversion fees for converting CAD into USD or other currencies.
Cryptocurrencies on Binance
Binance supports over 300 cryptocurrencies and over 50 fiat currencies. Here are some of the cryptocurrencies Binance currently supports:
| Bitcoin (BTC) | Tether (USDT) |
| Ethereum (ETH) | TrueUSD (TUSD) |
| Bitcoin Cash (BCH) | Stellar (XLM) |
| Ripple (XRP) | TRON (TRX) |
| Binance Coin (BNB) | Paxos Standard (PAX) |
| Litecoin (LTC) | Dash (DASH) |
| Basic Attention Token (BAT) | Cosmos (ATOM) |
Unfortunately, the Canadian dollar is not one of the fiat currencies Binance supports, which makes it quite expensive to use as a Canadian.
Binance Fees
Binance's fee structure is pretty complex, but I'll do my best to simplify it here.
Crypto deposits are free with Binance, while crypto withdrawals carry a transaction fee ranging from 0% to 2.5%, depending on the cryptocurrency. Fiat deposits cost between 0% to 4.5%, depending on the deposit method and the fiat currency involved.
Binance charges a maker-taker fee structure with different tiers in place. Binance Coin (BNB) holdings and your trading volume will influence how much you pay in fees. Here are some of the Maker-Taker fees that Binance charges:
As you can see, Maker fees range from 0.02% to 0.1%, while Taker fees range from 0.04% to 0.1%. If you use the network's native currency, Binance Coin, to pay for gas expenses, the fees will be lower.
Binance also offers a cheaper futures trading platform, with makers paying 0.02% and takers paying 0.04%. There's also a 25% discount on trading fees paid with the BNB token, which are reflected in the screenshot above.
If you want to buy or sell coins instantly (a market order), you'll have to pay higher fees. For instant buy/sell trade, you'll incur a flat trading fee of 0.5%; you'll also incur a 4.5% trading fee if you use your debit/credit card to purchase cryptocurrency directly.
My Recommendation
Even though the platform has prestige as the largest crypto trading platform in the world, there's one big setback that doesn't allow me to recommend Binance for Canadians, and it's the fact that it doesn't accept Canadian dollars.
This is still the case despite Binance being allowed to operate again in Canada for more than 6 months now, and suggests that Binance doesn't have plants to add Canadian dollar support any time soon. Because of this and some of the other drawbacks mentioned above, I recommend that you consider using Kraken instead. Here are a few additional reasons why:
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Total Fees: ~3.2% |
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VirgoCX doesn't charge any trading fees, deposit fees or withdrawal fees—yet its extremely high spreads make it one of the more expensive crypto exchanges in Canada. Those spreads are generally around 3.2%, which means you pay 20x the fees as you would trading with Kraken, which is absurd.
Aside from the high fees, though, VirgoCX is a great exchange. Its trading platform and mobile app are intuitive and easy to use (even for beginners), it supports 50+ cryptocurrencies, and it offers 24/7 customer support via live chat and email, plus an extensive FAQ section on its site.
VirgoCX covers the first $6 in mining fees on crypto withdrawals, which means you generally won't pay anything to withdraw crypto. For security, VirgoCX maintains a 95% cold storage policy and requires 2-factor authentication on all accounts.
As a new VirgoCX user, you'll receive a $20 bonus upon funding your account with $100 or more.
If working with an easy to use platform is important to you, VirgoCX is a solid choice.
Features
- Supports 50+ cryptocurrencies
- Free fiat deposits and withdrawals
- Free deposits and withdrawals on most cryptocurrencies
- 24/7 support available via live chat and email
- User-friendly for both beginners and more advanced traders
- 95% cold storage policy
- Regulated by FINTRAC
Cost
- Trading Fees: 0%
- Spreads: 2% – 3.5%
- Fiat Deposit Fee: 0%
- Fiat Withdrawal Fee: 0%
Signup Bonus
$20 when you fund your account with $100 or more using this link.
Best For
Crypto investors who can't sign up with Kraken.
In Summary
Binance is currently the world's largest crypto exchange by volume of daily trading activity. It's currently headquartered in the Cayman Islands and began operations in 2017. However, because Binance doesn't accept Canadian dollars (and charges high currency conversion fees), I can't suggest using it as a Canadian.
The best crypto exchange in Canada is Kraken, both for its high level of security and for its extremely low fees. Kraken charges 10-20x less than other Canadian exchanges, so if you're looking for a secure, cost-effective way to buy and sell crypto in Canada, I can't recommend Kraken highly enough.
Binance FAQs
How to withdraw from Binance in Canada
Withdrawing funds from Binance is just like with other exchanges like VirgoCX, Bitbuy or CoinSmart. You only have to follow these steps:
- Log in to your Binance account.
- Choose “Withdraw” and then “Crypto”.
- Select the network you wish to use and the cryptocurrency you wish to withdraw.
- Choose “Receive”.
- Enter the address of your personal crypto wallet.
- Choose “Send Code”.
- Enter your 2-factor authentication code.
Is Binance safe?
Despite the fact that Binance was hacked in 2019 and again in early 2022, today, the platform is a safe and secure cryptocurrency exchange. It has a variety of security measures to keep your crypto assets secure, including:
- Cold storage for digital assets
- 2-factor authentication support
- Additional security settings such as whitelisting devices, anti-phishing codes, and withdrawal address management
- Security tips for its users to increase their account safety
That said, other exchanges we've reviewed, like Newton, Shakepay, VirgoCX, Bitbuy, CoinSmart and even Wealthsimpre Crypto, have never been hacked.
Is Binance legal in Canada?
Yes, Binance has operated legally in Canada under the legal name Binance Canada Capital Markets Inc since December 2021. It's registered as a Money Services Business with FINTRAC with the MSB registration number M21783493. You can see more details about Binance's MSB license here.
Still, there's no telling whether Binance will be able to operate in Canada in the future, so if you'd rather use a crypto exchange that's authorized in all of Canada and follows all of the country's regulations, I recommend using Kraken.
Is there a Binance referral code?
Unfortunately, there are no Binance referral codes available at this time.
Does Binance report to the CRA?
Yes, as a Money Services Business, Binance is legally required to report all large transactions to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Large transactions are those over $10,000 CAD.
