Gemini Review in 2023 – An Honest Buying Guide

If you are looking for a Bitcoin exchange website that is based in New York you should check out the Gemini platform which is available to users who wish to make many trades daily as well as professional traders. If you want to find out more, continue reading this review!

As a licensed digital asset exchange and custodian, you do not have to worry about any legal issues that may affect your savings and investments as the Gemini exchange system is regulated, safe, secure and compliant. The Gemini Crypto Exchange allows users the opportunity to register a personal account as well as an institutional account.

Exchange History and Background

The Gemini Exchange is an institutional and retail cryptocurrency exchange service that is owned and operated by Gemini Trust LLC which is a company which both Vinklevoss twins have a share in, who famously went head to head with Mark Zuckerberg over the ownership of Facebook. Commenced in 2018, They ended up winning over $65 Million USD in damages in court of which $11 Million was invested into Bitcoin- placing them as one of the largest holders of Bitcoins with a current valuation of over a billion dollars.

The Gemini concept was first inspired by the Gemini space mission during the 1960s which pioneered spacewalks. Gemini Trust LLC is therefore, saying to the world that it intends to make large first strides in the cryptocurrency brokerage business to new frontiers by breaking new grounds in the process.

This crypto exchange is one of the few regulated cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. This brand operates outside of New York City, New York. It is not under BitLicense but is regulated by the NYSDFS (New York Department of Financial Services). A report claims that Gemini became the world’s first licensed Ether exchange.

Gemini found itself the highlight of news in early 2019 when Facebook was reported to have spoken with Gemini about Facebook’s plans to implement their own currency which the media could just not resist as a story about a potential allyship between two rivals. However, it still remains to be seen whether cryptocurrency will heal this rift or both players would just build a new rivalry around competing exchanges and currencies.

A gemini review shows that their customer service for cryptocurrency trading has operations in New york State, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore , South Korea and the United Kingdom. The website is only available in English although it may be possible to switch its primary language used in a specific geographic area.

Verification

To trade on this exchange, you will first create an account on the platform, among other things.

To create your profile, you will need to first visit the Gemini page which is easy to use. Click on the register on the top of the page and you will be prompted to provide certain details including your full name, email address, and password. After going through the “User Agreement” and “Privacy Policy” , proceed to create your profile.

There is some further private information you will need to submit to the Gemini exchange which includes a valid and accessible mobile number as well as country and state of residence. Following that, a confirmation code will be sent to your mobile number and this code should be entered into the space provided for it on the Gemini Website.

You will then be redirected to the verification process which has four basic steps. A two-factor authentication in which you will provide an active mobile phone number for linking and also Valid bank account details, in which the bank account you choose must be operative in one of Gemini;’s countries of operation.

The details in which you will provide to Gemini should be your usual online banking login credentials which include linking your bank account. It should also tally with the new Gemini account holder’s name.

The next steps are to upload a valid proof of your identity such as a photo ID and other documents to prove your identity and address. The documents are required to include a full-page scan of the utility bill, a bank statement or internet bill, and of course be clear to see.

If however, your country is not supported by the Gemini Exchange, you can still create an account with their sandbox trading platform which you only need to provide your phone number to create an account.

This lengthy and tedious process will take between one and three days but some features would already be made available during the wait. These features include cryptocurrency deposits and trading between pairs but withdrawals and deposits in fiat currencies will be unavailable pending verification.

Trading Fees

The Gemini exchange operates a dynamic maker-taker fee schedule that charges a minimum of 0.25% for taker/maker depending on the level of trading involved. This fee schedule however is available for study on their Trading Fee Schedule page.

A maker is a customer who places an order that adds liquidity to the marketplace, while a taker is one who takes liquidity from the market.

The Gemini exchange charges two types of fees on its platform, the first being trading fees which are charged on trades conducted by traders on its platform which is also known as the Dynamic Maker-Taker Fee. The second type of transfer fees is charged for moving funds into and out of the trading accounts that users hold on the Gemini exchange.

The maker and Taker fees would vary depending on a 30-day trading volume with increasing volumes being charged lower fees.

There are no transaction fees charged for deposits and withdrawals carried out on the Gemini Exchange. This does not include a user’s bank charges however.

There are a couple of payment methods for the Gemini trader which are available for deposits and are free to do so. Using wire transfers however may mean bank charges which would also differ depending on the bank.

Users also pay a kind of network fee when they are using Gemini Bitcoin or Gemini Ethereum which is actually no different from when a user makes any other transfer on either network. These fees differ from those on any other digital currency exchange platform as they are dependent on the user’s 30 days trading volume.

There are six tiers of fees, ranging from light traders to those who are exchanging huge volumes of Bitcoin and Ether. At midnight UTC time, these fees are recalculated for every trading pair and occurs on a daily basis.

Gemini is a licensed custodian, meaning it is a fiduciary operating under 100 of the New York banking law and held to particular capital reserve requirements and standards set by banking compliance.

Available Custody solutions on the Gemini exchange are depository Accounts for all Gemini customers and Segregated Custody accounts for institutional customers such as hedge funds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, etc.)

With this letter, a bailment relationship is established between Gemini and the customer; so that the customer retains title to the digital assets.

Deposits and Withdrawal Options

Deposits and withdrawals on Gemini can be performed using BTC, ETH and US Dollars. Therefore, the deposit and withdrawal channels are as follows: credit/debit card as cards accepted are those of VISA, MasterCard, and American Express. Another available channel is also local bank transfers from US banks.

To make deposits, firstly, users are required to access the Gemini exchange website and load your account with funds. Follow the steps below for deposits:

Selecting “transfer funds” in the menu bar for the transfer method

If you are using a bank account on this platform, you could use either the ACH deposit which is only available in the US or Wire transfer which is more straightforward.

If you want to use an external bitcoin or Ethereum wallet, the same process should be done for both cryptocurrencies then selecting either Deposit Bitcoin or Deposit Ethereum as the case may be. Following that step Gemini will generate a deposit address for you

If you are a user using either Bitcoin or Ethereum cryptocurrencies on your mobile device, you can initiate a transfer from your mobile phone and scan the QR code that is produced by Gemini.

However, if you do not own a mobile device, you can copy the Ethereum or Bitcoin address and paste it in the space for where you wish to send your digital currency.

These transfers can only be initiated from an external wallet owned by you and not from Gemini’s interface.

The withdrawal process is much easier as all you need to do for withdrawals is to select the “Withdraw BTC” or “Withdraw ETH” as the case may be. Following this, enter your address of your external wallet in the space provided and send.

Trading

All users of the exchanges are given the same account type, irrespective of the volume of their transactions. Gemini offers multiple order types and execution options to enhance its trading strategies of their users.

The Gemini exchange only supports Bitcoin and Ethereum and it is likely because Gemini seeks to be a highly trusted and institutional-friendly cryptocurrency exchange. Many of the newer cryptocurrency exchanges out there are yet to prove themselves over a long enough period.

The marketplace features a central limit order book which follows a price-time priority model. There is a continuous order book and an auction order book which operates TC/USD, ETH/USD, LTC/USD/, BCH/USD, ZEC/USD, ETH/BTC, LTC/BTC, BCH/BTC, ZEC/BTC, LTC/ETH, BCH/ETH, ZEC/ETH, LTC/BCH, ZEC/BCH, and ZEC/LTC. The auction order book covers only the first five.

Gemini allows fiat-crypto trading alongside crypto-to-crypto trading. The accepted fiat currency is USD and deposits can be made via bank transfers without a fee. Credit cards however are not accepted as a valid method of payment for the time being which renders the Gemini exchange an entry-level exchange meaning it is very friendly towards new cryptocurrency exchange.

One of the most innovative features of Gemini is their “Sandbox” website which is aimed to act as a practice for novice traders and want to know more about the industry and the Gemini exchange itself. Signing up for this “Sandbox” account would require two-factor authentication.

It is, however, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week except during scheduled maintenance, which is announced on its status page before it occurs in order to avoid inconveniences. Being a full reserve exchange, Gemini sadly does not offer any margin trading.

In other words, at all times, a user’s outstanding interest cannot exceed their balance and open orders reduce a user’s balance until they are either fulfilled or cancelled.

There are available order types which are Market, Limit, Immediate-or-Cancel (IOC), Fill-Or-Kill (FOK), Maker-or Cancel (MOC), Auction-Only (AO) Limit, Indication of Interest (IOI).

The Gemini crypto exchange also offers block trading which is a facility that enables users to buy and sell large block quantities of cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin outside the platform’s usual auction and continuous order books. This effectively creates an additional mechanism to source liquidity when trading in large volumes.

All US dollar deposits are held on customer’s behalf and for their benefit at FDIC-insured banks, while most of their digital assets are stored in Gemini’s proprietary Cold Storage System.

Gemini however, does not offer any bonuses and no promotion campaigns are run. These are against the US regulatory system rules. As for the environment, Gemini is a secure and trusted exchange and has had no reported outages in the last year other than going offline for regular scheduled maintenance.

Ease of Use

Gemini exchange is one of the more easy to use trading platforms out there and is a great exchange for those who value security above all else.

This factor makes it well-suited for users who are exchanging large amounts of fiat currency for either Bitcoin or Ethereum and Gemini being fully licensed and offering the additional security features it does ensure that it is one of the most secure exchanges in the cryptocurrency market.

Gemini is also ideal for users who want to make high volume transactions daily. More experienced users will certainly enjoy the improved and enhanced security features which Gemini offers that protects both their fiat and digital currency accounts.

This characteristic of Gemini’s security feature should give its users greater confidence to keep huge sums of money online in order for them to make many and sizable trades for professional users.

The sliding scale of fees also suits this style of trading and as mentioned previously are one of cheapest fees out there. Since many novice investors hear about Bitcoin or Ethereum first, their first introduction to cryptocurrency makes Gemini a fine place to start.

However, Gemini’s requirement for so much personal information that potential new users could be put off just to get a feel for buying, selling and transacting in cryptocurrency.

Security

Although Gemini is one of the most secure crypto exchanges out there, comments online mentioned that they require a social security number for verification although this is not mentioned as an official step in the process. However, due to its advanced security techniques and transparency, those who do not feel comfortable in providing such information might be deterred from using this platform.

There are also complaints on certain online platforms by users who suspect that Gemini is mishandling their funds and they arise from the fact that Gemini exchange goes offline when there is high traffic volume on their website.

This occurrence may happen more frequently than expected as Gemini is one of the more popular exchanges out there. This might be one of the reasons why some of Gemini’s users tend to report fraudulent activity, however, such complaints have not been proved to be true and Gemini still remains secure, transparent and trustworthy.

When it comes to security, Gemini is at the center of the centralized versus decentralized crypto storage debate and is one of the few crypto exchanges to provide an institutional level of custody services for their crypto assets which means that Gemini has a lot of assets in its online vault and most of these assets are stored off-line in a cold wallet for safety purposes.

It is, however, undeniable that Gemini has a “security-first” mandate with more security measures in place compared to other exchanges. Some of these security features include Gemini holding your private keys which are held off site in a cold storage location with government-level security standards and is the first exchange to pass SOC 2 security standards demonstrating top security controls to protect customer data and funds.

Support

To wrap up this Gemini review, we have included one of the greatest concerns for all users. The customer service is delivered using the following channels: an online helpdesk, live online chat, and email address (press@gemini.com). They also have some sort of online media presence on Facebook and Twitter.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q:Is Gemini regulated?

Yes, as mentioned in the review, it is a regulated cryptocurrency exchange

Q:Where is Gemini based?

Gemini is based in the United States

Q:How does Gemini make money?

Gemini charges transactions, transfer as well as dynamic maker-taker fees on all trading and deposit/withdrawal transactions

Q:How do I withdraw money from Gemini?

Gemini also accepts withdrawals in Bitcoin, Ethereum and US Dollars

Q:Is Gemini reliable?

The reliability of Gemini can not be questioned and is a very solid crypto platform with no fears of being a scam.

 

 

 

 

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