Head to head

Bitstamp vs Kraken — which broker is better?

Bitstamp or Kraken? Fees, regulation, platform and product range compared side by side — with a verdict drawn from the data.

Risk warning: CFDs and leveraged products are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly. Investments can fall in value. Past performance is not an indicator of future results.

Bitstamp

One of the oldest exchanges still standing, now owned by a Nasdaq-listed broker — and priced like it knows you will pay for that.

3.5

Group index 79/100Protection depends on your legal entity

CSSFFCAMAS+2

Stocks (per order): n/a
Minimum deposit: None

Visit broker Full review

Kraken

The most heavily licensed venue in crypto — and the only one that is also a chartered US bank.

4.1

Group index 78/100Protection depends on your legal entity

CBICBICBI+9

Stocks (per order): Free
Minimum deposit: €1
5,000 order: €0

Visit broker Full review

Advertising disclosure: where a partnership is active, we may earn a commission through broker links. The provider’s terms apply. Commissions do not influence our ratings; paid placements are separately labelled as sponsored.

The verdict in numbers

Four decision axes, each derived from the recorded data.

Overall Kraken takes it, 4.1 against 3.5 out of 5. The two pricing models cannot be converted like for like; the fee rows in the table carry the detail. Bitstamp scores 79 against 78 out of 100 on the group index. Your account's protection depends on its legal entity. Kraken covers more ground with 7 of 14 asset classes against 2. On platform and app Kraken is ahead, 4.5 against 3.8 out of 5. Which one is right depends on which of these axes matters for your trading profile.

Overall score

Bitstamp: 3.5
Kraken: 4.1 — Better

CostsTie

Bitstamp: Not offered
Kraken: €0.00

Group indexNo winner

Bitstamp: 79 of 100
Kraken: 78 of 100

Product range

Bitstamp: 2/14
Kraken: 7/14 — Better

Platform & app

Bitstamp: 3.8
Kraken: 4.5 — Better

Compare brokers side by side

Up to four brokers at once — every row a decision point.

Data as of: 30 Aug 2026

Best value in the row

Bitstamp · Kraken
Criterion	Bitstamp 3.5 Visit broker	Kraken 4.1 Visit broker

Overall score	3.5	4.1 — Better
Group index	79 of 100	78 of 100
Best for	Long-term crypto holdersInvestors who prioritise regulationEEA and UK investorsInstitutional and OTC clientsCheap fiat funding	Traders who prioritise regulatory qualityCrypto derivatives and margin tradersAPI and algorithmic tradersHigher-volume spot tradersUS investors wanting crypto and stocks together

Regulation	CSSFFCAMASATVPNYDFS	CBICBICBIFCAFCAFCASECCFTCWY DoBCySEC+2
Top-tier licences	3	9 — Better
Investor protection	None	None
Listed group	Yes	No
Banking licence	No	Yes
Segregated client accounts	Yes	Yes
Negative balance protection	No	No
Audited financials	Yes	No
Disclosed regulatory actions	2	2
Founded	2011	2011
Headquarters	Luxembourg, LU	San Francisco, California, US

Fees	2.8	3.4 — Better
Safety & regulation	4.2	4.6 — Better
Trading platform	3.8	4.5 — Better
Product range	3.2	4.6 — Better
Mobile app	3.7	4.4 — Better
Research	2.9	3.6 — Better
Customer support	3.6	4.0 — Better
Deposit & withdrawal	4.0	4.0
Account opening	4.0	4.3 — Better
Education	3.2	3.8 — Better

Reference order EUR 5,000	Not offered	€0.00
Minimum deposit	None — Better	€1
Stocks (per order)	Not offered	Free
US stocks	n/a	n/a
ETFs	Not offered	Free
Options	Not offered	tiered
Futures	tiered	tiered
Crypto	tiered	tiered
Bonds (order)	n/a	n/a
Funds (order)	n/a	n/a
EUR/USD spread	n/a	n/a
Index CFD spread	n/a	n/a
FX conversion	n/a	n/a
Inactivity fee	None	None
Custody fee	None	None
Withdrawal fee	€3	€1 — Better
Deposit fee	SEPA, UK Faster Payments, US ACH and crypto deposits are free. Instant Purchase funded by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or PayPal carries a 4% Instant Service fee on top of the spread built into the quoted price, plus anything your card issuer adds. International wire deposits may attract correspondent bank charges.	free
Overnight financing	n/a	n/a
Other fees	Instant Purchase (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal): 4% Instant Service fee plus a spread inside the quoted price — roughly ten times the cost of the same trade routed through the Pro order book Staking commission (Bitstamp Earn): 15% of rewards on ETH and ADA staking. Cheaper than Coinbase at 35% and Kraken at 20%. Not available to residents of the US, Canada, Japan or Singapore Minimum order size: 10 USD / EUR / GBP / USDC / USDT on fiat-denominated pairs; 0.0002 BTC and 0.002 ETH on crypto-denominated pairs FX and stablecoin pairs: Discounted at every tier, from 0.06% maker and 0.08% taker at entry level — a meaningful saving when converting between fiat currencies or stablecoins FastPass: Fee rates as low as 0.01% for traders demonstrating volume above USD 500,000, without waiting for the standard 30-day look-back Inactivity / custody fee: None published	Instant buy (Kraken app): 1% on instant purchases, 1.5% on custom orders, and a flat 3% on conversions below the minimum order size Kraken+: USD 4.99 a month or USD 49.99 a year (4.99 / 49.99 in GBP, EUR, CAD or AUD); monthly billing and the 30-day free trial only through the mobile app, Kraken Web sells annual plans only. Waives the 1% fee on instant and recurring trades and the 1.5% fee on custom orders — Buy, Sell and Convert in the Kraken app and on kraken.com — on up to USD 10,000 a month (10,000 GBP/EUR/CAD/AUD in those regions). Does not cover Spot, Futures, API or OTC trades on Kraken Pro; spreads and payment-processing fees still apply. Also boosts stablecoin rewards Margin: Opening and rollover fees of roughly 0.02%–0.05% depending on asset, with rollover assessed every 4 hours; liquidations carry a 2% fee Staking commission: 20% of rewards on flexible on-chain staking; bonded and asset-specific rates vary Cash deposits: Free — EUR SEPA and SEPA Instant, USD ACH and FedWire, GBP Faster Payments and CHF SIC all cost nothing, from a EUR 1 / USD 1 / GBP 1 / CHF 1 minimum. Only CHF via SWIFT carries a fee, at CHF 0.75 Inactivity / custody fee: None — Kraken states it charges no fee for storing funds, account inactivity or account maintenance

Asset classes (of 14)	2	7 — Better
Exchanges	n/a	n/a
Stocks	No	Yes
ETFs	No	Yes
Options	No	Yes
Futures	Yes	Yes
Forex	No	Yes
CFDs	No	No
Crypto	Yes	Yes
Bonds	No	No
Funds	No	No
Commodities	No	No
Indices	No	Yes
Warrants	No	No
Spread betting	No	No
Social trading	No	No

Platforms	Bitstamp (Basic)Bitstamp Pro (Tradeview)Bitstamp mobile appBitstamp APIBitstamp InstitutionalRobinhood UK app	Kraken ProKraken DesktopKraken (mobile app)Kraken APIKraken CLIKrakKraken Institutional / Prime
Demo account	No	No
Fractional shares	No	No
Maximum leverage	Bitstamp does not offer leveraged spot trading to retail customers — a deliberate positioning choice that sets it apart from almost every venue it competes…	1:5
Account opening	Fully online; verification typically completes within minutes to one business day for EEA and UK applicants with a supported identity document	Fully online; verification typically completes the same day, faster for EEA applicants with a supported ID
Account types	PersonalBusinessFastPassInstitutional	KrakenKraken ProKraken+VIPKraken Institutional

Payment methods	SEPASEPA InstantBank transferCredit cardDebit cardApple PayGoogle PayPayPalCrypto	SEPASEPA InstantBank transferCrypto
Account currencies	USDEURGBPSGD	USDEURGBPCHFCADAUD
Deposit time	SEPA and SEPA Instant same day to instant; UK Faster Payments same day; US ACH 1–3 business days; card and wallet purchases instant; crypto on network confirmation	SEPA and SEPA Instant 0–3 business days or instant; USD ACH near-instant; GBP Faster Payments 0–1 business days; CHF SIC same day
Withdrawal time	SEPA 0–2 business days; UK Faster Payments same day; ACH 1–3 business days; international wire 2–5 business days; crypto typically within the hour	SEPA 0–5 business days, SEPA Instant near-instant; USD ACH 0–2 business days; GBP FPS near-instant; CHF SIC same day
Free withdrawals	n/a	n/a

Languages	EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianPortuguese	EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianDutchPortuguesePolishRomanianCzech+6
Channels	Live chatEmailTicket system	PhoneEmailLive chatTicket system
Availability	24/7 live chat and ticketing, with a dedicated desk for institutional clients	24/7 live chat, with phone support and a ticket queue

Strengths and weaknesses side by side

Editorial assessment based on the recorded data.

Bitstamp

One of the oldest exchanges still standing, now owned by a Nasdaq-listed broker — and priced like it knows you will pay for that.

3.5

Pros

Operating continuously since 2011 — the longest unbroken track record of any crypto exchange, through every failure cycle the industry has had
Wholly owned since June 2025 by Nasdaq-listed Robinhood Markets, Inc. (HOOD), which files audited consolidated accounts with the SEC — a transparency layer no independent crypto venue offers
First exchange authorised as a MiCA Crypto-Asset Service Provider in Luxembourg (CSSF licence N00000003), passported across the EEA, alongside a CSSF payment-institution licence for fiat safeguarding
A MiFID Multilateral Trading Facility licence in Slovenia, granted October 2024, which is a genuinely higher regulatory bar than MiCA alone and underpins a regulated EU derivatives venue
More than 50 licences and registrations worldwide, including FCA registration (FRN 978690), a New York BitLicense and MAS licence PS20200667 in Singapore
Free deposits on every major cash rail, EUR 3 SEPA withdrawals, GBP 2 Faster Payments and free ACH — funding is cheap and fully published
Staking commission of 15% on ETH and ADA, undercutting Kraken at 20% and Coinbase at 35%
No retail leverage anywhere in the product — a structural decision that removes the single largest source of retail losses in crypto

Cons

Entry-tier pricing of 0.30% maker and 0.40% taker is three to four times what Binance and Bybit charge on spot, and only improves once 30-day volume passes USD 10,000
The 4% Instant Service fee on card, Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal purchases sits on top of a spread already inside the quoted price — roughly ten times the cost of the same trade on Bitstamp Pro
A deliberately narrow listing universe of roughly 100 to 160 assets against about 500 at Binance, with almost no early-stage or long-tail coverage
No options, no copy trading, no retail leverage, and derivatives limited to a perpetual futures venue gated to advanced and institutional traders and closed to US customers
Research and education are the thinnest of the major regulated exchanges — a basic learn section and little market commentary of substance
The 2015 breach cost roughly 19,000 BTC, and the May 2019 flash crash that took the Bitstamp price from about USD 7,900 to USD 6,200 in half an hour triggered liquidations across venues that used it as a reference price

Best for

Long-term crypto holdersInvestors who prioritise regulationEEA and UK investorsInstitutional and OTC clientsCheap fiat funding

Kraken

The most heavily licensed venue in crypto — and the only one that is also a chartered US bank.

4.1

Pros

Wyoming SPDI bank charter through Kraken Financial — a full-reserve institution required to hold 100% unencumbered liquid assets against customer fiat, with a Federal Reserve limited-purpose master account
Two MiCA Crypto-Asset Service Provider authorisations plus an EMI licence from the Central Bank of Ireland, passported across all 30 EEA countries
The first crypto-native firm to hold all three CFTC licences — DCM, DCO and FCM — through Bitnomial, plus a second FCM in Kraken Derivatives US
SEC-registered broker-dealer (Kraken Securities LLC) and registered investment adviser (Kraken Adviser LLC)
831 assets and 1,432 trading pairs on the public API as of August 2026, spanning spot, margin, futures, options, forex markets and indices
Cash deposits are free on every major rail — EUR SEPA and SEPA Instant, USD ACH and FedWire, GBP Faster Payments, CHF SIC — with fully published withdrawal fees
Staking commission of 20% on flexible on-chain staking, well below Coinbase's 35%
Kraken Pro, a native desktop client, a mature API and a CLI aimed at automated agents — a genuinely deep tooling stack for a crypto venue

Cons

Entry-tier spot pricing of 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker is the most expensive base rate among major regulated venues, and you need USD 10,000 of 30-day volume before it drops below 0.40% taker
The simple app charges 1% on instant buys, 1.5% on custom orders and a punitive flat 3% on conversions below the minimum order size
Zero-fee buying, selling and converting in the app (up to USD 10,000 a month, not Kraken Pro trades) is behind a USD 4.99 monthly Kraken+ subscription rather than built into the base schedule
Payward is privately held and does not publish audited financial statements; Proof of Reserves attestations are useful but are not the same thing
The 11,000 commission-free stocks and ETFs are US-only — EEA clients get xStocks tokenised equities, which are crypto-asset products with different rights and no share ownership
Product sprawl is real: Kraken, Kraken Pro, Kraken Desktop, Krak, NinjaTrader, Bitnomial, Breakout and xStocks sit under one brand with different entities, licences and eligibility rules per country

Best for

Traders who prioritise regulatory qualityCrypto derivatives and margin tradersAPI and algorithmic tradersHigher-volume spot tradersUS investors wanting crypto and stocks together

Open an account with either

A demo account costs nothing and answers the platform question in ten minutes.

Visit broker: Bitstamp Visit broker: Kraken

More comparisons

Alternatives people weigh up alongside these two.

Bitstamp vs Kraken — which broker is better?

Bitstamp or Kraken? Fees, regulation, platform and product range compared side by side — with a verdict drawn from the data.

The verdict in numbers

Four decision axes, each derived from the recorded data.

Bitstamp · Kraken
Criterion	Bitstamp 3.5 Visit broker	Kraken 4.1 Visit broker

Overall score	3.5	4.1 — Better
Group index	79 of 100	78 of 100
Best for	Long-term crypto holdersInvestors who prioritise regulationEEA and UK investorsInstitutional and OTC clientsCheap fiat funding	Traders who prioritise regulatory qualityCrypto derivatives and margin tradersAPI and algorithmic tradersHigher-volume spot tradersUS investors wanting crypto and stocks together

Regulation	CSSFFCAMASATVPNYDFS	CBICBICBIFCAFCAFCASECCFTCWY DoBCySEC+2
Top-tier licences	3	9 — Better
Investor protection	None	None
Listed group	Yes	No
Banking licence	No	Yes
Segregated client accounts	Yes	Yes
Negative balance protection	No	No
Audited financials	Yes	No
Disclosed regulatory actions	2	2
Founded	2011	2011
Headquarters	Luxembourg, LU	San Francisco, California, US

Fees	2.8	3.4 — Better
Safety & regulation	4.2	4.6 — Better
Trading platform	3.8	4.5 — Better
Product range	3.2	4.6 — Better
Mobile app	3.7	4.4 — Better
Research	2.9	3.6 — Better
Customer support	3.6	4.0 — Better
Deposit & withdrawal	4.0	4.0
Account opening	4.0	4.3 — Better
Education	3.2	3.8 — Better

Reference order EUR 5,000	Not offered	€0.00
Minimum deposit	None — Better	€1
Stocks (per order)	Not offered	Free
US stocks	n/a	n/a
ETFs	Not offered	Free
Options	Not offered	tiered
Futures	tiered	tiered
Crypto	tiered	tiered
Bonds (order)	n/a	n/a
Funds (order)	n/a	n/a
EUR/USD spread	n/a	n/a
Index CFD spread	n/a	n/a
FX conversion	n/a	n/a
Inactivity fee	None	None
Custody fee	None	None
Withdrawal fee	€3	€1 — Better
Deposit fee	SEPA, UK Faster Payments, US ACH and crypto deposits are free. Instant Purchase funded by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or PayPal carries a 4% Instant Service fee on top of the spread built into the quoted price, plus anything your card issuer adds. International wire deposits may attract correspondent bank charges.	free
Overnight financing	n/a	n/a
Other fees	Instant Purchase (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal): 4% Instant Service fee plus a spread inside the quoted price — roughly ten times the cost of the same trade routed through the Pro order book Staking commission (Bitstamp Earn): 15% of rewards on ETH and ADA staking. Cheaper than Coinbase at 35% and Kraken at 20%. Not available to residents of the US, Canada, Japan or Singapore Minimum order size: 10 USD / EUR / GBP / USDC / USDT on fiat-denominated pairs; 0.0002 BTC and 0.002 ETH on crypto-denominated pairs FX and stablecoin pairs: Discounted at every tier, from 0.06% maker and 0.08% taker at entry level — a meaningful saving when converting between fiat currencies or stablecoins FastPass: Fee rates as low as 0.01% for traders demonstrating volume above USD 500,000, without waiting for the standard 30-day look-back Inactivity / custody fee: None published	Instant buy (Kraken app): 1% on instant purchases, 1.5% on custom orders, and a flat 3% on conversions below the minimum order size Kraken+: USD 4.99 a month or USD 49.99 a year (4.99 / 49.99 in GBP, EUR, CAD or AUD); monthly billing and the 30-day free trial only through the mobile app, Kraken Web sells annual plans only. Waives the 1% fee on instant and recurring trades and the 1.5% fee on custom orders — Buy, Sell and Convert in the Kraken app and on kraken.com — on up to USD 10,000 a month (10,000 GBP/EUR/CAD/AUD in those regions). Does not cover Spot, Futures, API or OTC trades on Kraken Pro; spreads and payment-processing fees still apply. Also boosts stablecoin rewards Margin: Opening and rollover fees of roughly 0.02%–0.05% depending on asset, with rollover assessed every 4 hours; liquidations carry a 2% fee Staking commission: 20% of rewards on flexible on-chain staking; bonded and asset-specific rates vary Cash deposits: Free — EUR SEPA and SEPA Instant, USD ACH and FedWire, GBP Faster Payments and CHF SIC all cost nothing, from a EUR 1 / USD 1 / GBP 1 / CHF 1 minimum. Only CHF via SWIFT carries a fee, at CHF 0.75 Inactivity / custody fee: None — Kraken states it charges no fee for storing funds, account inactivity or account maintenance

Asset classes (of 14)	2	7 — Better
Exchanges	n/a	n/a
Stocks	No	Yes
ETFs	No	Yes
Options	No	Yes
Futures	Yes	Yes
Forex	No	Yes
CFDs	No	No
Crypto	Yes	Yes
Bonds	No	No
Funds	No	No
Commodities	No	No
Indices	No	Yes
Warrants	No	No
Spread betting	No	No
Social trading	No	No

Platforms	Bitstamp (Basic)Bitstamp Pro (Tradeview)Bitstamp mobile appBitstamp APIBitstamp InstitutionalRobinhood UK app	Kraken ProKraken DesktopKraken (mobile app)Kraken APIKraken CLIKrakKraken Institutional / Prime
Demo account	No	No
Fractional shares	No	No
Maximum leverage	Bitstamp does not offer leveraged spot trading to retail customers — a deliberate positioning choice that sets it apart from almost every venue it competes…	1:5
Account opening	Fully online; verification typically completes within minutes to one business day for EEA and UK applicants with a supported identity document	Fully online; verification typically completes the same day, faster for EEA applicants with a supported ID
Account types	PersonalBusinessFastPassInstitutional	KrakenKraken ProKraken+VIPKraken Institutional

Payment methods	SEPASEPA InstantBank transferCredit cardDebit cardApple PayGoogle PayPayPalCrypto	SEPASEPA InstantBank transferCrypto
Account currencies	USDEURGBPSGD	USDEURGBPCHFCADAUD
Deposit time	SEPA and SEPA Instant same day to instant; UK Faster Payments same day; US ACH 1–3 business days; card and wallet purchases instant; crypto on network confirmation	SEPA and SEPA Instant 0–3 business days or instant; USD ACH near-instant; GBP Faster Payments 0–1 business days; CHF SIC same day
Withdrawal time	SEPA 0–2 business days; UK Faster Payments same day; ACH 1–3 business days; international wire 2–5 business days; crypto typically within the hour	SEPA 0–5 business days, SEPA Instant near-instant; USD ACH 0–2 business days; GBP FPS near-instant; CHF SIC same day
Free withdrawals	n/a	n/a

Languages	EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianPortuguese	EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianDutchPortuguesePolishRomanianCzech+6
Channels	Live chatEmailTicket system	PhoneEmailLive chatTicket system
Availability	24/7 live chat and ticketing, with a dedicated desk for institutional clients	24/7 live chat, with phone support and a ticket queue

Criterion

3.5

4.1

Overall score

3.5

4.1

Group index

79 of 100

78 of 100

Best for

Long-term crypto holdersInvestors who prioritise regulationEEA and UK investorsInstitutional and OTC clientsCheap fiat funding

Traders who prioritise regulatory qualityCrypto derivatives and margin tradersAPI and algorithmic tradersHigher-volume spot tradersUS investors wanting crypto and stocks together

Regulation

CSSFFCAMASATVPNYDFS

CBICBICBIFCAFCAFCASECCFTCWY DoBCySEC+2

Top-tier licences

Investor protection

None

Listed group

Banking licence

Segregated client accounts

Negative balance protection

Audited financials

Disclosed regulatory actions

Founded

2011

Headquarters

Luxembourg, LU

San Francisco, California, US

Fees

2.8

3.4

Safety & regulation

4.2

4.6

Trading platform

3.8

4.5

Product range

3.2

4.6

Mobile app

3.7

4.4

Research

2.9

3.6

Customer support

3.6

4.0

Deposit & withdrawal

4.0

Account opening

4.0

4.3

Education

3.2

3.8

Reference order EUR 5,000

Not offered

€0.00

Minimum deposit

None

€1

Stocks (per order)

Not offered

Free

US stocks

n/a

ETFs

Not offered

Free

Options

Not offered

tiered

Futures

tiered

Crypto

tiered

Bonds (order)

n/a

Funds (order)

n/a

EUR/USD spread

n/a

Index CFD spread

n/a

FX conversion

n/a

Inactivity fee

None

Custody fee

None

Withdrawal fee

€3

€1

Deposit fee

SEPA, UK Faster Payments, US ACH and crypto deposits are free. Instant Purchase funded by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or PayPal carries a 4% Instant Service fee on top of the spread built into the quoted price, plus anything your card issuer adds. International wire deposits may attract correspondent bank charges.

free

Overnight financing

n/a

Other fees

Instant Purchase (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal): 4% Instant Service fee plus a spread inside the quoted price — roughly ten times the cost of the same trade routed through the Pro order book
Staking commission (Bitstamp Earn): 15% of rewards on ETH and ADA staking. Cheaper than Coinbase at 35% and Kraken at 20%. Not available to residents of the US, Canada, Japan or Singapore
Minimum order size: 10 USD / EUR / GBP / USDC / USDT on fiat-denominated pairs; 0.0002 BTC and 0.002 ETH on crypto-denominated pairs
FX and stablecoin pairs: Discounted at every tier, from 0.06% maker and 0.08% taker at entry level — a meaningful saving when converting between fiat currencies or stablecoins
FastPass: Fee rates as low as 0.01% for traders demonstrating volume above USD 500,000, without waiting for the standard 30-day look-back
Inactivity / custody fee: None published

Instant buy (Kraken app): 1% on instant purchases, 1.5% on custom orders, and a flat 3% on conversions below the minimum order size
Kraken+: USD 4.99 a month or USD 49.99 a year (4.99 / 49.99 in GBP, EUR, CAD or AUD); monthly billing and the 30-day free trial only through the mobile app, Kraken Web sells annual plans only. Waives the 1% fee on instant and recurring trades and the 1.5% fee on custom orders — Buy, Sell and Convert in the Kraken app and on kraken.com — on up to USD 10,000 a month (10,000 GBP/EUR/CAD/AUD in those regions). Does not cover Spot, Futures, API or OTC trades on Kraken Pro; spreads and payment-processing fees still apply. Also boosts stablecoin rewards
Margin: Opening and rollover fees of roughly 0.02%–0.05% depending on asset, with rollover assessed every 4 hours; liquidations carry a 2% fee
Staking commission: 20% of rewards on flexible on-chain staking; bonded and asset-specific rates vary
Cash deposits: Free — EUR SEPA and SEPA Instant, USD ACH and FedWire, GBP Faster Payments and CHF SIC all cost nothing, from a EUR 1 / USD 1 / GBP 1 / CHF 1 minimum. Only CHF via SWIFT carries a fee, at CHF 0.75
Inactivity / custody fee: None — Kraken states it charges no fee for storing funds, account inactivity or account maintenance

Asset classes (of 14)

Exchanges

n/a

Stocks

ETFs

Options

Futures

Forex

CFDs

Crypto

Bonds

Funds

Commodities

Indices

Warrants

Spread betting

Social trading

Platforms

Bitstamp (Basic)Bitstamp Pro (Tradeview)Bitstamp mobile appBitstamp APIBitstamp InstitutionalRobinhood UK app

Kraken ProKraken DesktopKraken (mobile app)Kraken APIKraken CLIKrakKraken Institutional / Prime

Demo account

Fractional shares

Maximum leverage

Bitstamp does not offer leveraged spot trading to retail customers — a deliberate positioning choice that sets it apart from almost every venue it competes…

1:5

Account opening

Fully online; verification typically completes within minutes to one business day for EEA and UK applicants with a supported identity document

Fully online; verification typically completes the same day, faster for EEA applicants with a supported ID

Account types

PersonalBusinessFastPassInstitutional

KrakenKraken ProKraken+VIPKraken Institutional

Payment methods

SEPASEPA InstantBank transferCredit cardDebit cardApple PayGoogle PayPayPalCrypto

SEPASEPA InstantBank transferCrypto

Account currencies

USDEURGBPSGD

USDEURGBPCHFCADAUD

Deposit time

SEPA and SEPA Instant same day to instant; UK Faster Payments same day; US ACH 1–3 business days; card and wallet purchases instant; crypto on network confirmation

SEPA and SEPA Instant 0–3 business days or instant; USD ACH near-instant; GBP Faster Payments 0–1 business days; CHF SIC same day

Withdrawal time

SEPA 0–2 business days; UK Faster Payments same day; ACH 1–3 business days; international wire 2–5 business days; crypto typically within the hour

SEPA 0–5 business days, SEPA Instant near-instant; USD ACH 0–2 business days; GBP FPS near-instant; CHF SIC same day

Free withdrawals

n/a

Languages

EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianPortuguese

EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianDutchPortuguesePolishRomanianCzech+6

Channels

Live chatEmailTicket system

PhoneEmailLive chatTicket system

Availability

24/7 live chat and ticketing, with a dedicated desk for institutional clients

24/7 live chat, with phone support and a ticket queue