Coinsquare is a Canadian crypto exchange that allows you to trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a handful of other cryptocurrencies. Compared to other exchanges, though, Coinsquare has high withdrawal fees (around 2%) and awful customer support, which is why I don't recommend it for any Canadian crypto investors.
For a better overall trading experience with significantly lower fees, I recommend opening an account with Kraken, my #1-ranked Canadian crypto exchange. Kraken has 250,000+ satisfied users, charges very low trading fees, and is offering a $10 signup bonus (no referral code required) from now until December 22, 2024.
What Is Coinsquare?
Coinsquare is a crypto exchange platform that has been around since 2014. It has had plenty of time and experience developing the platform to ensure it's user-friendly and safe for traders. Coinsquare's team consists of talented individuals from all over the world who are passionate about cryptocurrencies, and they pride themselves on their commitment to security and transparency.
Coinsquare Features
1. Coinsquare Mobile App
For crypto traders who cannot be on their computers all the time, Coinsquare's mobile app will undoubtedly be a very useful tool to use.
This app was developed for both Android and iOS and shares nearly the same functionality as the online trading platform.
2. Coinsquare's Referral Program
Coinsquare's referral program pays you up to 45% commission on their fees for referring users. You can copy your referral code from your dashboard and share it with anyone interested in creating a Coinsquare account. The person you refer will also receive $10 in BTC when they fund their account with at least $100.
This referral program is great if your referral uses the platform and continues to make trades over time since you'll keep earning the more they trade. However, if your referral only funds their account with the minimum $100 to get their $10 bonus, you'll only earn a couple of dollars at most. In this sense, other referral bonuses like those of CoinSmart, VirgoCX and Bitbuy will give you a much better short-term bonus that's almost guaranteed.
3. Coinsquare Customer Support
Coinsquare used to pride itself on its customer support – but not anymore. I've personally reached out to Coinsquare's customer support team on multiple occasions, and most of the time they don't get back to me at all. This has happened so frequently that I believed for a while that Coinsquare didn't have a customer support team at all. I had a similar experience with Wealthsimple Crypto, but this is by far worse.
When Coinsquare does get back to you, it will often take 1 week or more, which is extremely slow. I've followed up multiple times on urgent support requests and simply got no response.
This is a big part of the reason I don't recommend Coinsquare to any Canadian crypto investors: if you can't reach someone when you have a problem, you shouldn't be using that exchange in the first place.
Cryptocurrencies On Coinsquare
Here's a list of the cryptocurrencies that Coinsquare currently supports:
| Bitcoin (BTC) | Litecoin (LTC) |
| Ethereum (ETH) | Ripple (XRP) |
| Bitcoin Cash (BCH) | Dogecoin (DOGE) |
| Bitcoin SV (BSV) | Stellar Lumens (XLM) |
| Ethereum Classic (ETC) | DASH |
Coinsquare Fees
Coinsquare offers two distinct order types: QuickTrade and Bit Markets.
If you're using the QuickTrade feature, you'll pay 0.20% of your entire trade-in BTC and 0.40% on all transactions using other cryptocurrencies in fees.
On the other hand, Bit Market fees are lower (A Maker fee is only 0.1%, while a Taker fee is capped at 0.2%). Deposits are free, but withdrawing funds from Coinsquare incurs an additional transaction fee of 2%.
As for cryptocurrency fees, deposits are once again free, but withdrawals depend on the currency being withdrawn:
| Cryptocurrency | Fee |
| Bitcoin (BTC) | 0.00025 – 0.0005 BTC |
| Ethereum (ETH) | 0.001 – 0.005 ETH |
| Bitcoin Cash (BCH) | 0.001 BCH |
| Bitcoin SV (BSV) | 0.001 BSV |
| Ethereum Classic (ETC) | 0.005 ETC |
| Litecoin (LTC) | 0.02 LTC |
| Ripple (XRP) | 0.5 XRP |
| Dogecoin (DOGE) | 2.0 DOGE |
| Stellar Lumens (XLM) | 0.5 XLM |
| Dash (DASH) | 0.002 DASH |
Despite the withdrawal fees, Coinsquare is actually a lot cheaper than other options like Shakepay and Newton, but not as cheap as VirgoCX.
Our Recommendation
Despite Coinsquare's wide array of supported cryptocurrencies, competitive trading fees and overall security measures, there's one big con that doesn't allow me to fully recommend this crypto exchange platform.
Deposits via INTERAC e-transfer and wire transfer are free, but withdrawals cost 2%. This can quickly add up to hundreds or even thousands of dollars on larger withdrawals, and that's a lot of money for a withdrawal fee that most other exchanges don't charge.
One way to counter this would be to use a crypto exchange with free withdrawals: with that in mind, I recommend using Kraken instead.
Introducing Kraken: Our #1-Rated Crypto Exchange In Canada
Best In Canada
|
Total Fees: ~0.16% |
★★★★★ Rated 4.9/5 |
Based in the U.S. and regulated by FINTRAC in Canada, Kraken is undoubtedly the best crypto exchange in Canada. Founded in San Francisco back in 2011, Kraken outperforms the smaller Canadian crypto exchanges due to its significantly lower fees, better customer support, and superior overall trading experience.
For starters, Kraken's fees are far lower than any Canadian exchange, with most users paying 0.16% per transaction (fees decrease down to 0% if you trade high volumes). Kraken's spreads are also absurdly low, typically around $0.10 per Bitcoin, which is 0.0003%. Compare that with the other Canadian exchanges—which routinely charge up to 2% in commissions plus an additional 2% or more in spreads—and it's easy to see why Kraken is such a popular exchange.
Kraken also has better customer support than any other Canadian exchange, and is the only exchange in Canada offering telephone support (available in English, French and Spanish). It supports 100+ cryptocurrencies and has a world-class trading platform and mobile app that's powerful yet easy to use.
If that wasn't enough, Kraken's trading platform is far more professional and robust than its Canadian peers, offering features like NFT trading, staking and support for a wide range of fiat currencies including CAD, USD, EUR, and more.
Overall, Kraken is the best fit for most Canadian crypto investors because it has lower fees, better support and a better trading platform overall. If you're looking to start trading crypto in Canada, we strongly recommend Kraken.
Features
- Extremely low trading commissions (0.16%)
- Extremely low spreads (0.0003%)
- Trade 100+ cryptocurrencies
- Stake 100+ cryptocurrencies
- Simple, intuitive user interface
- Kraken Crypto Watch allows you to keep track of the crypto market
- NFT trading inside the Kraken app
- 24/7 customer support via phone, email and live chat
- Plenty of free educational resources available to users
- 95% cold storage policy
- Regulated by FINTRAC
Cost
- Trading Fees: 0.16% (spot trades cost 0.26%)
- Spreads: 0.0003%
- Fiat Deposit Fee: 0%
- Fiat Withdrawal Fee: $10 CAD
Best For
Canadian cryptocurrency investors looking to trade with the industry's lowest fees.
In Summary
Coinsquare is a Canadian crypto exchange that allows you to trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a handful of other cryptocurrencies. Compared to other exchanges, though, Coinsquare has high withdrawal fees (around 2%) and awful customer support, which is why I don't recommend it for any Canadian crypto investors.
For a better overall trading experience with significantly lower fees, I recommend opening an account with Kraken, my #1-ranked Canadian crypto exchange. Kraken has 250,000+ satisfied users, charges very low trading fees, and is offering a $10 signup bonus (no referral code required) from now until December 22, 2024.
Coinsquare FAQs
How Can I Withdraw Funds From Coinsquare?
To do fiat withdrawals within Coinsquare, you only need to follow these steps:
- Sign in to your Coinsquare account.
- Click ‘Withdraw' in the top menu bar.
- Ensure ‘CAD‘ is your selected currency in the left side menu.
- Enter the amount you wish to withdraw. (The minimum amount for CAD withdrawals is $20).
- Select your withdrawal method. (For amounts between $20 to $10,000, select ‘Direct Bank Deposit'. For amounts between $10,000 to $100,000, select ‘Wire Transfer'.)
- Select your bank account, or click ‘Add Bank Account' and enter your bank account details. Fill in all information and attach a void cheque (or direct deposit/pre-authorized debit form).
- Enter the amount you wish to withdraw and click ‘Request Withdrawal'.
The steps you need to take in order to withdraw digital currencies is a bit different:
- Click ‘Withdraw' in the top menu bar.
- Select the currency you want to withdraw in the left side menu.
- Enter the amount you wish to send in the ‘Withdrawal Amount' field (ensure it is greater than the minimum but does not exceed your holdings).
- In the “Send To” field, enter the wallet address of the recipient (you can copy and paste this info to avoid any typos).
- Double-check to ensure that you have entered the information correctly, then click ‘Request Withdrawal'.
- Go to your email inbox and click on the confirmation link found in the confirmation email.
Is Coinsquare Safe?
Well, for starters, it's worth reminding you that cryptocurrency trading is risky regardless of the platform you use to do so. However, I've mentioned earlier in this article that Coinsquare has yet to be hacked, so you can be sure that the platform is pretty safe.
Is Coinsquare Legal In Canada?
Yes. Coinsquare is fully regulated by both the Ontario Securities Commission and the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC).
This means that Coinsquare has met all Canadian regulatory requirements for cryptocurrency trading platforms, so you can be sure it's a legitimate platform to use when trading cryptocurrencies.
That being said, Coinsquare is not a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF), which means that you should be prepared to lose all your investments if the company becomes insolvent.
Coinsquare Referral Code
The code YOREOYSTER will give you a $20 bonus upon signing up with Coinsquare and funding your account with $100 or more, though we still don't recommend Coinsquare to Canadian crypto investors. Check out our post on Coinsquare referral codes for full details and up-to-date codes that work.
Does Coinsquare Report To The CRA?
Yes. Coinsquare is compelled to disclose tax information to the CRA related to its customers.
