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Coinfield vs. Kraken: What Works Better For Canadians in 2024

Oleg Galeev

Last updated September 20, 2024

As of July 15th, 2023, Coinfield's website stopped operating properly for Canadians. Also, their registration status of MSB has been ceased by FINTRAC. As a result, we would recommend avoiding this crypto exchange at the moment. Feel free to check alternatives e.g. Bitget or BitBuy. The comparison below is outdated, but we have retained it in the event that the crypto exchange resumes proper operations in Canada. More information here. The comparison below is outdated and kept for educational purposes. Apparently, if you pick between Kraken and Coinfield, go ahead with Kraken.

Coinfield and Kraken are both prominent cryptocurrency exchanges with unique advantages. Coinfield offers a wide range of cryptocurrencies with a focus on Canadian users, while Kraken stands out for its global availability, futures trading, and staking features.

Description

CoinField is an EU-based cryptocurrency exchange that is Canada-friendly. It was a secure crypto exchange with a robust verification process.

Unfortunately, CoinField is no longer active in Canada. The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has stated that the exchange does not have adequate assets to satisfy withdrawal requests.

Kraken is a Canada-friendly, but US-based crypto exchange that has been operating since 2013. Kraken has a strong reputation due its security and compliance with US regulations. Kraken aims to accelerate mass adoption of cryptocurrency and offers a wide range of coins.

Coins

While it offers the usual digital currencies such as bitcoinEthereum and Litecoin, it does not offer popular coins such CardanoSolana, or Dogecoin. The full list of coins available are: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Stellar, EOS, TRON, Sologenic, BAT, Mimblewimble, USDT, USDC, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold, DigiByte, Golem, OMG, Augur, 0x, Zilliqa, Civic, and Loom.

90+

Fees

When it comes to fees, CoinField has many. It charges a 2% deposit fee for Interac e-Transfers with a minimum deposit of $100. US dollar wire transfers are free. CoinField charges a 2.5% withdrawal fee using Interac and its maker/taker trading fees are 0.15%/0.25% if your trading volume is less than $50,000 over 30 days. 

  • nstant buy incurs a 1.5% fee (0.9% for stablecoins) plus: 
  • 3.75% and€0.25 card processing fee or,
  • 3.75% + €0.25 digital wallet processing fee or,
  • 0.5% online bank transfer fee

Pros

  • Secure and compliant exchange
  • CAD Interac e-Transfers available
  • Advanced trading features available
  • Easy-to-use app
  • Accepts many fiat currencies and deposit methods
  • Staking rewards and referral program
  • Wide range of coins
  • High fees when not using Pro
  • Good for beginners
  • Free CAD deposits
  • Advanced tools with the Pro platform
  • Staking

Cons

  • High deposit and withdrawal fees
  • Desktop platform can be confusing for beginners
  • Some of the most popular coins not available 
  • Slow customer service 
  • No Interac e-Transfer
  • Deposits can take 1-5 business days
  • Extremely high trading fees
  • Tend to freeze accounts for no apparent reasons
  • Slow support

Account Limits

Only limits at your local financial institution may apply

Low

Methods to buy

CoinField accepts six fiat currencies including CAD, USD, EUR, GBP, AED, and JPY.

  • Interac e-Transfer
  • Credit/debit where accepted
  • Bank transfer
  • Wire transfer
  • Debit card

Security

  • Cold storage
  • Secret vaults
  • Multi-signature wallets
  • Encryption and isolated servers
  • 2FA
  • 95% of coins held in cold storage
  • Servers monitored 24/7 by armed guards
  • 2FA available
  • Confirm withdrawals via email
  • Fully Audited

Mobile and Desktop Trading

Both Coinfield and Kraken provide a satisfactory experience in mobile and desktop trading. Coinfield's apps on Google Play and App Store both hold an average rating of 4.3, while Kraken impresses with 4.3 stars on Google Play and a remarkable 4.7 stars on the App Store. Kraken even has a Pro app for experienced traders. Both exchanges also offer a clean and intuitive desktop interface for trading.

Coinfield

On the Apple App Store, the CoinField app has a 4.3-star rating with almost 500 reviews. On Google Play it has a 3.4-star rating with over 1000 reviews. Some of the worst reviews are people lamenting the high fees and slow processing times. 

Reviewing CoinField's features

Coinfield trading view

Reviewing CoinField's usability from desktop version

Coinfield view with selecting coins

One of the pages on CoinField's app

Coinfield app main screeen

Reviewing CoinField's mobile app interface

App view while trading

Kraken

Kraken's app is well-designed and offers tools for both beginners as well as advanced tools for more experienced traders.

Kraken has an “Instant Buy” option, where users can purchase crypto in seconds with their card or from funds in their fiat wallet. Instant Buy, while convenient, incurs high fees. There is a standard purchase fee plus an additional fee depending on the method of payment. Still, the Instant Buy option is suitable for beginners and is easy to navigate.

Kraken Pro has more reasonable fees based on the maker/taker method. However, the interface could be confusing for beginners. It shows advanced charting and offers more trading tools and order types.

Kraken’s mobile app has a 4.5-star rating from 3000+ reviews on the Apple App Store and a 2.2-star rating from over 13,000 reviews on Google Play. A lot of users say the app has trouble loading, certain funding or purchase options are unavailable and it is generally not user-friendly.

Kraken desktop interface

Kraken desktop interface

Kraken Pro screenshot

Kraken Pro Trading view

Kraken app interface #1

Kraken app interface

Kraken app interface #2

Kraken app interface while trading

Security Compliance

CoinField is one of the safest crypto exchanges in Canada. It has never been hacked. While CoinField may receive bad reviews for their slow customer service, CoinField is certainly a safe and compliant exchange. With CoinField you can have peace of mind knowing you are dealing with an exchange that prides itself on its security and privacy. The exchange utilizes cold storage, secret vaults, multisignature wallets, encryption and isolated servers. Users can enable two-factor authentication on their accounts for extra protection, and users must confirm all withdrawals via email. Signing in on a new device or with a new IP address also triggers a verification email. 

Kraken keeps 95% of users’ funds in cold storage. All account information is encrypted, their servers are locked in cages under 24/7 surveillance by armed guards. 

To help secure your Kraken account you can use two-factor authentication. You will receive an email notifying you of any withdrawal, and there is an account timeout for added protection.

Security is paramount in both exchanges. Coinfield implements advanced security measures such as 2FA, 256-bit SSL encryption, and 90% cold storage for assets. Similarly, Kraken employs rigorous security protocols, including cold storage for 95% of digital assets, encrypted account information, and round-the-clock surveillance for servers. Both exchanges also offer bug bounty programs.

Regulatory Compliance

Coinfield used to be a FINTRAC-regulated crypto exchange in Canada but recently their registration status was ceased. It's hard to tell at this point how compliant it is but many Canadians still use it.

Kraken is fully compliant with US regulations. The exchange is independently audited to show that customers’ funds are properly held. Canadians can use the platform as well.

Coinfield is fully regulated by FINTRAC and AMF, adhering to the laws in Canada. On the other hand, Kraken is also compliant with regulatory standards, but some of its services are not available in Ontario due to Ontario Securities Commission regulations.

Customer support

CoinField allows users to submit support tickets either online or via email. It does not offer phone support. Customer support is available on weekdays and weekends, but CoinField does not have the fastest customer support – in some cases it can take days for an answer. You can, however, also get in touch via Twitter if you need urgent support.

Unfortunately, CoinField has a poor 2.2-star rating on Trustpilot with 62% bad reviews.

A lot of customers say that they have been waiting weeks to receive their crypto withdrawals.

Kraken offers a 24/7 live chat and email support. It also offers a good amount of learning documentation and helpful articles on its website. Unfortunately, many people say Kraken has poor customer support with tickets taking a long time to be resolved if ever.

Both exchanges offer robust client support. Coinfield provides 24/7 live chat and email support, much like Kraken. Kraken also extends phone support to clients in the USA, UK, and the European Union.

Conclusion

As of July 15th, 2023, Coinfield's website stopped operating properly for Canadians. Also, their registration status of MSB has been ceased by FINTRAC. As a result, we would recommend avoiding this crypto exchange at the moment. Feel free to check alternatives e.g. Bitget or BitBuy. The comparison below is outdated, but we have retained it in the event that the crypto exchange resumes proper operations in Canada. More information here. The comparison below is outdated and kept for educational purposes. Apparently, if you pick between Kraken and Coinfield, go ahead with Kraken.

Both Coinfield and Kraken prove to be formidable platforms for cryptocurrency trading, each with its strengths. However, considering the focus on Canadian users, extensive coin selection, competitive fees, and full regulatory compliance across all provinces, Coinfield nudges ahead as the preferable choice for Canadians in this comparison.

We recommend choosing Coinfield over Kraken for your cryptocurrency trading needs. By opting for Coinfield through our referral link, you support us in conducting comprehensive independent analyses of crypto trading options for Canadians.

If you find that neither Coinfield nor Kraken meets your requirements, we encourage you to explore our monthly-updated list of the best exchanges for Canadians to trade crypto. This list provides a range of alternative options that may better suit your specific needs and preferences.

Author

Oleg is a Canadian citizen & crypto expert who has been trading since 2016. He started out with Coinbase, Kraken and Peer-to-Peer exchanges. After some time, centralized exchanges started charging crazy fees to their users.

He decided to review different crypto exchanges that operate in Canada and start a Youtube channel in order to educate Canadians on what kinds of things are going inside each one while giving them unbiased advice. On top of that, Oleg also has experience with NFT, airdrops, and crypto staking and he is constantly checking on new crypto assets.

His writing has been featured in popular Canadian media sources such as Toronto Sun and Ottawa Citizen.