Security Compliance
Crypto.com is a highly secure exchange by industry standards: cold storage custody, two-factor authentication, encrypted user data, mandatory withdrawal address whitelisting with email confirmation, and substantial insurance coverage on custodied assets. For balance, it did suffer a hack in January 2022, when roughly $34 million was taken from around 483 accounts, but Crypto.com fully reimbursed affected users and overhauled its security in response, and there have been no comparable incidents since. As always, we recommend moving long-term holdings to your own crypto wallet.
Gate has invested heavily in security in recent years, publishing monthly Proof of Reserves with coverage around 125% and holding licenses in Malta (MiCA), Dubai, Japan and elsewhere. That said, its track record includes past security incidents, and none of its licensing footprint extends to Canada. Since KYC is mandatory and tied to your ID country, Canadians who slip through via VPN risk having accounts frozen with funds inside.
Crypto.com is a highly secure exchange by industry standards: cold storage custody for the majority of assets, two-factor authentication, encrypted user data, mandatory withdrawal address whitelisting with email confirmation, and substantial third-party insurance coverage on custodied assets. For balance, it did suffer a hack in January 2022 when roughly $34 million was taken from around 483 accounts, but Crypto.com fully reimbursed all affected users and overhauled its security in response, with no comparable incidents since. As always, we recommend moving long-term holdings to your own crypto wallet.
Gate has invested heavily in security in recent years, publishing monthly Proof of Reserves with coverage around 125% and holding licenses in Malta (MiCA), Dubai, Japan and the US. That said, its track record includes past security incidents going back to its days as Bter, and none of its licensing footprint extends to Canada. Since KYC is mandatory and tied to your ID country, Canadians who try to slip through via VPN risk having accounts frozen with funds inside.
Crypto.com holds SOC 2 and ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certifications, mandates multi-factor authentication including Face ID and Touch ID, and carries substantial insurance on custodied assets. Gate uses hot and cold storage with multi-signature protocols and publishes monthly Proof of Reserves — but since Gate is not accessible from Canada, only Crypto.com's security arrangements are practically relevant for Canadian readers.
Regulatory Compliance
Crypto.com is among the most regulated crypto platforms available to Canadians. It was the first platform to sign a Pre-registration Undertaking with the CSA and OSC in August 2022, and in May 2025 it received restricted dealer registration in every province and territory, making it only the second major global exchange after Coinbase to reach this status. It's now working toward full investment dealer registration and CIRO membership. It's also registered with FINTRAC, and globally holds a MiCA license in the EU, US money transmitter licenses, and licenses in Singapore, the UK and Dubai.
Gate is not a compliant crypto exchange in Canada. Canada sits on its restricted locations list, Canadian accounts were closed in April 2022, and while Gate has since obtained licenses in the EU, Dubai, Japan and even launched a US entity in 2025, it has shown no sign of registering with Canadian regulators.
Crypto.com is among the most regulated crypto platforms available to Canadians. It was the first platform to sign a Pre-Registration Undertaking with the CSA and OSC in August 2022, and on May 8, 2025, it received restricted dealer registration in every province and territory in Canada — only the second major global exchange after Coinbase to reach this status. It's currently working toward full investment dealer registration and CIRO membership as the next step. It's also registered with FINTRAC, and globally holds a MiCA licence in the EU, US money transmitter licences, and licences in Singapore, the UK and Dubai.
Gate is not a compliant crypto exchange in Canada. Canada sits on its restricted locations list, Canadian accounts were closed in April 2022, and while Gate has since obtained licenses in the EU (MiCA via Malta), Dubai, Japan and launched a US entity in 2025, it has shown no sign of registering with Canadian regulators. The rebrand from Gate.io to Gate.com in May 2025 changed nothing for Canadians.
Crypto.com is registered with FINTRAC and operates as a restricted dealer under Canadian securities regulation — authorized to serve Canadians in every province and territory. Gate lists Canada as a disallowed country and has held no Canadian regulatory registration since closing Canadian accounts in April 2022.
Customer support
Crypto.com's customer support remains its weakest area: users love the app, security and coin range, but support is chat and ticket-based and can be slow for complex issues. On the education front, the platform now offers Crypto.com University with courses and articles for beginners, so our earlier criticism about missing educational resources no longer applies.
Gate offers a help centre, blog and live chat for users in supported countries. Reviews remain mixed, with recurring complaints on Trustpilot about slow support and withdrawal difficulties. For Canadians this is academic, since the platform is off-limits entirely.
Crypto.com's customer support remains its weakest area: users love the app, security and coin range, but support is chat and ticket-based and can be slow for complex issues. On the education front, the platform now offers Crypto.com University with courses and articles for beginners, so earlier criticisms about missing educational resources no longer apply.
Gate offers a help centre, blog and live chat for users in supported countries. Reviews remain mixed, with recurring complaints on Trustpilot about slow support and withdrawal difficulties. For Canadians this is academic, since the platform is off-limits entirely.
Crypto.com's 24/7 chat support is slow on complex issues but functional for routine queries. Gate's support is irrelevant to Canadians who cannot access the platform.
Conclusion
From a Canadian perspective, this comparison has only one answer. Gate has listed Canada as a restricted jurisdiction since April 2022 and is simply not available — the May 2025 rebrand to Gate.com changed nothing for Canadians, and KYC enforcement means even VPN workarounds result in accounts that can be frozen with funds inside.
Crypto.com is the clear choice. Its restricted dealer registration across all Canadian provinces and territories as of May 2025 makes it one of the most compliant global exchanges operating in Canada. The feature set is hard to match: 400+ coins globally, Visa card cashback, staking, an all-in-one beginner-friendly app, free Interac deposits, and Crypto.com University for newcomers. The main trade-offs are slower customer support and a spread baked into app pricing. For Canadians who want even lower fees on high volume, Kraken Pro or NDAX are worth comparing.
We recommend choosing Crypto.com over Gate for your cryptocurrency trading needs. By using our referral link, you support us in conducting comprehensive independent analyses of crypto trading options for Canadians.
If you find that Crypto.com doesn't meet your requirements, explore our monthly-updated list of the best exchanges for Canadians for more options.
