Gate.io Review 2024

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Gate.io is a crypto exchange and blockchain financial services provider that boasts a significant range of options and opportunities, both in terms of assets and services. Great for newcomer and veteran crypto speculators alike, the exchange offers thousands of tokens and a wide range of advanced features. This 2024 Gate.io review will explore all the essential aspects of its offering, including fees, KYC verification protocols and limits, supported assets, platform security and payment methods. Find out today if Gate.io is the right exchange for you.

Gate.io Details

The Gate.io platform was first launched in China in 2013 under the name Bter.com by founder Lin Han. However, a ban on fiat-to-crypto trading by the Chinese government in 2017 forced holistic changes for the origin service. The owner took this opportunity to rebrand the company to Gate.io and launch an international platform that accepts UK and US customers. The crypto services provider has since gone from strength to strength, surpassing 10 million global users in early 2022.

The firm has its headquarters in the Cayman Islands, though it also operates offices based in the US.

Gate.io Assets

The sheer number of trading tokens listed on Gate.io provides comprehensive access to the crypto markets. The coin list for spot crypto trading stands at almost 1,300 tokens, which is many times more than several major competitors, with new listings and ICOs occurring regularly.

In addition to the most popular tokens, such as BTC, ETH and XRP, an abundance of altcoins and network tokens are offered. These include anything from the 2021 breakout token Safemoon to Flow Wallet and Paid Network, from AAVE, ACA and ADA to XCH, XLM and XPRT. Chances are that if a coin is listed on any exchange, it will have a Gate.io listing.

A substantial selection of speculatory instruments is also listed on the platform, such as leveraged tokens, options contracts and crypto futures. While regulated exchanges and brokers are banned from selling crypto derivatives in the UK markets by the FCA, Gate.io is unregulated, so UK customers are welcomed.

Spot Markets

Gate.io functions primarily as a token exchange and boasts a market of more than 2,000 token pairs. Tokens are paired against USDT, USD, BTC and ETH. Unfortunately for EU and UK traders, there are no GBP or EUR-based pairs on the platform.

Over-The-Counter Trading

While Gate.io does not offer fiat currency deposits, the platform’s over-the-counter (OTC) transaction service provides a way to use traditional currencies to buy crypto. While OTC trading has the advantage of filling transaction requests instantly, users are purchasing crypto directly from the broker, often at a bumped-up rate compared to market prices. More than 60 tokens can be bought and sold using OTC trading in a range of currencies, including USD, GBP and EUR.

In addition to fiat currency purchases, the flash swap facility provides OTC support for token-to-token exchanges. While less than 20 coins are supported through the flash swap system, this facility removes the need for trading through an intermediary currency, such as USDT or BTC, to swap two tokens.

Futures Contracts

With over 200 contract pairs, Gate.io provides an extensive perpetual futures market to users. Clients can also choose between USDT and BTC margined contracts. While the coin list is comprehensive, some traders may be disappointed that the platform does not offer any bundled ETF packages.

Moreover, Gate.io offers weekly, bi-weekly and quarterly delivery contracts, in which underlying tokens are delivered upon expiry of the contract. However, these are only offered for Bitcoin.

Leveraged Tokens

Trading leveraged tokens is a popular alternative to margin trading due to their ability to automatically leverage compound interest and prevent margin calls. Additionally, holding a leveraged token incurs a 0.1% daily fee, which can often be significantly less than margin trading costs.

Gate.io offers both long and short leveraged tokens, with options for 1:3 and 1:5 leverage for bullish and bearish outlooks. While many brokers only offer leveraged tokens on the most popular tokens, the exchange provides a significant number of coins, with over 200 total leveraged token variants.

Options Trading

Gate.io also dabbles in options trading, offering monthly calls and puts on crypto spot prices. As well as standard options contracts, the platform offers the Callable Bull/Bear Contract (CBBC) and the Warrant. The CBBC differs in that once the underlying asset’s price reaches the call price, the option is automatically exercised, while warrants are more similar to traditional options.

Options are available on Bitcoin and Ethereum only.

Financial Services

Gate.io is not merely a crypto and derivatives broker but a firm that offers financial services far beyond the scope of many other exchanges.

Staking & Parachain Auctions

One of the most popular methods of earning interest on long-term crypto holdings is through staking. Staking is one of most popular the methods of yield farming, along with margin lending, and has the potential to offer significant, low-risk returns to traders.

The Gate.io Hold and Earn program facilitates the staking of tokens in exchange for rewards of up to 100% APY. Traders can choose between flexible and locked staking, with the former leaving them free to release their funds at any time while the latter prevents withdrawal during the staking period.

The platform introduces traders to staking through its USD Test (USDTEST) promotional coin, which can be redeemed for free upon opening a new account. This coin can be staked for seven days, earning traders staking profits of 5% APY before the token expires as worthless.

Parachain auctions are another form of staking, often involving far longer lockup periods in exclusively fixed programs. Parachain auctions take place on the Polkadot and Kusama platforms and utilise DOT and KSM tokens, respectively. In exchange for lending network tokens to emerging cryptos, traders are compensated with regular airdrops of the new token over the staking period.

Margin Lending & Borrowing

The Gate.io platform supports margin lending and borrowing on hundreds of its tokens to enable traders to deal in the spot and futures markets with additional leverage. Clients can take both sides to margin transactions, lending out their wallet holdings in exchange for interest or borrowing from other traders at a fixed interest rate.

Gate.io takes up to 18% of interest profits but fees scale depending on the account tier, referred to by the broker as VIP levels.

Gate.io Startup

With many investors looking to invest in the next big blockchain project, Gate.io Startup allows new protocols to access funding from its clients directly from their wallets. This is one of the most popular services on the site, with almost all projects exceeding funding goals by thousands of per cent.

Traders must pass verification to take part in Startup by providing full know-your-customer (KYC) documentation. Additionally, this facility has significant country restrictions, with clients from many major jurisdictions, including the USA, China, Malaysia and Canada, excluded.

Quantitative & Copy Trading

Due to the perpetual trading and highly volatile nature of the crypto markets, many advanced traders choose to utilise algorithmic strategies to maximise profits. The Gate.io quantitative trading section allows clients to devise automated trading strategies of their own, offering templates like grid trading, spot-futures arbitrage and indicator signals trading bots, each coming with customer review options.

If you would rather rely on the opinions of other traders, Gate.io facilitates copy trading from the most popular and proven traders on the platform, allowing you to emulate their automated strategies, entering and exiting trades at the same price points. There is a 5% commission on any profit made through copy trading, which is paid to the strategy provider.

For experienced programmers that wish to develop their trading bots outside of the platform, Gate.io provides API documentation and WebSocket integration to facilitate the implementation of third party software.

Demo Trading

Opening futures and options contracts can be daunting for beginner and intermediate traders. Even with ample education and tutorials, the best way to learn how to trade is through experience. To this end, Gate.io provides a demo trading facility for these markets.

While some brokers allow users to demo trade before they open a full account, Gate.io requires traders to sign up and complete identity verification before accessing the demo trading facility. Disappointingly, demo trading is not available on spot markets.

Cloud Mining

Gate.io also allows users to pool their funds into large scale crypto mining operations. This lets you access returns from Bitcoin mining without the significant initial investment required to mine independently. Separate mining contracts are provided with different durations, hash rates, expected annual rates of return and contract prices.

NFT Auctions

A dedicated NFT auction platform is hosted by Gate.io, featuring popular collections and live auctions. To encourage creators to use its service, the platform offers the chance to mint your first NFT with no listing fee.

Trading Platform

The Gate.io trading platform is available through a web browser, as a standalone desktop app to download for PC and Mac and as a mobile application for both iOS and Android devices.

The platform itself provides comprehensive information on each trading asset, with historical data going back as early as 2014, a range of temporal chart views and live order books displaying market sentiment through an inbuilt indicator. Several technical charting tools are also available, such as moving averages and awesome oscillator indicators. Up to four charts can be displayed simultaneously for real-time tracking of several tokens.

Mobile App

The Gate.io mobile app aims to provide much of the functionality of the desktop platform with the added utility of being available wherever you are. Traders can login with their username and password and monitor or make trades anywhere there is an internet connection.

The app is available to download directly from the website in APK format or can be obtained from the Google Play or Apple (iOS) App stores. A direct download link is provided via a QR code on the Gate.io website. App reviews are mostly positive, though some iOS users complain of freezes and withdrawal problems.

GT Token

The platform has a native token, GT, that entitles holders to special privileges, such as reduced fees, exclusive startup opportunities, discounts on major tokens and access to governance voting. The GT token can be purchased through the spot markets or earned for participating in platform activities.

Trading Fees

Whether you are trading on the spot market, holding leveraged tokens or trading futures contracts, it is crucial to understand the Gate.io trading fees and how they apply to you.

OTC transactions have no extraneous fees as the markup on a trade covers this, though OTC purchases using fiat currency may be subject to deposit and withdrawal charges. Profits made from lending crypto are subject to a base rate fee of 18%, though higher VIP levels see this fee reduced.

Basic exchange fees start at 0.2% for maker transactions, where traders create a new order, and 0.2% for taker transactions, for traders that wish to sell or buy at market price. Holding a leveraged token entails a daily 0.1% fee. For futures trading, there are no maker fees and taker fees start at 0.05%

Account Tiers

Qualifying for a higher account level entitles traders to discounts on exchange fees, lending profit commissions and futures trading fees. All Gate.io traders begin at VIP tier 0 and must meet certain requirements to move to tier 1. VIP levels go all the way up to tier 16.

Traders have the option of meeting a VIP tier’s requirements by purely holding GT tokens or meeting trading volume levels and having a smaller amount of GT tokens in their wallets. VIP tier 1 requires a 30-day volume equivalent to 1.5 BTC or more and owning 20 GT tokens. Alternatively, traders can own 100 GT tokens with no volume requirements.

Paying In GT Tokens

Clients can opt to pay fees in Gate.io tokens for an additional discount. For this, basic exchange fees start at 0.15% and scale with VIP levels.

Payment Methods

One of the main drawbacks of Gate.io is the inability to directly deposit or withdraw fiat currency to its accounts. Instead, traders must either purchase selected cryptos using the OTC exchange or transfer crypto from another wallet or exchange. This is a more complex process than beginner traders may be used to, so Gate.io provides guides on how to deposit crypto from another platform.

While there is no 24 hour deposit limit, the platform enforces a daily withdrawal limit for each supported token. This varies from coin to coin but is generally high enough to not affect most traders. Representative limits are 100 BTC and 3,000 ETH. However, the withdrawal requirements for individual transactions are lower than the daily limit.

Crypto deposit times can range from instant to a few hours, depending on the crypto network. Withdrawal times can take a few hours due to the platform’s security checks. It is also worth noting that withdrawal without KYC verification is limited and in some cases prevented entirely.

Transaction Fees

Gate.io does not charge deposit fees on any coins, though there may be separate network costs. Withdrawal fees are based on a flat rate that is specific to each token, though in some cases a percentage fee also applies.

Pros Of Gate.io

• Futures, options and leveraged tokens
• Integrated startup funding platform
• Staking and parachain options
• UK crypto derivatives trading
• Wide range of tokens
• Lots of asset classes
• Automated trading
• Competitive fees
• Mobile trading
• Demo account
• API support

Cons Of Gate.io

• Unregulated
• No free withdrawals
• Some English translation issues
• Limited tokens for options contracts
• No direct fiat deposits or withdrawals

Trading Hours

The Gate.io platform runs around the clock to facilitate continuous trading on the perpetual crypto markets.

Security & Regulation

When looking at a crypto platform  like Gate.io, many traders will want to know “is it safe” before creating an account and sending in KYC-required identity verification documents. While there is nothing to suggest that this broker is not entirely legit, some traders will be wary of financial services providers that operate without regulation. That being said, many DeFi companies intentionally remain operate without regulation to protect anonymity and reduce external control. The stringent KYC checks that the exchange runs is a good sign that it operates with the best interests of its clients in mind.

In terms of account security measures, the company requires users to set up a separate fund password to provide extra safety when managing funds or making trades. Additionally, users can protect their accounts further by using a time-based one-time password (TOTP) from Google Authenticator for two-factor authentication (2FA). Trading data is secured with high-level encryption while the platform’s functionality is protected by anti-DDOS measures.

Customer Support

If traders require support on the Gate.io exchange, there are several avenues to explore. The website’s help section is a great place to start, offering guides on using the different areas of the platform, such as how to deposit money and what pending approval means, along with detailed information on specific issues and account features. However, these written guides vary in quality and legibility, with some areas poorly translated from the platform’s native Chinese.

Gate.io news is regularly posted on the site, as well as on the exchange Twitter account and Telegram community. Look out for major news like the announcement of the upcoming addition of Binance Smart Chain (BSC) contracts.

A helpful and responsive customer service team is the hallmark of any top exchange. While the platform has no phone number to contact the team, traders with issues such as a deposit not showing, KYC & 2FA not working, reset fund password problems, how to delete an account and the site not generating a deposit address can use the live chat function or email a support agent. Gate.io customer service is available 24/7 and is experienced in dealing with platform issues.

• Email Address: support@mail.Gate.io

Gate.io Verdict

Gate.io is a well-established crypto exchange and trading platform that provides an impressive depth of assets, with over 2,000 spot markets and 200 futures pairs. The company has been operating internationally since 2017 and offers staking, copy trading, startup crowdfunding, derivatives speculation and an NFT marketplace to clients worldwide. However, some may be put off by its unregulated status, while the lack of direct fiat deposits and withdrawals may dissuade others from investing with Gate.io.

FAQ

Top 3 Gate.io Alternatives

These brokers are the most similar to Gate.io:

1. IG Index - Founded in 1974, IG is part of IG Group Holdings Plc, a publicly traded (LSE: IGG) brokerage. The brand offers spread betting, CFD and forex trading across an almost unrivalled selection of 17,000+ markets, with a range of user-friendly platforms and investing apps. For 50 years, IG has maintained its position as an industry leader, excelling in all key areas for traders.
2. XTB - Founded in 2002 in Poland, XTB now serves more than 1 million clients. The forex and CFD broker combines a heavily regulated trading environment with an extensive selection of 6400+ assets and a commitment to trader satisfaction, featuring an intuitive in-house platform with superb tools to support aspiring traders.
3. CMC Markets - Established in 1989, CMC Markets is a respected broker listed on the London Stock Exchange and authorized by several tier-one regulators, including the FCA, ASIC and CIRO. More than 1 million traders from around the world have signed up with the multi-award winning brokerage.

Gate.io Feature Comparison

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