HitBTC Review
HitBTC is a Bitcoin exchange that allows users to trade a variety of crypto currencies and prevailing fiat currencies (EUR, USD). The exchange provides trading services to individual traders and merchants and institutions as well. The fee on market trades is 0.1%. The site claims that it uses an advanced platform for technological products in its class.
Founded by Dave Merrill, HitBTC is an exchange based in Estonia and has been operating since late 2013. It started as a joint venture between developers, expert traders and finance professionals with a funding of €6 million. According to reports, the daily trading volume on HitBTC is roughly 28,000 BTC.
Features
This platform is best known for being a robot-friendly exchange. It also features a robust set of APIs, which makes it more attractive to trading bot developers.
One of the major benefits of HitBTC is that it provides support for the FIX protocol, which is a rarity when it comes to crypto currency exchanges.
In addition, HitBTC allows demo trading, which is once again not something you will find in common with crypto currency exchange platforms. Most exchanges mandate a $1 deposit to minimum trades of $1 and treat that as a demo. HitBTC offers a complete demo trading platform for beginners who want to get to know the world of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies better.
Users can open three types of accounts; General, Verified and Qualified. The withdrawal limit for a General account is €5,000 worth of crypto currency per day. The withdrawal limits for Verified accounts are higher at €10,000 crypto currency equivalent per month. Qualified accounts enjoy a withdrawal limit of $10,000 per week and $50,000 per month.
Ease of Use
The interface of the platform is intuitive, responsive and easy-to-use. It can be understood by trading newbies but is also complex enough for advanced traders.
Customer support for HitBTC is available through three different channels, which includes a forum, email with ticket system and a comprehensive FAQ section. The forum support team addresses all issues within a day while customers can expect to receive prompt replies to emails. Tickets can be raised to get the customer support team to call back. There is also an FAQ page, which covers most topics regarding trading in crypto currencies with enough detail.
Security
Security is a paramount feature of HitBTC that is amplified by its support team on different forums all over the internet. The site uses 2-factor authentication as well as an extra layer of protection for logins and withdrawals. Users are notified via email of logins from new IPs while the platform stores the login history of every account.
Database backups are conducted daily in order to prevent any loss or damage. The platform also runs a bounty program. The platform also has cold wallets to store coins related to each crypto currency it supports. Details of the wallets and addresses are not made public.
Cons
The demo page on the website seems to be experiencing some problems and the demo interface is not fluid enough for beginners looking for guidance.
The withdrawal process of HitBTC is known to be slow. Users have also complained about the difficult and time consuming verification process of the website.
The withdrawal process on the platform is rather slow and the fact that HitBTC does not have a mobile app yet does not help its cause either.