Founded in 2017, Binance has become one of the largest and most famous cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. However, is it actually one of the best platforms and is it good for Australians?
For this review, the RankFi team tested over 15 Australian crypto exchanges so you can compare Binance on fees, spreads, security and much more. Read on to see our results.
Binance Overview
Coins Offered | 600+ |
Total BTC Purchase Fee | 0.15% (🏆 1st place) |
Total BTC Selling Fee | 0.12% (4th place) |
BTC Spread | 0.07% (4th place) |
Trading Fee | 0.10% (plus discounts available) BTC trades are free |
Funding Methods | PayID, direct bank transfer, credit card, P2P exchang |
AUD Deposit Fee | Free up to 4.5% |
AUD Withdrawal Fee | Free |
BTC Withdrawal Fee | 0.0005 BTC |
Notable Features | 600+ coins Advanced trading Lowest fees in Australia Biggest exchange in the world by trading volume |
Our Review
Binance is the cheapest way for Australians to trade cryptocurrencies. The total BTC/AUD purchase fee was 0.15% (1st place) and the BTC spread was 0.07% (4th place). It has 600+ coins, advanced trading and the lowest fees and spreads in the industry. On the downside, it's not beginner friendly and some features are restricted in Australia.
Overall, you should use Binance if you want the lowest fees and spreads, the most altcoins in Australia, and advanced trading. However, if you want a beginner platform, skip to our alternatives section.
The Good
The Bad
What Is Binance?
If you're unfamiliar with the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance was founded in 2017 by Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and has grown to 120+ million users. Binance is significantly larger than its competition. For example, their trading volume is higher than the next 5 crypto exchanges combined.
Binance has 600+ cryptocurrencies listed, zero-fee Bitcoin trading, and the highest trading volume in the world, among many other services. Overall, people enjoy the platform because of its competitive fees and wide selection of crypto assets.
User Interface
Platform & Features
Whether you want to make trades or explore the crypto ecosystem, Binance has a huge selection of features for everyone. However, many features are restricted in Australia so here is only a list of what is available:
List of Features:
- Web, iOS and Android App
- 350+ cryptocurrencies
- Advanced trading interface
- Binance Lite for beginners (mobile app only)
- Liquidity Pools
- Binance Coin (BNB - their own native token)
- Instant buy and sell
- Recurring buys
- 24/7 Customer Support
- Binance Academy and Research
- NFT marketplace
- Referral program
1. Web, iOS and Android App
Binance has a sleek U/X with many features that can be accessed on all of your devices. The Google Play app has over 10 million downloads with a 4.5 star rating at the time of this review.
2. Instant Buy and Sell
Binance offers multiple beginner and advanced ways for Australian's to purchase crypto. The easiest option is the instant buy and sell as you can see in the image below:
3. Advanced Trading
For advanced users, Binance has technical charting tools, live order books, limit, market and stop-limit orders and more. You can also customize the look and feel with light/dark theme, change the colour theme and change the layout to add more charts.
Advanced Trade Classic View
Advanced Trade Layout 2
Quick Buy/Sell
4. Binance Lite (mobile app)
Binance can be overwhelming for beginners so they rolled out Binance Lite which can be toggled on/off in the mobile app. It turns into a more simple U/X that is perfect for newcomers who want to buy, sell and trade crypto easily.
5. Binance Earn
Binance has a variety of offers that let you start earning interest on your crypto. You can pick different options based on your risk-level which range from staking, locked savings (7-90 days), flexible savings (withdraw anytime) and more. The interest rates range anywhere from 0.50% to 60% APY in some cases.
6. Binance Coin (BNB)
Binance has their own native utility token called BNB. It can be traded like any other cryptocurrency and owning it can give you special perks such as reduced trading fees, access to token sales and more.
Also, every 3 months Binance burns some BNB which permanently reduces the supply. At the time of this writing, over 31 million BNB have been burned so far. The quarterly burns will continue until 100 million BNB are destroyed forever which is 50% of the total supply.
7. Other Features and Products
Binance has a massive ecosystem of products that would take a long time to cover. Here's a quick list of other things they offer:
- Referral Program - Invite friends and earn 10%-40% of their trading fees
- Binance Learn and Research - Find educational guides and premium industry research for free
- Binance Launchpad - Invest in brand new crypto projects
- NFT Marketplace - Easily create and trade NFTs using the Binance Blockchain
- Trust Wallet - One of the world's most popular crypto wallets with 10+ million users and tons of features
- Binance Smart Chain (BSC) - A blockchain protocol with smart contract capabilities, extremely low fees and lightning fast transactions
- Binance Visa - (not available in Australia)
- Derivatives - (not available in Australia)
- Crypto Loans - (not available in Australia)
Signing Up
Opening a Binance account takes under 10 minutes to complete and requires KYC. To deposit Australian dollars, Binance must verify your identity which is required by law. This is the same process for any centralized crypto exchange in Australia.
You can sign up with just an email address if you want to test Binance first. However, you won't be able to deposit Australian dollars until you verify your account. There are multiples levels of verification which offer different account limits.
Requirements
Application Time | 5-10 minutes |
KYC Verification | Yes |
Instant Verification | Yes |
Manual Verification | 1-10 days |
Who Is Eligible? |
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Sign Up Requirements |
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AU Verification Levels and Requirements
Deposits & Withdrawals
AUD Deposit Methods
Type | Fee | Time | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
PayID | Free | Instant | $50k daily |
POLi | Not Supported | ||
Direct Bank Transfer | Free (OSKO only) | Instant | $50k daily |
BPay | Not Supported | ||
Credit/Debit | 4.5% | Instant | $20k daily |
P2P Exchange | 0% to 0.35% | 15 mins or less | No limits |
AUD Withdrawals
Type | Fee | Time | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
PayID | Free | Instant | $50k daily |
POLi | Not Supported | ||
Direct Bank Transfer | Free (only with banks supporting OSKO) | Instant | $50k daily |
BPay | Not Supported | ||
P2P Exchange | 0% to 0.35% | 15 mins or less | No limits |
Crypto Withdrawals
Coin | Fee | Minimum Withdrawal |
|---|---|---|
Bitcoin | 0.000005 BTC | 0.00001 BTC |
Ethereum | 0.005 ETH (On ERC-20) 0.000068 ETH (On Binance Chain) | 0.01 ETH (On ERC-20) 0.00014 ETH (On Binance Chain) |
Fees & Spread
Binance is one of the cheapest platforms for buying Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies cheaply. The total BTC purchase fee with AUD was 0.15% (1st overall). The total BTC selling fee was 0.12% (3rd overall) and the BTC/AUD spread was 0.07% (4th overall). This was also tested before Binance waived BTC trading fees so it would be even lower now.
Overall, Binance has the most competitive fees in the industry. It's the largest crypto exchange in the world by trading volume so it has lots of liquidity and tight spreads. Plus, trading fees are 0.10% or less and AUD deposit and withdrawals are free.
You can see the crypto exchanges we tested here.
We tested 15 Australian cryptocurrency exchanges at the same time to compare the true fees. This data was collected on Feb 14, 2022 and is subject to change since spreads and prices change daily. However, it's a good way to compare platforms.
- Total BTC Purchase Fee = AUD Deposit Fee + Trading Fee + Reference Price Difference
- Total BTC Selling Fee = AUD Withdrawal Fee + Trading Fee + Reference Price Difference
You can see all platforms and the full test results here.
Fee Type | Amount |
|---|---|
Total BTC Purchase Fee | 0.15% |
Total BTC Selling Fee | 0.12% |
Trading Fees | 0.10% or less |
AUD Deposits | Free |
AUD Withdrawals | Free |
BTC Withdrawal Fee | 0.0005 BTC |
Trading Fees
The Binance trading fees start at 0.10% and get lower the more you trade. Additional discounts are available by paying for fees with BNB (25% off) and opening an account with a referral link (10% off).
Binance Price Test & Spread
We price tested Binance and over 10 platforms. Spreads and prices change daily so this data is subject to change. However, it's helpful for comparing platforms versus one another.
Price Test (On Feb 14, 2022) | Amount | Ranking |
|---|---|---|
$100 Buy After All Fees | $99.85 (0.15% total fee) | 1/14 |
$100 Sale After All Fees | $99.88 (0.12% total fee) | 3/14 |
BTC Spread | 0.07% | 4/14 |
BTC Buy Price | $59,871 AUD | - |
BTC Sell Price | $59,830 AUD | - |
Ref. Price Difference | Buy: +0.05% Sell: -0.02% | - |
Reference Price (Google) | $59,840 | - |
Security
Overall, Binance is a secure and trustworthy platform that was founded in 2017. It's regulated in Australia to the same extent as other major crypto exchanges like Swyftx and Coinspot. Here's every security feature and detail we found:
Company Security Features
- Assets are held in offline cold storage (not stated how much)
- Registered Digital Currency Exchange (DCE) in Australia
- Regulated by AUSTRAC
- Compliant in many other countries as well such as USA, Canada and more
- 24/7 systems are automatically monitoring for suspicious activity
- They launched Binance DEX, a separate decentralized platform that can be used with full control of your private keys
User Security Features
- Multiple 2FA options (Google authenticator, SMS, email or security key)
- Withdrawal whitelist feature
- Anti-phishing code to identify legitimate emails
- Add and remove trusted devices
- View account activity (logins, IP Addresses, dates, etc)
- Disable account button for emergencies
- SAFU (Secure Asset Fund for Users) - 10% of all trading fees are allocated to this insurance account. In the case of a hack or an extreme scenario, this will repay users
Has Binance Ever Been Hacked?
Yes, in 2019 Binance lost $40 million or about 7,000 Bitcoin to hackers. The good news is that this was only 2% of Binance's total Bitcoin holdings. Also, Binance covered these losses for its users via the SAFU insurance fund so no users actually lost any crypto.
Can You Trust Binance?
Overall, Binance is considered a trustworthy exchange. It's one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world and they have multiple security layers such as the SAFU insurance fund for users, 2FA on your account and more.
Although Binance is considered safe, you should not hold large amounts of crypto on any centralized exchange. There is always a small risk of hacks, government confiscation and more. The safest way to store your crypto is offline using a hardware wallet like the Ledger.
Customer Support
If you need to contact customer support, Binance has a 24/7 customer support system via live chat on their website. They also have an extensive help center with FAQs, tutorials and videos. I have not tested their support so I can't review the response time. However, I've been using Binance since 2017 and have never even needed to use their support team.
- Support Center (https://binance.com/en/support)
- Create a Ticket (https://www.binance.com/en/chat)
Binance Compared
Binance vs Swyftx
Swyftx is based in Brisbane, Australia and is more beginner-friendly than Binance. Otherwise, Binance is the better choice since you get more coins and lower total fees. Binance has 600+ coins (versus 320+ on Swyftx) and a total BTC/AUD purchase fee of 0.15% (versus 0.95%).
More Comparisons
We are tracking the 15+ most popular Australian crypto exchanges. Compare the entire industry below:
Coins | Total Purchase Fee | Trading Fees | $AUD Deposits | Beginner Friendly | Advanced Features | Website | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
600+ | 0.15% | 0.10% | Yes | No | Yes | ||
18 | 1.24% | 0.85% | Yes | No | Yes | ||
110+ | 4.50% | 2.90%* | No | Yes | No | ||
50+ | 1.09% | 0% - 2.00% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
30+ | 0.14% + $50 | 0.10% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
370+ | 1.89% | 0.10% - 1% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
280+ | 2.36% | 0.05% - 0.9% | Yes | Yes | No | ||
150+ | 1.30% | 0.00% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
270+ | 1.04% | 0.50% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
150+ | 1.45% | 1.00% | Yes | Yes | No | ||
30 | - | 0% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
27+ | 1.68% | 0.50% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
50+ | 0.43% | 0.16% / 0.26% | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
700+ | 2.23% | 0.10% | Yes | No | Yes | ||
270+ | 0.41% | 0.08% - 0.1% | No | No | Yes | ||
320+ | 0.95% | 0.60% | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Here are the best crypto exchanges for Australians right now. We assessed 16 platforms across 60 variables and 950+ data points.
Summary
Binance is one of the best choices for Australians looking to buy and sell cryptocurrencies cheaply. You'll find 600+ cryptocurrencies, <0.10% trading fees, advanced trading, and the lowest total fees in Australia. It also has free AUD deposit and withdrawals. The major downside is beginners might find it hard to use.
Who Should Use Binance?
- If you want the lowest total fees in Australia
- If you want to switch exchanges to something cheaper and with more coins
- If you want 600+ coins, advanced trading, and lots of features
Who Should Not Use Binance?
- If you're a beginner, check out Digital Surge or Swyftx instead
- If you want futures or less restrictions on features, check out KuCoin
Get 10% Off Trading Fees Forever And Up To $50 Free
FAQ
Yes. Australian residents and citizens can open an account with Binance and trade over 600 cryptocurrencies. However, some features like futures and loans are restricted.
In Australia, Binance restricts some features to comply with local regulations. Users cannot access futures, options, leveraged tokens, the Binance Visa card and Binance loans.
Yes, Binance is legit. They are one of the largest and most trusted crypto exchanges in the world with millions of users. In Australia, they are a registered Digital Currency Exchange (DCE) which is regulated by AUSTRAC.
Binance is significantly cheaper than Coinbase. Binance had a 0.15% total BTC purchase fee versus Coinbase which was 4.50%. You also can't withdraw AUD on Coinbase, so we don't recommend it.
Due to local regulations, Binance Australia has fewer features than Binance Global. On Binance AU, you won't get the Binance Card, loans, and some other features.
