Nexo is a crypto exchange famous for its user security and ease. It offers trading services, savings, lending, and a crypto credit card. Nexo is a great platform for beginner and intermediate traders. While it doesn't offer a comprehensive list of cryptocurrencies like Coinbase or Binance, it offers a seamless trading service.
In this review, we will go over everything an investor needs to know about Nexo. We will examine its unique features, payment structures, how investors can get started, and how to make the most out of Nexo.
Nexo Overview
| #️⃣ Number of cryptocurrencies | 60+ |
| 💸 Minimum deposit | $/£/€ 10 |
| 🔀 Minimum trade size | $1 |
| 💰 Trading Fee | 0 + spread (Nexo Exchange), Up to 0.2% (Nexo Pro) |
| 💲 Spread | Unspecified |
| ✅ KYC required | Yes |
| 🎧 Customer support | Web chat, email, phone |
| 👮♂️ Regulators | FinCEN, DFPR |
Pros and Cons of Nexo
- Nexo Pro allows precision trading with low fees
- Zero-fee trades that are financed by spreads
- Free withdrawals, dependent on loyalty level
- Key services are unavailable in U.S. Markets
- Minimum withdrawal limits (eg of 0.001 BTC)
Nexo features
Like most crypto exchanges, Nexo aims for simplicity and user-friendliness. Nexo has a simple interface that shows its range of services. Interestingly, Nexo has fewer features than exchanges like Crypto.com or Binance, but that aids in its overall simplicity and user-friendliness.
Trading Tools
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Nexo offers two levels of trading tools. On its basic page, there are simple trading features, which include asset exchange with up to 3x leverage. This interface is simple enough for beginners and amateur traders. Users can buy or sell cryptocurrencies easily. However, Nexo's basic trading tools leave a lot to be desired. Users can't engage in complex trades or use advanced tools such as stop loss orders.
Nexo Pro
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For expert traders, Nexo Pro offers the right kind of services. Users can access spot trading, margin trading, and perpetual futures trading. Nexo Pro offers tools like Stop Loss, Take Profit, and OCO orders. Users can also access automated trading tools.
The leverage on Nexo Pro is also higher. Leverage for spot and margin trading starts from 5x, while leverage for perpetual futures trading goes up to 20x. Users also get access to quality market insights and custom alerts that keep investors updated with the latest market happenings.
Another advantage of using Nexo Pro is its high liquidity on all trading pairs. The platform claims to offer liquidity from leading exchanges, market makers, and 3rd party providers.
Earn Interest
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Nexo offers both saving and lending opportunities as part of its Earn services. Users can easily earn interest on up to 60 crypto assets. Some crypto exchanges and interest-earning platforms might offer more than this, but Nexo Earn still offers a comprehensive list, which will be enough for most investors.
Nexo offers up to 16% APY as a base rate for deposits. Users can also earn an additional 2% when they receive their interest earnings in NEXO tokens rather than its original currency. Some of the interest generated comes from rehypothecation fees, which is Nexo using your deposits as collateral for other trades. Nexo also offers higher interest rates depending on a user's loyalty level. Users with higher loyalty levels receive more tokens. Nexo's interest rates are paid daily.
The Earn Interest feature isn’t available to users in certain countries, such as Bulgaria, Estonia, the USA and Canada.
Borrow Funds
Another interesting feature of Nexo is its Borrow Funds feature. It allows users to borrow against multiple assets and an investor's entire portfolio. Nexo also offers no installments, allowing users to pay off their balance fully or partially without fixed payment schedules. The platform allows users to borrow money using more than 30 fiat currencies. Users can also borrow in USDT or USDC.
Furthermore, approval for Nexo’s crypto-backed loans takes seconds to 24 hours in most cases, which is one of the fastest available. Users can also get premium rates of 0% by becoming Platinum clients and keeping their loan-to-value ratio below 20%. Users also get the flexibility to switch between premium rates and Nexo's standard offering.
Nexo Wallet
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The Nexo wallet offers several advantages. It supports 5 DeFi networks, allowing it to receive assets seamlessly on Ethereum, Polygon, BNB Chain, Avalanche, and Fantom. The wallet also allows users to earn passive income seamlessly from some audited protocols with just a few clicks.
It also allows users to optimize their swaps by aggregating liquidity from multiple decentralized exchanges, thus finding the best price for users. It also helps users save on fees and transaction time. The Nexo wallet doesn't support as many networks as Coinbase or Binance, so investors might be disappointed with that feature.
Nexo Card
Nexo’s crypto credit card allows users to earn interest in crypto for spending in their day-to-day activities. It is a virtual card that can also be used physically. The Nexo card is integrated with Apple Pay and Google Pay, allowing customers to use it seamlessly from their smartphones. One of the advantages of the Nexo card is that it allows users to spend borrowed fiat using their crypto as collateral, meaning they don’t need to sell any of their crypto to cover their expenses.
When using the Nexo card, users also avoid paying taxes. Spending crypto through a debit card or selling it incurs a taxable event. With a Nexo card, a user's assets remain unsold while a user spends fiat, thus not triggering taxable events. The interest rate earned for using Nexo's credit card is up to 2% in NEXO or 0.5% in Bitcoin. Users also get credit lines starting from 0% APR interest rates. The maximum interest users could pay is 15.9% APR, which is still lower that some traditional credit cards.
How Does Nexo Compare on Features
| Nexo | Coinbase | Binance | Kraken | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple purchases | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Recurring buys | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Advanced trading | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Customizable charts | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| P2P trading | ❌ | ❌ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Automated strategies | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Staking/interest accounts | 35+ coins | 7+ coins | 350+ coins | 19+ coins |
| Crypto loans | ✔️ | ❌ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| NFT marketplace | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Private wallet | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Crypto card | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
Nexo Fees
Nexo has a simple fee structure, which is one of the reasons some investors prefer it to other exchanges like Binance. However, some of the costs are less transparent, and you’ll find lower costs on Binance and Crypto.com.
Trading Fees
There are zero trading fees for Nexo swaps thanks to its spread model, which is the difference between the "market ask price" and the price you pay. While there are no trading fees, in reality, users pay trading fees through the spread. Nexo doesn’t specify what the spread is, but comparing Nexo’s prices suggests that it can sometimes be as high as a couple of percent, meaning many other crypto platforms provide a more cost-effective way of swapping and buying crypto.
The spread is built into the quoted prices, so what you see is what you pay, with no extra fees added on top. The only exception is when you buy crypto directly with your card, which incurs a 1.99% fee in the EU and a 3.49% fee for non-EU countries.
Nexo Pro Trading Fees
The fee structure for Nexo Pro is a bit more complex. It uses a combination of factors to calculate a user's exact fee. These factors include pricing tier, maker or taker role, and whether a user trades on the spot or futures exchange.
The pricing tier is a user's total USD trading volume in a trailing 30-day period. It is updated once each day between 00:01 and 00:59. Each transaction involving USD is counted as part of the total USD amount of each filled order. If a user's trades don't include USD, the transaction will be converted to USD based on its most recent price.
| Pricing Tier | Taker Fee | Maker Fee |
| Up to $10k | 0.20% | 0.20% |
| $10k - $50k | 0.18% | 0.18% |
| $50k - $100k | 0.16% | 0.14% |
| $100k - $1M | 0.14% | 0.12% |
| $1M - $10M | 0.12% | 0.10% |
| $10M - $100M | 0.10% | 0.08% |
| $100M - $200M | 0.09% | 0.06% |
| $200M - $500M | 0.08% | 0.05% |
| $500M+ | 0.07% | 0.04% |
These fees are pretty competitive - they provide lower taker fees than Gemini (up to 0.4%) and Coinbase (up to 0.6%) but are still higher than Binance (up to 0.1%) and Crypto.com (up to 0.075%)
The fees for trading futures on Nexo Pro are even lower at up to 0.06%. What’s more, investors can save 50% on Spot and Futures trading fees by using NEXO tokens in the Nexo Pro portfolio.
A Maker is an investor that places a limit order, as they add liquidity to the order book. Takers take liquidity from the order book by placing market orders that are filled immediately.
Deposits and Withdrawals
If you want to avoid the fees for buying crypto with a card, you can instead deposit fiat to Nexo via bank transfer. Nexo does not charge any fees for deposits (but your bank might) and users can deposit USD, EUR, or GBP via wire transfer, SEPA, SWIFT, or FPS. Fiat withdrawals are also free via bank transfer.
When it comes to crypto, it’s free to deposit and users get unlimited free crypto withdrawals on 14 networks. If they want to make a withdrawal on the Bitcoin or Ethereum networks, however, Platinum members get one free withdrawal per month while all other withdrawals incur a network fee.
Other Fees
Transfers between Nexo accounts are free. Nexo doesn't charge any fees for credit line origination, currency swapping, or crypto and fiat deposits. All of this is part of the company's #ZeroFees policy.
If you want to open a credit line on Nexo, you’ll need to pay interest of up to 15.9% APR, with the amount of interest depending on your loyalty tier and loan-to-value (LTV). Loyalty tiers are decided by the proportion of your portfolio held in NEXO tokens, with higher tiers providing more benefits, as seen in the table below.
| Base (Up to 1% NEXO) | Silver (1% - 5% NEXO) | Gold (5% - 10% NEXO) | Platinum (Over 10% NEXO) | |
| High LTV Borrow interest rate | 15.9% | 14.9% | 10.9% | 7.9% |
| Low LTV Borrow interest rate | n/a | n/a | 2.9% | 0% |
| Exchange cashback | 0% | 0.10% | 0.25% | 0.50% |
| Earn Interest (crypto) | 4% | 4.25% | 4.5% | 5% |
| Earn Interest (stablecoins) | 8% | 8.25% | 9% | 10% |
| Earn Interest (fiat) | 5% | 5.25% | 6% | 7% |
| Earn Interest (NEXO) | 4% | 4% | 4% | 4% |
| Bonus for earning in NEXO | +0% | +0.25% | +1% | +2% |
How Does Nexo Compare on Fees?
| Nexo | Coinbase | Binance | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple crypto purchase | No fee | Unspecified fee | 0.5% |
| Simple crypto swap | No fee | Unspecified fee | No fee |
| Spread | Unspecified | Unspecified | None |
| Maker/taker fee | Up to 0.2% | Up to 0.6% | Up to 0.1% |
| Bank transfer deposit | Free | Free (ACH, SWIFT) or €0.15 (SEPA) | Free in most currencies (€1 for euros) |
| Bank transfer withdrawal | Free | Free (ACH), €0.15 (SEPA), or £1 (SWIFT) | Varies by currency (0-1.9%) |
| Debit card deposit/withdrawal | n/a | n/a | 1.9% |
Available Assets and Trading Options
Cryptocurrencies
Regarding cryptocurrencies offered, Nexo is not among the exchanges with the highest supported tokens. However, its list of supported tokens includes the most popular tokens on the market. Investors looking for popular tokens to trade will do well with Nexo. In contrast, investors who like a wide variety, especially with newer tokens, might be disappointed with Nexo's coin offering, which currently stands at 65 cryptocurrencies, including stablecoins.
This is much fewer coins than Coinbase and Crypto.com, which both offer 250+, and comes nowhere near the offering on Binance (350+ coins) and KuCoin (700+ coins).
Types of Trading
Nexo offers two trading options, depending on the Nexo platform you are using. For basic Nexo users, the trading options available include simple swaps and purchases. There are 500+ exchange pairs available for swaps on the basic Nexo platform.
Investors who want advanced trading techniques will do well on Nexo Pro. Besides spot, margin, and perpetual futures trading, Nexo Pro's users also get access to over 500 trading pairs. Nexo Pro also allows investors to carefully customize their trading preferences using tools like stop losses, take profits, and OCO orders.
Standard leverage trading on basic Nexo is up to 3x via the platform's "Booster" functionality. On Nexo Pro, leverage for margin and spot trading goes up to 5x, while leverage for futures trading goes up to 20x. Nexo's leverage is quite modest compared to exchanges like Bybit, which offer up to 100x leverage in margin trading.
How Does Nexo Compare on Assets?
| Nexo | Coinbase | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cryptocurrencies | 60+ | 250+ | 80+ |
| Trading pairs | 500+ | 500+ | 80+ |
| Crypto-crypto trading | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Crypto-fiat trading | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Leverage | Up to 20x | ❌ | In some non-US countries |
| Crypto futures | ✔️ | ❌ | ❌ |
| NFTs | ❌ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Non-crypto assets | ❌ | ❌ | Stocks & ETFs (indices, commodities & currencies in some non-US countries) |
User Experience
Another important aspect of using a crypto exchange like Nexo is the overall user experience. The ease of moving assets on and off the exchange affectsthis. Nexo has a simple-to-use interface with big tabs that show its service offering. The standard Nexo platform is easier to use than Nexo Pro, especially for beginner traders and amateurs.
Most users would have an easy time navigating its services whether they are using the desktop or mobile versions of the app. Regarding user-friendliness, Nexo is easier to use than Binance and Bybit. However, Coinbase offers a slightly simpler experience for beginners.
Device Compatibility
Nexo is compatible with Android and iOS users. Its mobile app offers a complete range of functionalities and Biometric logins, such as fingerprints and face I.D.s, depending on the device. Nexo's mobile app offers slightly better service delivery than its desktop version.
Customer Satisfaction
Nexo ranks fairly high in customer satisfaction on Trustpilot. Many users commend its ease of navigation on its mobile app and desktop user interface. Customers also appreciated the simplicity of its price structure. Some were also impressed by its customer service delivery.
One of the main complaints users had was its customer verification process. Some users claim that Nexo's KYC verification process is cumbersome - rejecting their details several times before finally accepting their information. What’s more, a number of Redditors criticized the company’s lack of transparency around the size on its spreads.
How Does Nexo Compare on User Experience?
| Nexo | Coinbase | Binance | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ease of use | 7.5/10 | 9/10 | 6/10 |
| App Store rating | 3.8/5 | 4.3/5 | 4.6/5 |
| Google Play rating | 4.1/5 | 4.1/5 | 4.4/5 |
| Trustpilot rating | 4.7/5 | 1.4/5 | 2/5 |
Safety and Regulations
Since investors would need to trust Nexo with their funds, reviewing its customer security policies to ensure they are adequate and prevent undue losses is important.
Security Features
Like most crypto exchanges, Nexo uses various techniques to block unauthorized access to a users' accounts. These techniques include:
2FA: Most standard exchanges use 2-factor authentication to ensure maximum account security. Nexo is no different. It uses text for its 2-factor authentication. To simplify this process, Nexo also uses Google Authenticator, which optimizes and cuts down the time needed for the authentication process.
Biometric Identification: Nexo uses biometric data to ensure higher security for its users. The biometric information used by Nexo includes fingerprints and face I.D.s.
Login Alerts: Users are notified each time there is an attempted login on their accounts. Keeping users aware of each account login prevents unauthorized activity from taking place on a user's account.
Whitelisting: The address whitelisting function allows users to limit withdrawals to wallets saved in their Address book. When whitelisting an address, users can add extra security level delays for making changes to their whitelisting setup. For instance, users can add 24-hour delays to making changes like disabling whitelisting or adding new addresses.
Asset Protection
When considering the suitability of a trading platform like Nexo, investors and users must carefully analyze its "Asset protection" policies. Some of Nexo's policies on asset protection include:
Asset Storage and Insurance: Nexo employs the services of industry leaders in the asset storage space. It works with platforms like Ledger Vault and Bakkt for its asset custody. Nexo also has insurance protection worth $250 million through insurance firms like Lloyd's of London.
Overcollateralization: Nexo employs over-collateralization when lending assets. Overcollateralization requires investors to collateralize more assets than they would like to borrow. For instance, a user who wants to borrow $1000 might be asked to put up $2,000. When lenders default on their loan or the loan's value rises beyond what was initially borrowed, part of their collateral is sold to make up the difference. Through over-collateralization, Nexo can protect its users' assets from risks.
Regulation
Like most top crypto exchanges, Nexo prioritizes getting appropriate licenses and complying with regulations. Nexo is available in over 200 jurisdictions worldwide, with a comprehensive list of licenses and regulators. These include:
Money Service Business Registration License from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
Consumer Credit License from the State Banking Department
Money Transmitter License from Alabama Securities Commission
Financing Law License from the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation
Money Transmitter License from the Department of Finance, Idaho
Lender License from the Office of the State Bank Commissioner
Supervised Loan License from the Office of the State Bank Commissioner
Money Transmitter License from the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation
Reputation
Nexo was launched in 2018. Since then, it has garnered over 6 million users across 200 jurisdictions worldwide. The platform manages more than $15 billion in assets. Nexo has a reputation for quality service delivery and customer security.
Nexo is no stranger to controversies. In January 2023, it was fined a $22.5 million settlement by the Securities and Exchange Commission for promoting its "Earn Interest" product in the U.S. without registering with the regulatory commission.
The move subsequently led to removing Nexo's "Earn Interest" service from the US version of the platform. That same month, it was also sanctioned by Bulgarian authorities after an allegation that the company's services were being used for crime-related financial activities.
How Does Nexo Compare on Security?
| Nexo | Coinbase | Binance | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2FA | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Encryption | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Biometrics | ✔️ | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Address whitelisting | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Cold storage for crypto | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Crypto insurance | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Deposit insurance | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Fully reserved | ✔️ | ✔️ | ❌ |
| Bug bounty program | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Regulated | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
Customer Support
Crypto exchanges are quite well-known for having below-par customer support. Most platforms fail to provide prompt responses to customer complaints. While Nexo is not excellent at its customer service, its customer reviews show that it's rated highly among users.
Nexo offers 24/7 Live Chat, Email Support, and a Contact support form. Email Support will usually respond to customer issues in one day. Users can find most answers in its live chat support or the "Frequently Asked Questions" guide.
On rare occasions, receiving an answer from customer support might take longer than a day, especially depending on a user's location.
Resources
A standard crypto exchange should have comprehensive guides to help users navigate and find solutions to their questions. Nexo offers such support to its users in the Help Center. These guides covers everything from how to set up an account to how to withdraw funds.
It also provides DeFi guides, updates, and insights in the form of articles and podcasts in the blog. Nexo’s educational resources aren't as comprehensive as those of Binance. However, it offers most questions beginners would have.
How Does Nexo Compare On Customer Support?
| Nexo | Coinbase | eToro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Help center | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Web chat | ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| ✔️ | ✔️ | ✔️ | |
| Phone | ❌ | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| Account manager | ❌ | ❌ | ✔️ (eToro Club members only) |
Is There An Alternative To Nexo?
Despite its simple fees and accessible user experience, Nexo might not be the ideal platform for many users. Users should ensure their choice matches their trading preferences when selecting an alternative.
eToro - Better For Diversification than Nexo
If crypto isn’t the only asset class you’re interested in, eToro could be a more suitable option as it offers stocks and ETFs on the same platform (as well as indices, commodities, and currencies in some non-US jurisdictions). What’s more, you can replicate the trades of more experienced users with the innovative CopyTrader feature.
Kucoin - Offers More Cryptocurrency Options than Nexo
Investors looking for various trading options can opt for Kucoin, which has over 700 cryptocurrencies and over 1300 trading pairs. Kucoin is better suited to investors seeking exposure to less popular cryptocurrencies.
Coinbase - Easier to Navigate than Nexo
Some users might also find Nexo a bit too difficult to use. Such users will find Coinbase an easier alternative, especially in its instant purchase and learning rewards features. Coinbase also has a not-very-transparent fee structure, but its overall user experience is simpler than Nexo.
Bybit - Higher Leverage than Nexo
Investors big on leverage trading might opt for platforms with significantly higher leverage than Nexo. Platforms like Bybit offer up to 100x leverage.
Should I Use Nexo?
One key aspect of trading cryptocurrencies is the particular platform used. Each trading platform has unique advantages and disadvantages that affect the overall trading experience. Nexo is one of the many quality trading platforms available.
Nexo offers a simple interface alongside its trading and interest-earning services. The platform offers trading services for both amateurs and experts. Its leverage ranges from 3x to 20x for spot and futures trading.
One of the standout aspects of Nexo is its customer protection and insurance policy. The platform provides users with up to $250 million in insurance coverage.
Nexo is the perfect platform for investors who want exposure to the top cryptocurrencies while being able to access interest-earning services. Investors who want comprehensive options regarding cryptocurrency availability or the size of interest rates can find other alternatives in Binance, Coinbase, or Bybit.
FAQs
Is Nexo Better than Coinbase?
Is Nexo still safe?
What is the Interest rate on Nexo?
Where is Nexo based?
Who Owns Nexo?
How Do I Cash Out on Nexo?
Methodology
BanklessTimes is dedicated to delivering impartial and enlightening material to assist our audience in making informed choices regarding investments. Our objective evaluations delve into the advantages and drawbacks of various platforms, as well as insights from their clientele, and how they stack up against competing platforms.
To conduct our reviews, we meticulously analyze each platform, evaluating it based on a range of essential factors that matter to potential users. These factors encompass the platform's functionalities, costs, tradable assets, security, and other relevant aspects. Moreover, we assess the platform's user-friendliness and address vital inquiries, such as its licensing status, all to provide a thorough and comprehensive review.
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