Personal Finance Insider writes about products, strategies, and tips to help you make smart decisions with your money.We may receive a small commission from our partners, like American Express, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.- Gemini offers cryptocurrencies, interest-bearing perks, and more for both individuals and institutions.- It doesn’t have an account minimum, but it charges different fees for web and mobile orders.- Gemini also offers a separate Active Trader platform for more advanced cryptocurrency traders.- [Click here to set up an account with Gemini] .
Overall rating |Feature||Insider rating (out of 5)| |Fees||4.00| |Investment selection||4.50| |Platform navigability||4.50| |Customer service||3.00| |Trustworthiness||N/A| |Educational resources/research||4.00| |Overall score||4.00| Is Gemini right for you? |You may like Gemini if you…||You may not like Gemini if you…| – Want to trade and more than 50 other virtual assets – Value account security and want your assets securely stored and insured against theft – Are an advanced trader looking for features like faster order execution, crypto trading pairs and auctions, and charting tools – Are an institution with need for [crypto exchange] and storage services – Want to earn daily interest from different cryptocurrencies – Want to use [margin accounts] to take on additional buying power – Prefer to pay less for larger transaction amounts – Are looking for a straightforward fee schedule Legally known as Gemini Trust Company, LLC, Gemini is a cryptocurrency exchange offering trading and storage options for individuals and institutions.
Among Gemini’s offerings are interest-bearing account perks (allowing you to earn a high APY on certain cryptocurrencies), online and offline storage options, and the ability to pay with crypto at select retailers.
The exchange also prides itself on being the only cryptocurrency exchange to offer interest-bearing account options to traders in all US states.Popular Articles Founded in 2014 by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, Gemini says it abides by a “security-first” mentality and belief system of asking for permission, not forgiveness.The mobile app is available on iOS , Android , and Galaxy devices.|Editor’s rating||4.00 out of 5| |Fees| |Account minimum||$0 (| |Promotion||Receive $10 of Bitcoin (BTC) when a referral exchanges $100 or more within the first 30 days of creating an account| $0.99-$2.99 fee for USD web and mobile transactions between $10 and $200 (1.49% fee for transactions over $200); 0.50% convenience fee; 3.49% debit card transfers [trading minimums] apply to different crypto assets) [Open account] Not sure if Gemini is right for you? Keep reading to see how it compares to other crypto platforms.How does Gemini compare? Min.Investment $0 Min.Investment $0 Min.Investment $10 Fees $0.99-$2.99 fee for USD web and mobile transactions between $10 and $200 (1.49% fee for transactions over $200); 0.50% convenience fee; 3.49% debit card transfers Fees 0% (1.25% markup on cryptocurrencies) Fees 0.1% spot trading fee; 0.5% instant buy/sell fee (4.5% fee for deposits with US debit card) Investment choices Cryptocurrencies Investment choices Stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies Investment choices Cryptocurrencies [Open account] [Open an account] [Open an account] Both Gemini and SoFi share the $0 minimum account options, but the two investment platforms vary when it comes to fees, account features, and cryptocurrency selection.
SoFi charges a 1.25% markup (this amount is added to each crypto purchase) on transactions, while Gemini’s web and mobile transaction fees range from $0.99 to $2.99 (and larger transactions carry higher fees).You can find the complete fee schedule here .Binance.US has a slightly higher minimum than Gemini and SoFi, but this exchange gives you access to more than 50 cryptocurrencies.And if you make deposits through wire or ACH transfer, you’ll only have to pay 0.1% or 0.5% for transactions.
If you’re interested in Gemini, though, keep reading to learn more.
Ways to invest with Gemini Cryptocurrencies and ERC-20 tokens Gemini’s crypto selection isn’t as vast as many of its competitors.It offers the following assets: Bitcoin, ethereum, litecoin, bitcoin cash, zcash, Filecoin, dogecoin, and tezos (XZT).When it comes to tokens, however, Gemini gives you access to more than 40 ERC-20 assets (tokens are virtual assets derived from blockchains that already exist).
See a complete list of its supported assets here.The exchange also provides an advanced trading platform, Gemini Active Trader , for more experienced traders.This platform is free to set up (although it has a separate fee schedule for orders) and comes with a number of perks, including faster trade execution, multiple order types, auctions for different crypto trading pairs (trading pairs are crypto assets that can be exchanged for one another), and more.While this platform is available on the web, Gemini says it’s optimized specifically for mobile browsers so you can trade on the go.
The exchange also offers Gemini Dollar (a USD-backed stablecoin), Gemini Clearing for order transactions, and Gemini Pay.Gemini Pay lets you make purchases with crypto at more than 30,000 retail centers across the US.On the institutional side, Gemini serves asset managers, liquidity providers, corporations, and wealth managers.Crypto rewards Gemini gives you the option to earn up to 8.05% APY on cryptocurrency balances by lending crypto to certain financial institutions.
The feature — called Gemini Earn — pays interest daily, and the interest accrues starting at 4 p.m.on the business day after you deposit the funds.But interest rates vary for different cryptocurrencies.Here are some examples: – Bitcoin: 1.49% – Ethereum: 2.05% – Litecoin: 2.77% – Dogecoin: 3.78% – Filecoin: 5.92% Note: Rates above are accurate as of 9/17/2021.
See a complete list of interest rates here .Gemini says it lets you immediately opt in to Gemini Earn as soon as you open an account and purchase cryptocurrencies.You can also view both your combined trading balance and Gemini earn balance on the web and mobile platforms.Wallet storage You can safely store any of your coins or tokens with Gemini’s hot wallet and institutional cold storage options.
A hot wallet is an online storage software that protects your crypto assets; cold wallets, or cold storage systems, utilize offline storage.The institutional cold storage option — also called Gemini Custody — includes free setup and no account minimums, $200 million in insurance (this protects your virtual assets against theft), same-day withdrawals, instant liquidity (this allows you to convert assets to cash right away), and 24/7 customer support.Educational resources Gemini offers multiple resources for beginner crypto traders or those who simply want to broaden their knowledge on different investment topics.Among these are its blog and Cryptopedia platform.The Gemini blog contains helpful posts on industry, product, and account-use/technical topics.
The Cryptopedia platform, however, is a much more expansive crypto education resource.The platform contains nearly 300 articles — including explainers on non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and Bitcoin — on all things crypto.You can find Cryptopedia’s articles here .
The exchange also offers several videos and webinars on important crypto topics.
These include the following: Is Gemini trustworthy? The Better Business Bureau has given Gemini an NR (“No rating”).The BBB’s ratings usually range from A+ to F, but it says it has given Gemini the “NR” status while it evaluates a pattern of complaints about the exchange’s customer service issues and account management concerns.The bureau found that most complaints filed after January 2021 alleged that customers weren’t able to access bitcoin in their Gemini accounts.The BBB’s findings also indicated that many users believed Gemini’s verification process for withdrawals and transfers slowed transactions.But as for its rating methodology, the bureau also considers time in business, the type of business, licensing and government actions, advertising issues, and more.However, since its ratings don’t guarantee whether a business will be reliable or perform well, it’s equally important to conduct your own research.Gemini has closed more than 820 complaints in the last 12 months, according to BBB data..
