Blockchain.com is a centralized cryptocurrency exchange (CEX). Founded in 2011, it’s one of the longest-running bitcoin trading platforms. The Blockchain.com crypto exchange offers a spot market, a cryptocurrency wallet, and an NFT marketplace. Institutional trading is supported.
The platform is KYC-compliant and requires ID verification. The Blockchain.com spot market and other financial services are available in over 200 countries. Some or all services may be restricted in several territories. It’s unavailable to residents of New York State.
Markets
The platform supports crypto-crypto and crypto-fiat trading. Supported fiat currencies include USD, BGP, and EUR. Overall, there are more than 70 Blockchain.com trading pairs available and more than 30 crypto and fiat currencies listed.
Margin trading is enabled, allowing up to 5x leverage. Blockchain.com crypto fees for margin trading are fixed at 0.02%. Additionally, a recurring charge of 0.02% is applied every four hours.
Traders can also access the Explorer tool. It provides historical and live data on the exchange and its assets, including the Blockchain.com crypto price, trade volume, and market capitalization.
Alongside the Blockchain.com spot market, institutional clients can access over-the-counter (OTC) trading services with over 120 tokens. The platform also provides custodial and lending operations. Custom derivatives trading is available.
Blockchain.com exchange fees are based on a multi-tier, maker-taker model. There are 12 tiers in total. Institutional market makers that handle larger transaction volumes may be eligible for customized fees upon request.
At tier 1, the maker-taker fees are 0.20% and 0.40%, respectively. This tier requires a 30-day Blockchain.com trade volume of up to $10,000. The fees are reduced proportionately as the volume increases. At tier 2, the required volume is up to $50,000, and the fees are reduced to 0.12% for makers and 0.22% for takers.
At the final tier (12), makers are not required to pay any fees. The taker fee is reduced to 0.06%. This tier requires a Blockchain.com volume of at least $1 billion.
Other Services
In addition to the Blockchain.com crypto exchange, customers can also access other financial services.
The Blockchain.com crypto wallet is a virtual asset storage tool. Users must verify their ID to access this service. It enables direct crypto purchases and swapping. Additionally, users that transfer their wallet assets to a Rewards Account may be eligible for monthly rewards, earning up to 10% annually.
The Blockchain.com NFT marketplace is a service that allows users to mint, trade, and store non-fungible tokens. At the time of writing, the platform is in the closed beta stage. However, users can join the waitlist to gain early access.
Developers can access the Blockchain.com cryptocurrency exchange API tools. There are two types of open-source APIs – Websockets and REST APIs. Users can receive real-time market data, balance information, and interactive trading systems. Additionally, Bitcoin APIs allow developers to build bitcoin apps.
About the Company
The Blockchain.com crypto exchange was initially founded as Blockchain.info in York, the UK, in 2011. It’s considered the first Bitcoin blockchain explorer, as it was released only two years after the official release of BTC. The company rebranded to Blockchain.com in 2018.
While the company was founded by a UK-based team, its current headquarters are in Luxembourg. The founders of the company are Benjamin Reeves, Nicolas Cary, and Peter Smith. In 2021, Jim Messina, the former deputy chief of staff for Barack Obama, joined Blockchain.com’s Board of Directors.
In February 2014, the Blockchain.com mobile app was removed from the iOS App Store. It was reinstated in July of the same year. At the time, it was known as the only iOS-compatible bitcoin wallet app.
Within three years of its launch, Blockchain.com accumulated more than 2 million wallet users. It was also reported in June 2014 that the transactions surpassed $3 billion. The three-millionth wallet was registered in February 2015. By 2016, the platform hit 100 million total transactions.
In 2017, the platform announced that the Blockchain.com wallets would support Ethereum (ETH). A year later, new institutional investment services were launched on the platform.
In 2021, it was reported that the Blockchain.com trade volume in institutional markets exceeded $16 billion. In nearly a decade, around a third of all bitcoin transactions were handled by Blockchain.com.
Over the years, Blockchain.com experienced several security lapses. In 2013, an issue with the digital wallet led to 50 BTC being stolen. The affected users were reimbursed. In 2014, around 250 BTC were temporarily lost during a security breach.
Peter Smith is the CEO of the Blockchain.com cryptocurrency exchange. He’s a developer, entrepreneur, and crypto investor. Smith is also the Director and Board Member of UK Finance, a trade association for the UK financial sector.
Benjamin Reeves is an entrepreneur and one of the three co-founders. He worked directly with the development of the bitcoin block explorer. He briefly collaborated with the co-founder of the Coinbase crypto exchange, Brian Armstrong.
Nicolas Cary is the Vice Chairman of Blockchain.com. He’s an entrepreneur who has worked on a number of financial development and management projects. Cary has been involved in the marketing development for the Blockchain.com crypto exchange.
