Easy Crypto Review

Hedge with Crypto aims to publish information that is factual and accurate as of the date of publication. For specific information about a cryptocurrency exchange or trading platform please visit that provider’s website. This information is general in nature and is for educational purposes only. Hedge with Crypto does not provide financial advice nor does it take into account your personal financial situation. We encourage you to seek financial advice from an independent financial advisor where appropriate and make your own enquiries.

Bottom line:

Easy Crypto is a trustworthy crypto exchange that has expanded its operations from New Zealand into Australia and South Africa. The platform provides investors with access to over 160 digital currencies including Bitcoin and Ethereum. The key strength of Easy Crypto lies in its simplicity, which will suit those who are buying crypto for the first time with NZD, ZAR, or AUD.

However, the exchange’s fees disclosed as a buy/sell spread is a con. Transaction costs can jump as high as 1.35% and may also include a 0.15%+ Forex fee. There are several cheaper crypto exchanges in New Zealand for investors looking to purchase crypto assets that should be considered.

Pros Explained

• Non-custodial exchange. Easy Crypto is one of the few centralized crypto exchanges in NZ that are non-custodial. This means that the platform will not store assets on behalf of its customers. Instead, all purchased digital currencies must immediately be transferred to a third-party wallet. This removes counterparty risks like insolvency that investors may find on other platforms.
• Cheap and fast deposits. Although more crypto platforms are beginning to accept AUD deposits, NZD and ZAR fiat currencies are still underrepresented by most exchanges. Easy Crypto bucks this trend by supporting the fast and free deposit of these three currencies onto their platform.
• Excellent user interface. Navigating Easy Crypto is exactly as its name suggests – easy. The user interface is sleek, and clean, and finding all the basic features only takes a click or two. Whether the investor is a computer connoisseur or a total novice, using the Easy Crypto exchange is a seamless experience.
• Solid list of cryptocurrencies. Some exchanges compromise the number of assets on offer for the sake of simplicity. Easy Crypto however splits the middle, offering a strong range of popular digital currencies such as Bitcoin, and Ethereum, as well as some more obscure altcoins. That said, competitors are starting to set 300+ cryptocurrencies as a benchmark.

Cons Explained

• Trading fee. Easy Crypto charges fees through their buy/sell spread, which equates to about 1.5%. While they are very transparent with their spreads (as many competitors hide these fees), buying crypto on this exchange works out to be more expensive than competitors like Binance (0.1%) and Swyftx (0.6%).
• Lack of features. Easy Crypto avoids more advanced features like staking or savings accounts. While this does simplify the platform for the general public, it does restrict the potential of the investors to grow in experience alongside the exchange.
• No official mobile app. There is no Easy Crypto mobile app available via Google Play or Apple App Store. Instead, customers will need to use their mobile browsers to access the platform remotely. Although the mobile design for Easy Crypto is fine, it is certainly more inconvenient than trading using a well-optimized app.

Easy Crypto Compared & Alternatives

EXCHANGE	CRYPTO ASSETS	TRADING FEES	RATING	PROMOTION	WEBSITE	REVIEW
Swyftx	320+	0.6%	Rating We provide an overall weighted average rating out of 5 stars. Our ratings are based on objective criteria like the ease of use, fees, deposit methods, customer support and availability. Our reviews are not influenced by 3rd parties. Click here for further information about our rating methodology and a full list of categories we review against. 4.9 / 5	$20 Bitcoin for creating a verified account	Visit Swyftx	Swyftx Review
Binance	385	0.1% (spot) and 0.02% / 0.04% (Futures)	Rating We provide an overall weighted average rating out of 5 stars. Our ratings are based on objective criteria like the ease of use, fees, deposit methods, customer support and availability. Our reviews are not influenced by 3rd parties. Click here for further information about our rating methodology and a full list of categories we review against. 4.8 / 5	Up to $100 welcome bonus	Visit Binance	Binance Review
ByBit	331 (608 trading pairs)	0% (spot), 0.06% / 0.01% (futures)	Rating We provide an overall weighted average rating out of 5 stars. Our ratings are based on objective criteria like the ease of use, fees, deposit methods, customer support and availability. Our reviews are not influenced by 3rd parties. Click here for further information about our rating methodology and a full list of categories we review against. 4.8 / 5	0% trading fees for 30 days (spot only)	Visit ByBit	ByBit Review
CoinSpot	380	1% (instant), 0.1% (spot)	Rating We provide an overall weighted average rating out of 5 stars. Our ratings are based on objective criteria like the ease of use, fees, deposit methods, customer support and availability. Our reviews are not influenced by 3rd parties. Click here for further information about our rating methodology and a full list of categories we review against. 4.7 / 5	$20 Bitcoin for creating a verified account and depositing	Visit CoinSpot	CoinSpot Review

Easy Crypto At A Glance

Easy Crypto is a New Zealand-based crypto exchange founded in 2018 by siblings Janine and Alan Grainger. The crypto exchange aims to provide an easy place to buy digital assets based on the owner's own first-hand experience and frustrations using other services. After the success of Easy Crypto New Zealand, the founders launched a crypto exchange in South Africa and also an exchange in Australia.

Easy Crypto is a simple platform that makes it easier to buy Bitcoin and invest in digital currencies. The exchange provides several common deposit methods to buy over 160 cryptocurrencies using AUD, NZD, and ZAR. The platform is registered with AUSTRAC (Australia) and FMA (New Zealand), regulatory bodies that enforce certain financial laws to ensure a safe and secure exchange. Purchased assets are sent directly to a wallet for optimal security and peace of mind which makes Easy Crypto a great option to consider.

Exchange Name	Easy Crypto
Fiat Currency	AUD, NZD & ZAR
Cryptocurrency	160+
Payment Type	Account2Account, POLi, Bank transfer
Trading Fee	0.5-1.35% spread + 0.15%-0.4% forex
Deposit Fee	1% for POLi payments, free for others
Withdrawal Fee	Live chatbot, ticket system, FAQ center
Security Measures	Non-custodial exchange, 2FA
Mobile App	None

Review of Easy Crypto's Top Features

100% Fund Safety Guarantee

Easy Crypto is one of the only crypto exchanges that offers a 100% fund safety guarantee. In the unlikely event assets (fiat or crypto) are lost during the transaction process, Easy Crypto will honor the amount missing and complete the trade to the nominated wallet address. Investors can have full confidence in using Easy Crypto knowing there is zero risk of losing their funds. However, investors should be aware the guarantee does not lock in the prices which can vary before the payment is received.

Visual Portfolio Tracker

Investors who buy and sell crypto can monitor their overall portfolio’s value in relation to the amount of fiat deposited onto the platform. Easy Crypto's portfolio tracker automatically keeps track of all buy and sell transactions. The market value, total return, and 24h/7d changes portfolio are displayed in a line chart to monitor the investment performance over time.

There is also a portfolio wheel that shows the allocation of each coin within a portfolio. This is a great feature for people to track their assets, however, it is quite basic when compared to the best crypto portfolio trackers on the market that support a whole variety of useful features. Below is a screenshot showing what the portfolio manager looks like.

Dollar Cost Averaging

Investors can set up Auto-Buys using Easy Crypto to deposit funds on a daily, weekly, or monthly frequency. The benefit of recurring orders is that it removes the stress associated with “timing the market” and swings in volatility. Customers can set up automatic payments and transfer funds to the exchange using PayID or a bank transfer.

Easy Crypto will automatically purchase the selected coins and deliver them straight to the nominated wallet address. It is a safe and easy way to start a crypto portfolio using dollar-cost averaging. Below is a screenshot of how to create a DCA order with Easy Crypto.

Support for SMSF Investors

Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF) investors who want to invest their retirement funds in digital currencies such as Bitcoin can do so with Easy Crypto. Users can either transfer their existing SMSF over or create a new account. To start the process of setting up an SMSF account, users will need to submit a ticket via the platform’s SMSF Hub. All SMSFs need to understand the costs, risks, and regulatory nuances behind using super funds to invest in digital assets.

Account ID & Verification

Creating an account on Easy Crypto is super easy. New users need only select “Sign Up”, and enter a valid email and password to get started. Simplifying things even further, Easy Crypto accounts can be linked with the user’s Facebook/Google accounts for faster logins. To properly use the exchange, new customers will need to pass a tiered verification process as part of the platform’s KYC obligations. Basic verification requires basic details like mobile number, full name, and birthday.

Additionally, new users will need to submit a valid photo identification document such as a driver's license or passport. You will also be required to upload a selfie to ensure you are the actual person verifying the account. Although the verification process is fast and easy enough, other exchanges do have a more streamlined system.

Supported Fiat & Deposit Methods

Easy Crypto supports fiat deposits in Australian Dollars (AUD), New Zealand Dollars (NZD), and South African Rand (ZAR). For investors in Australia and New Zealand, the supported payment methods include bank transfers, PayID, POLi, and Account2Account.

Deposit method	Processing time	Fee
Account2Account	Instant	Free
POLi Pay	Instant	1% (max of NZ$3)
Bank deposit	1-3 business days	Free

The speed of each deposit method will depend on the selected bank. Account2Account and POLi Payments are near-instant payment methods and do not have any fees. On the other hand, POLi Pay has a 1% deposit fee. Unfortunately, Easy Crypto is not transparent with its fiat limits (except for South African residents, who must deposit a minimum of R500.)

Generally speaking, bank transfers tend to have the highest deposit maximums, but this payment method can take a few business days to clear. There are no selling limits, while buying limits start at NZ$50,000 and if spent, will be topped up by $20K at the start of every month.

Supported Crypto & Trading Pairs

Easy Crypto supports most major cryptocurrencies. Individuals can buy Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, XRP, and several altcoins with NZD. In total, there are approximately 160+ cryptocurrency assets that can be purchased using AUD, NZD, or ZAR. The selection of available coins is fairly limited compared to the larger and more established exchanges.

For example, Swyftx, CoinSpot, and Binance offer between 320 and 600 cryptocurrency projects. However, Easy Crypto’s range of supported assets is far from awful. A full list of the digital assets available on Easy Crypto can be viewed on the website by clicking on ‘Rates'.

It’s worth noting that Easy Crypto’s trading pairs always use fiat currency as their base. Customers can only buy and sell digital currencies using NZD, ZAR, and AUD – the platform disabled crypto to crypto swaps and has no current intentions of re-enabling this function. Therefore, investors wanting to exchange digital currencies will either need to make multiple orders on Easy Crypto (extremely inefficient) or use a different platform. This isn’t a huge deal, but it does wipe out some of their potential audience.

Easy Crypto Trading Fees

Exchange fees are an important consideration when using a fiat-to-crypto exchange. It becomes even more critical when purchasing larger amounts. Easy Crypto charges a variable fee that includes a buy/sell spread and Forex costs. Customers can see the breakdown of the specific rate before they place an order.

The fees will vary from trade to trade, although can go as high as 1.35% for transactions, and 0.4%+ for Forex costs. This average fee of between 1-2% is pretty high at face value – although if some exchanges like CoinSpot were more transparent with their spreads they may actually charge a similar figure.

Compared to local competitors we've tested, Swyftx has much cheaper rates, and international alternatives such as Binance are even more cost-effective. Easy Crypto doesn’t charge any deposit or withdrawal fees on its own side, only passing on the POLi provider fee and any network charges for transferring cryptocurrencies. However, there are blockchain network fees that will be incurred which vary on the coin or token. For example, the fee to send Bitcoin from the exchange to another provider is 0.0005BTC/

Exchange name	Base transaction fee
Easy Crypto	1-2%
CoinSpot	1% + spreads
Swyftx	0.6% + spreads
Binance	0.1% + spreads
ByBit	0.1% + spreads

Easy Crypto Ease of Use

Easy Crypto’s ease of use might just be its most important measurable metric – and it passes this test with flying colors. The platform is a pleasure to navigate and provides a straightforward way to buy crypto with New Zealand dollars. Purchasing or selling one coin is as simple as entering a few numbers and confirming the transaction. Below is a screenshot of the quick buy/sell process from our Easy Crypto account.

It is worth noting that customers are required to transfer all newly-purchased digital assets into a non-custodial wallet. It is an interesting choice when we consider that Easy Crypto has foregone expansion in other areas for simplicity’s sake, but is adamant on remaining a non-custodial “crypto shop”. Ultimately, this is a positive, but it does hamper fiat on-ramping’s accessibility which is Easy Crypto’s primary goal.

Despite this, we found the Easy Crypto user experience to be quite enjoyable.

Easy Crypto Mobile App

Easy Crypto does not offer an official mobile app on the Google Play or Apple App stores. Instead, users will have to access the platform via their phone’s browser (like Safari or Chrome). There are guides on how customers can save the Easy Crypto website as a pseudo-app on their phone by bookmarking the page.

The Easy Crypto mobile browser version is well-designed and shares all the same features as using the exchange on a desktop computer. However, it is a little inconvenient and if the company acquires the resources to push out an official app, it should be something they strongly consider. However given the exchange’s relatively small market, it’s understandable they lack the funds or time to develop and debug a mobile application.

Customer Service

Easy Crypto has a very solid reputation among its community for delivering strong, timely, and helpful customer support. The platform uses a live Chatbot that can answer basic questions, direct users toward FAQs, or send a message to the support staff. The estimated wait time for a human reply is 2-4 hours – perfectly reasonable considering that Easy Crypto has a pretty small staff.

Confirming the exchange’s excellent reputation among its customers, Easy Crypto boasts an impressive 4.7/5 star rating on the review site TrustPilot. The team is quoted as going “above and beyond” to assist their customers in any way possible. This includes simple queries around account limits, to issues with payments and refunds. Overall, users can expect a fantastic experience when dealing with Easy Crypto’s support team – something that can’t be said for a lot of its competitors.

Security

Easy Crypto includes in-built security features and processes to ensure its customers have peace of mind. Several precautions have been undertaken to ensure the safety of client funds such as:

• Regulation. Easy Crypto Exchange is registered with AUSTRAC and complies with AML/KYC requirements. The platform also boasts a 100% Fund Safety Guarantee, ensuring their customer has a near-zero risk of losing their money. This also means citizens in NZ must pay taxes on their crypto.
• Verification process. Adheres to KYC processes per regulations for fiat currency deposits, withdrawals, and trading.
• Hardware Wallet. Easy Crypto provides the ability to deposit digital currency directly to the user's cold-storage hardware wallet linked to the account. This means that the exchange does not hold users' crypto assets. Not only does this remove the counterparty risk that caused millions of customer dollars to go missing from the FTX exchange, but it also makes the chance of Easy Crypto being hacked extremely unlikely.
• Security features. Easy Crypto includes 2-factor authentication in addition to a verified email address linked to the account. This adds an additional layer of security to the account that makes it very difficult for cybercriminals to compromise client accounts and withdraw funds. They would have to know your login information and be in possession of your mobile phone (and able to unlock it)

Although Easy Crypto has not published its proof of reserves, this would be pointless as they are a non-custodial exchange that doesn’t hold customer funds anyway.

Frequently Asked Questions

How We Rated Easy Crypto

Review Criteria	Hedge With Crypto Rating
Features	3.9 / 5
Supported Fiat and Deposit Methods	3.6 / 5
Supported Crypto & Trading Pairs	4 / 5
Fees	3.7 / 5
Ease of Use	4.9 / 5
Customer support	4.9 / 5
Security Measures	4.9 / 5
Mobile App	2.5 / 5