One of the most striking phenomena of 2020 and early 2021 has been the rise of retail investors, who became more savvy and self-educated during the pandemic. This trend, combined with the rising interest in cryptocurrencies, increased the popularity of several trading platforms apps.

                By                    Yaёl Bizouati-Kennedy

See: How COVID-19 Turned Day Trading into ‘Gen Investor’s’ Fun – and Lucrative – HobbyFind: The Dangers of Day Trading

Not all the platforms offer same benefits or have an easy level of use. Let’s take a look at some of the easiest to use crypto trading apps:

Robinhood

Robinhood is one of the most popular trading apps, whose aim is to “democratize finance for all.” It has zero-commission trading, is user-friendly and allows fractional share trading, which not all zero-commission apps do. In addition to free stock and ETF trading, Robinhood also offers commission-free cryptocurrency trading.

Last week, Robinhood, which is about to go public, announced it would allow retail investors access to IPO shares, in a move to “democratize IPOs for all.”

Learn: The Best Trading Apps for New Investors: Robinhood and Beyond

“Most IPO shares typically go to institutions or wealthier investors. With IPO Access, everyday investors at Robinhood will have the chance to get in at the IPO price,” the company said in a blog post.

The new platform will enable retail investors the opportunity to buy shares of companies at their IPO price, before trading on public exchanges and participate in upcoming IPOs with no account minimums, according to the post.

Coinbase

The company, started in 2012, went public in April, in one of the most anticipated IPOs of 2021. Coinbase says “it is the easiest place to buy and sell cryptocurrency.”

Discover: Coinbase vs. Binance: Which Cryptocurrency Exchange Is Better?

Coinbase compares itself to Google in the IPO filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission: “Today, we are a leading provider of end-to-end financial infrastructure and technology for the cryptoeconomy. Customers around the world discover and begin their journeys with crypto through Coinbase. In the early days of the internet, Google democratized access to information through its user-friendly search engine, enabling virtually any user with an internet connection to discover the world’s information. Similarly, Coinbase is democratizing access to the crypto-economy by enabling anyone with an internet connection to easily and securely invest in and use crypto assets.”

The fee structure can, however, be somewhat confusing. There are different fees Coinbase applies to transactions — margin or spread fees and the Coinbase fee. The platform charges a spread of about 0.50% for cryptocurrency purchases and cryptocurrency sales. The Coinbase fee is the greater of a flat fee or a variable percentage fee determined by region, product feature and payment type, the company explains on its website.

eToro

One of the key differentiators of eToro is that it enables its users the ability to “copy” successful or more seasoned crypto investors and be copied yourself.

The platform is user-friendly and enables users to monitor their favorite cryptocurrencies in real time with watchlists, create personalized automated price alerts, customize the chart features to suit any level of technical analysis and connect with a community of traders via an newsfeed.

See: Millennials Own More Crypto Than Any Other GenerationFind: Can I Buy Crypto With a Credit Card?

In terms of fees, eToro is zero commission, but charges spreads — the fee it collects based on the difference between the bid and the offer price, which may fluctuate in times of high volatility. “In other words, it’s a small percentage added to your transaction, and it can vary a little based on market conditions,” according to its website.

While cryptos have gained incredible traction lately as well as celebrity endorsements, they are extremely volatile, as witnessed in the past weeks. If you’re planning on investing in them, you should be ready to stomach wild swings. In addition, if you’re a novice, make sure you’re aware of and understand the various platforms’ fee structures and ease of access.

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