ZB.com is a rather successful cryptocurrency exchange that was launched in 2017 shortly after the ICO ban in China. The launch of ZB.com caused quite a scene in the cryptocurrency space due to China’s harsh legal actions against cryptocurrencies. However, the exchange managed to launch and provide much-needed hope in the China cryptocurrency space.
The ZB.com exchange provides cryptocurrency exchange services for both cryptos to fiat and crypto to crypto trading pairs. Since their launch in 2017, ZB.com has climbed the ranks of cryptocurrency exchanges by volume and is now ranked among the top 20 cryptocurrency exchanges by volume. The exchanges headquarters are now located in Hong Kong where it’s safe from China’s harsh rules against cryptocurrency trading. However, the exchange is yet to be regulated, much like other cryptocurrency exchanges based out of Hong Kong.
The exchange primarily services Chinese and Asian investors and traders but accepts traders from all around the world and the website is available in both English and Mandarin. Now, let’s delve deep into the aspects that make up this cryptocurrency exchange and see what sets ZB.com apart from the competition and whether or not they can be trusted.
Low-cost trading
The costs of trading at ZB.com are currently ranging from Zero to 0.20% of the total transaction value, depending oх the instrument traded (Some pairs with USDT are free of charge), which is a very good pricing. Besides, deposits are free and withdrawals have relatively small fees: 0.0001 BTC, .005 LTC, 0.01 ETH.
Fiat currency available (CNY)
There is only fiat currency accepted at ZB.com and that, of course, is Chinese Yuan (CNY). However, there is little you can do on this exchange with it, probably due to regulatory restrictions. You can find the details in the Disadvantages section below.
Over 15 coins available
At the time of writing of this review, there are over 15 different assets traded at ZB.com, which may not seem as an “altcoin heaven” (like Bittrex), however this exchange has been operating for less than two months. At ZB.com trading is mainly done against USDT, and BTC.
Advanced trading platform
ZB.com’s web trading platform has two interfaces: simple and advanced one. The latter seems like one of the best ones in the cryptocurrency space, from a trader’s point of view. Charting is great, there are trend lines, a number of technical analysis indicators and more.
Limited Fiat-to-crypto offering
Fiat-to-crypto trading and is available to verified users only via C2C mechanism, which is similar to the P2P model. Besides, verified clients of ZB.com re able to buy and sell only USDT (Tether, the cryptocurrency, backed by US dollars) and Q-Cash (or QC, an independent digital currency contracts which based on QTUM blockchain) against Chinese yuan (CNY).
So, you cannot buy popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum or Litecoin with CNY, nor with open US Dollar. That being said, ZB.com plans to accept US Dollars in the near future.
No leverage available
Like most exchanges, ZB.com does not offer trading on margin. Maybe it plans to offer such in the future, though, as there is a section of its website called “margin trade”, which is currently not active.
If you need some leverage, some exchanges, like Chinese OKEX, offer such. If you’d rather trade Bitcoin speculatively, some of the forex brokers which provide cryptocurrency leveraged trading, like IG, may be a good option.
Registered offshore
The company operating the ZB.com exchange and website, ZB Technology Limited., is registered offshore, in the Independent State of Samoa. While it is understandable that the exchange is not registered in China, offshore destinations do not inspire a lot of trust.
ZB.com features a very impressive web-based trading platform which is accessible in a couple of versions that are suited to both beginner and experienced cryptocurrency traders. The experienced exchange platform interface is one of the best trading interfaces in the industry. The charting looks great and traders have access to countless tools and technical indicators for charting analysis. The whole interface is very intuitive and even a beginner can appreciate the advanced trading interface for its sleek layout and understandability. The chart is located in the top left corner with the order book located to the right of the chart, and right below that is the order window where traders place their market orders. Limit and stop limit orders can be placed on the basic exchange interface. So, advanced traders will have to toggle between the two if they want to utilize all the advanced trading features.
ZB.com is known as a safe and secure cryptocurrency exchange among members of the cryptocurrency community. The exchange implements the latest and greatest security measures to ensure users and their funds are kept safe. For instance, traders can implement Google Two-Factor-Authentication for logging into their account and making transfers and withdrawals. Also, email and SMS authentication can be enabled and also a transaction PIN which is different from your login password. All these security features help to secure trader’s accounts from unauthorized access and hacking attempts.
While China is not strictly against Bitcoin and cryptrocurrencies altogether, the country recently banned ICOs. While Huobi re-registered in the Seychelles and cut a lot of its functionality, and BTCChina exited the Chinese Market due to regulatory pressure there, ZB.com opened on 1st of November, 2017.
It offers trading in more than 15 digital currencies, including an option to buy and sell several cryptos against CNY in a decentralized manner. What we like best about ZB.com is the low fees and the advanced trading platform.
According to the information on its website, ZB.COM’s headquarters are in in North America (Canada, the United States), and it also has operations in Southeast Asia (Bangkok), West Asia (Dubai), as well as South Korea, and Switzerland. Although it says it plans to obtain licenses in the United States and Thailand, currently ZB.com is does not hold any licenses and is registered offshore, in the Independent State of Samoa.