Coinstash Review

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Bottom line:

Coinstash's advantage is its user-friendly interface, which streamlines the onboarding process from account creation and verification to purchasing a wide variety of crypto. PayID and bank transfers are commonly available AUD deposit methods with zero fees, and they are two main methods of depositing AUD that are accessible to most Australians with a bank account.

On the flip side, the trading fee of 0.85% is higher than that of other Aussie brokerage platforms like Swyftx (0.6%) and offers less value for money for people who want to get started with a crypto exchange.

How We Rated CoinStash

Review Criteria	Hedge With Crypto Rating
Features	3.5/5
Supported Fiat and Deposit Methods	3.5/5
Supported Crypto & Trading Pairs	4/5
Fees	3.4/5
Ease of Use	5/5
Customer support	4.2/5
Security Measures	4.4/5
Mobile App	4/5

Coinstash Overview

Coinstash is an AUSTRAC-registered crypto exchange based in Australia that has been purpose-built to appeal to the general public and altcoin investors. The platform features a straightforward-to-use and modern exchange for individuals to buy and sell over 1,000 coins. The trading fees of 0.85% are slightly higher than those of other platforms.

Based on customer feedback on reputable sites such as Trustpilot, Coinstash appears to be a legitimate and reliable service for buying and selling crypto. Coinstash has been mentioned in the media by prominent sources such as Australian Fintech and the Australian Financial Review (AFR).

Other notable features of the Coinstash platform are:

• AUSTRAC licensed cryptocurrency platform in Australia
• Near-instant AUD deposit method using PayID and also bank transfers
• A simple and user-friendly trading experience for all levels of expertise in crypto investing
• Highly responsive customer support team with a live chat feature

Exchange Name	Coinstash
Accepted Currency	AUD
Supported Crypto	1,000+
Trading Fee	0.85%
AUD Deposit Method	PayID & Bank Transfer
AUD Withdrawal Method	Bank transfer
Mobile App	Yes

Coinstash Compared

EXCHANGE	CRYPTO ASSETS	TRADING FEES	RATING	PROMOTION	WEBSITE	REVIEW
Swyftx	422	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
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

Features & Services We Liked

AUSTRAC Registered Crypto Platform

Using a reputable and registered provider is essential in an age of cryptocurrency exchange hacks and fraudulent activity. Within Australia, any company that provides digital currency (cryptocurrency) exchange (DCE) services must be registered with AUSTRAC.

According to the website, Coinstash is registered with AUSTRAC and should, therefore, abide by the strict requirements around money laundering and terrorism financing to protect customers. Coinstash does have a mandatory Know Your Customer (KYC) process before customers can deposit AUD in line with these requirements.

Large Selection of Crypto Assets

Coinstash offers a wide selection of cryptocurrencies that can be bought and sold on the platform. At the time of writing, over 1,000 digital assets are supported on Coinstash. Compared to other brokerage platforms in Australia, the number of supported coins is one of the largest and will suit various investors. Users can also choose to favorite coins that are shown on the main dashboard for quick access.

Coin Bundles

Coinstash Bundles is a great feature that allows users to diversify their crypto portfolio. Bundles are essentially collections of crypto assets by category that can be purchased in a single transaction. This is a cheaper alternative than purchasing individual coins of the same type. For example, there are bundles for DeFi coins, exchange tokens, meme coins, and stablecoins.

Visual Portfolio & Dashboard

The Coinstash dashboard, portfolio viewer, and price charts for each asset are visually appealing to most people. The prices of each coin are displayed in Australian Dollars (AUD). The portfolio is updated daily so that individuals can monitor how their assets are performing. Live updates would be better; however, they are still useful when logging into the platform.

DeFi Connector

The built-in DeFi Aggregator allows users to buy and sell DeFi assets natively on the platform. Simply put, Coinstash aggregates the best possible prices and gas fees in real-time and presents the trading options to the user.

Users don't need to switch blockchains or bridge assets, which offers a lot of convenience for traders who want access to crypto that isn't available on other platforms.

Ten networks are supported, including Ethereum, Solana, Optimism, and Arbitrum, with speeds around 10x faster than Metamask.

Supports PayID and Bank Transfers

The funding options to deposit a Coinstash account with AUD include using PayID or a bank transfer from an Australian bank. These payment methods do not include fees, a common feature for most Aussie brokerage platforms. PayID is near-instant and involves using a unique Coinstash PAYID email address linked to the person's account. There is no requirement to enter a payment description.

Simple & Fast Trading Experience

A pro of using Coinstash is its simplicity. Converting AUD into cryptocurrency is very straightforward once funds are deposited to the exchange. Although TradingView charting is integrated into the platform, order books and an array of advanced order types are not available at their disposal.

The trading fees are shown underneath the amount to provide full transparency of the amount of crypto that will be received. The rates do not appear locked once the transaction has been entered. Users will, therefore, need to complete the purchase quickly; otherwise, an error will appear.

Learn: How to safely buy Bitcoin in Australia.

At the time of writing, Coinstash users are limited to buying and selling crypto using Australian Dollars only. There is no option to swap crypto-to-crypto directly on the platform, so investors must find another trading platform. This is a con for investors who want to trade Bitcoin into Ethereum or another altcoin. They will need to either convert back to AUD, then purchase the altcoin and incur additional fees, or transfer to an exchange that supports crypto swaps.

Verification Requirements

Coinstash is a licensed exchange with AUSTRAC that enforces mandatory Know Your Customer (KYC) processes to minimize the risk of fraudulent account access and financing criminal activity. New customers who create an account with Coinstash will be prompted to verify it before depositing funds. The ID verification process, which takes a few minutes to complete, requires a valid ID document number and facial recognition.

Funding Methods We Found

The supported methods for transferring Australian dollars to a Coinstash account are PayID and bank transfers. The most popular option is PayID, which has a near-instant processing time and no fees. According to the website, the first PayID deposit can take up to 24 hours for new accounts.

Individuals who own cryptocurrency can transfer their assets to Coinstash to sell back to AUD. Like most exchanges, the user selects the asset to deposit and generates a unique QR code to send the crypto from their hardware wallet or another trading platform. The speed of transferring crypto to Coinstash depends on the coin, network congestion at the time, and the number of confirmations required.

Trading Fees on Coinstash

Coinstash uses a flat fee structure of 0.85% for buy and sell trades, including GST. There are no fee discounts for trading higher volumes, but fee discounts on other platforms aren't typically available to people who trade smaller volumes.

Overall, Coinstash's fees are competitive, but similar platforms offer better value for money. For example, trading fees on Cointree (0.75%) and Independent Reserve (0.5%) are cheaper.

Thoughts on Their Customer Service

Based on our experience, the customer support option using the live chat is responsive and replies within a few minutes on a weekend. There are also guides and FAQs on the website. However, the depth of information on the website is fairly limited compared to other platforms. Coinstash has a 4.5/5 star rating based on 766 customer comments on Trustpilot, a good sign of a reliable crypto exchange. Many of the comments from existing users are brief and have been invited, although the positive feedback is a great indicator for a relatively small exchange.

Security Features We Found

Coinstash mentions that it provides industry-leading data security. Apart from 2-Factor Authentication (2FA), there is no information on the exact security measures implemented to protect customers' personal information. Examples of security measures include Fireblocks’ battle-tested security infrastructure which helps to protect assets through Multi-Party Computation (MPC) technology.

While Coinstash has not been hacked since it was founded in 2020.

Coinstash Alternatives To Consider

Coinstash is an appealing crypto exchange that provides the basic exchange for Australians to buy crypto directly with AUD. If Coinstash does not meet expectations, several alternative exchanges with similar or better features can also be considered.

• Swyftx. The Brisbane-based crypto exchange is our top-rated exchange in Australia. The platform features various cryptocurrencies, advanced trading features, dollar-cost averaging, staking and taxation tools.
• CoinSpot is a highly reputable and secure exchange well-established in the Australian community. With over 2 million users nationally, CoinSpot is a suitable alternative to CoinStash as it provides similar features, a larger number of coins, and a more enjoyable trading experience.
• Digital Surge. Digital Surge is another alternative to CoinStash, which is best known for its innovative and well-designed platform for beginners. A major benefit of Digital Surge is the instant AUD deposit and withdrawals and its mobile trading app. In contrast to CoinStash, the trading fees on Digital Surge are among the lowest in the country.
• Cointree is another popular exchange in Australia for buying and selling crypto. Its trading fees are 0.75%, comparable to those on CoinStash.
• Easy Crypto Australia. Easy Crypto Australia is a safe and reputable non-custodial exchange. Investors have peace of mind when buying crypto as the assets can be sent directly to a hardware wallet.