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Best Cryptocurrency Cross Forex Brokers
Cryptocurrency Pairs
A cryptocurrency or crypto consists of digital or virtual money, generally in the form of coins or tokens. Cryptocurrency was initiated by Bitcoin, the first and most valuable cryptocurrency. However, due to Bitcoin's relatively higher price, there can be a larger volume of trading on an average day in less valuable cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
At present, cryptocurrencies cannot normally be exchanged directly for physical goods. However, times are changing as companies such as Square Inc. announcing that its popular Cash App will allow Bitcoin to be bought and sold from a user's balance. Additionally, some online merchants like NewEgg will also accept Bitcoin as a payment method.
On a side note, a popular benefit of cryptocurrencies is that they are free from manipulation by governments and central banks. Arguably, due to the increased popularity and lack of regulatory oversight of these currencies, some countries, such as Russia, China, Bolivia, Ecuador, Columbia and Vietnam have placed restrictions on their use or trading by locals.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Best Forex Brokers for Trading Cryptocurrency Pairs
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eToro
- 8.8/10 Overall
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Swissquote
- 8.7/10 Overall
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Interactive Brokers
- 9.7/10 Overall
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OANDA
- 8.4/10 Overall
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MultiBank
- 7.5/10 Overall
What are Cryptocurrency Pairs and Crypto Crosses?
Like the national or fiat currencies traded in the forex market, cryptocurrencies trade in pairs relative to other cryptocurrencies or to fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar or the European Union's euro. When cryptocurrencies trade relative to other cryptocurrencies, the resulting pair is called a crypto cross.
The number of available cryptocurrencies, and hence the number of cryptocurrency pairs, changes frequently as new cryptocurrencies are issued through their initial coin offerings or ICOs. The current number of existing cryptocurrencies is estimated at over 2,500 and rising.
When newly issued cryptocurrencies are modelled on Bitcoin, perhaps with some changes or improvements, they are called altcoins. A popular example of an altcoin is Litecoin, which was one of the first cryptocurrencies issued after Bitcoin.
Influences on the Value of Cryptocurrencies and Crypto Crosses
The market exchange rate of cryptocurrency and crypto cross pairs can fluctuate substantially, as the perceived relative values of the currencies involved fluctuate up and down.
Factors that influence the crypto markets include relevant news, as well as varying supply and demand factors. Also, both currencies in a particular currency pair can result in valuation shifts. Thus, if the U.S. dollar was appreciating sharply in the currency market, perhaps due to an increase in U.S. employment numbers, then this may reduce the cost of the various cryptocurrencies in U.S. dollar terms.
Another important valuation factor for cryptocurrencies is their usability, in other words, the ability to spend the digital coins on actual goods. For example, if another major retailer announced that they were planning on accepting payments in Bitcoin, then the relative value of Bitcoin would tend to rise substantially versus the dollar.
Top Cryptocurrency Crosses by Volume
Examining the ranking of cryptocurrency pairs and crypto crosses in their trading volume on a particular day, such as the table below, it's clear that pairs containing actively traded coins with smaller denominations tend to rank higher. This is because the relatively lower price of the "smaller" cryptocurrencies means that a larger volume of trading on an average day can take place.
Top Cryptocurrencies in Terms of Market Capitalisation
In comparison to the previous ranking of trading volume, the table below ranks the top 13 cryptocurrencies by their price per coin or token, their market capitalisation and their daily volume traded on June 27, 2019. All of the amounts listed are expressed in U.S. dollars.
In the table image above it's clear that Bitcoin is the highest performer. With a price per coin of US $10,975.08, a market capitalisation of $195.19 billion and a daily traded volume of $39.04 billion, Bitcoin is far ahead of its nearest fellow cryptocurrencies.
In fact, as of June 27, 2019, second place Ethereum was recording numbers less than a third of those achieved by Bitcoin, with $293.58, $31.32 billion and $13.64 billion respectively. However, it's important to bear in mind, that these figures don't represent the overall, or recent, trends in each cryptocurrencies performance, and each will fall and rise in turn based on short term market fluctuations.
How to trade Cryptocurrency Pairs
BrokerNotes.co 2023 Overall Rankings
To recap, here are our top forex brokers for 2023, sorted by Overall ranking.
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Forex Risk Disclaimer
There is a very high degree of risk involved in trading securities. With respect to margin-based foreign exchange trading, off-exchange derivatives, and cryptocurrencies, there is considerable exposure to risk, including but not limited to, leverage, creditworthiness, limited regulatory protection and market volatility that may substantially affect the price, or liquidity of a currency or related instrument. It should not be assumed that the methods, techniques, or indicators presented in these products will be profitable, or that they will not result in losses. Learn more about foreign exchange risk.
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