Coinbase is the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange and broker and is backed by trusted investors. With their exchange, Coinbase Pro you can make buy and sell offers to other users on the platform and Coinbase takes a cut of the deals. You can also simply buy crypto directly from Coinbase at the price they offer using their brokerage (there is no bidding on the brokerage side).
Because of how famous Coinbase is, many wonder if the platform can be trusted as a safe place to buy, sell and store Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto coin. In this article we will walk through the various types of safety coinbase is good and bad on.
The short answer is yes, Coinbase is a legitimate cryptocurrency exchange and broker. It is one of the most trusted and reputable exchanges in the world.
In it’s almost 10 year history, there has not been a successful direct attack on the Coinbase platform. This indicates that Coinbase does a very good job of keeping the customer funds safe. In addition, Coinbase is so good at preventing hacks, it is able to keep its own users from falling victim to scams that happen outside of the platform.
Attackers have in the past tried to steal cryptocurrency through elaborate phishing attempts using social media and other methods. Coinbase was able to halt $280,000 in Bitcoin transactions when hackers overtook several high profile Twitter accounts and solicited funds from unsuspecting followers.
Also worth noting, in 2019 Coinbase rolled out Coinbase Custody, which stores cryptocurrency assets completely offline in cold storage wallets.
Another notable reason why many users trust Coinbase is the platform operates from a highly regulated location (San Francisco).
One final significant security feature of Coinbase is that cash held in the platform’s wallets is FDIC insured up to $250,000. It is important to bear in mind however, that crypto currency is not FDIC insured and therefore it is best practice to move your digital assets off of Coinbase after purchasing. As a general rule, you should never store your bitcoin or other crypto on an exchange platform, you need to move it to a wallet that only you control.
Safety is never 100% guaranteed, but as crypto exchanges go, Coinbase is one of the safest options out there.
Happy trading!