How We Test an Exchange Withdrawal

Reviews of trading platforms usually cover the interface and the fee schedule. Neither tells you what happens when you try to take your money out, which is the thing that matters.

This is the procedure we run on every venue we cover. It is publishable because anyone can run it.

The procedure

Step 1: register and verify. Record how long identity verification takes, from submission to approval. Note what documents were required.

Step 2: deposit by bank transfer. Record the time from sending to funds appearing. Note any fee.

Step 3: buy a small amount. Record the quoted price against the mid price on a liquid order book at the same moment. That difference is the spread, and it is not published anywhere.

Step 4: check the withdrawal screen before withdrawing. Note whether the network is selectable, whether the fee is shown separately from the platform charge, and whether an address allowlist is available.

Step 5: withdraw a small test amount to a wallet we control. Record the fee charged, the network fee actually paid on-chain, and the elapsed time from request to confirmation.

Step 6: withdraw a larger amount. Record whether additional checks are triggered, and how long they take to clear.

Step 7: attempt a withdrawal to a new address. Record whether an allowlist delay applies. A delay is a security feature, not an obstacle.

Step 8: contact support with a specific question. Record the response time and whether the answer addresses the question.

What the results reveal

The gap between the charged withdrawal fee and the actual network fee. Visible by comparing the charge against the explorer. This varies enormously between venues and tells you how the business treats customers on a charge they assume nobody checks.

Whether verification is genuine or nominal. A venue that approves in minutes with a single document is applying a different standard from one that takes a day.

Whether withdrawals are reliable under normal conditions. A venue that is slow when nothing unusual is happening will not improve under stress.

Whether support exists. The response to a specific technical question is the test. Generic replies to specific questions indicate a support function that cannot help when something goes wrong.

What we cannot test

Behaviour under stress. A venue processing withdrawals normally in a calm week tells you little about a volatile one. This is the limitation of every review of this kind and we state it rather than implying otherwise.

Solvency. Not observable from the outside. Reserve attestations help and are not a substitute for regulatory oversight.

Our standing disclosure

We buy everything at full price. There are no affiliate links on this site, no sponsored reviews and no arrangements with any venue. Where we name a platform, including a platform we ran a full withdrawal through, it is because we ran the procedure above on it.

If that ever changes it will be disclosed at the top of the article rather than in a footer.

Run it yourself

The whole procedure costs a few network fees and an hour. For anyone about to move a meaningful amount onto a platform, that is a reasonable price for finding out how the exit works before needing it.