bitFlyer, Inc was established in Japan in 2014 as a Bitcoin exchange and since then, it has transacted $100 billion + (in 2017 alone). As a result, it has earned the title of being among the world’s largest Bitcoin exchanges by volume. According to Coinmarketcap, bitFlyer is ranked No.7 among global Bitcoin markets. Since its founding days, the Bitcoin exchange has grown to have more than 1 million active users.

Over the years, bitFlyer has enabled users to exchange Bitcoin for Japanese currency and even to trade with margin. In addition, cryptocurrency users have been able to transact (send and receive) Bitcoins in just 1 second thanks to bitFlyer’s BitWire technology.

To extend its services globally, bitFlyer expanded its operations to North America where it set up base in 2016. Currently, its US headquarters are in San Francisco and the subsidiary has maintained the parent company’s mission which is to become the largest cryptocurrency exchange and blockchain developer in US.

Account Registration

Users have two major options when it comes to creating an account at bitFlyer. They include:

Individual
Corporate

The account options above have been classified into three more classes:

Trade Lite – to sign up, you need to provide the following information: name, phone number, date of birth and home address
Trade – to sign up, you have to provide information required when signing up for a Trade Lite account and additional information which includes ID verification and proof of address
Trade Pro – In addition to information provided when signing up or Trade Lite and Trade, you will be required to fill a questionnaire called “Enhanced Due Diligence.”

Once you have created an account, activated it and it has been verified by a compliance officer at bitFlyer, you will now be able to do the following:

Deposit and withdrawal your virtual currency
Deposit and withdrawal US dollars
Access Lightning Exchange (will explain this later in the upcoming segment)
Have the ability to trade BTC/USD.

When you log in to your bitFlyer account, you will have access to your account dashboard. Here, you can manage your account and even view your trading history. The Home tab enables you to view the value of your assets, market information and account information. From the Trade Report section, you can view a record of your bank transactions and trades. To back-up the records, bitFlyer has provided the option of downloading the records in either CSV or Excel file formats.

bitFlyer Lightning Exchange

The bitFlyer Lightning exchange is designed to allow cryptocurrency traders to fulfill their trades. As a straightforward trading platform, it comes with common features found on most cryptocurrency exchanges. For starters, you have access to an intuitive charting tool where market data is mapped in both candlestick pattern and line graph. As a trader, you have the option of switching between the different chart patterns.

Below the charting pattern, there is the open orders section. If you have no open orders, the section will remain empty with the following message being displayed “No Open Orders.”

Traders have access to major orders such as Limit, Stop, Stop-Limit and Trailing plus Buy and Sell buttons which enable traders to trade cryptocurrency pairs mainly BTC/USD.

bitFlyer has also provided a demo version of their Lightning exchange. This is highly useful to beginners and intermediate users. When you access the demo version of Lightning, you will be taken through the different features of the exchange. bitFlyer has designed a form of virtual tour but instead of a video, the system highlights different sections of the exchange and provides a tooltip with the following button options:

Inside the tooltip, bitFlyer has provided a brief explanation of the section and what it does. Try out bitFlyer’s Lightning Demo Exchange!

bitFlyer’s Blockchain Explorer

This is a web tool designed after Bitcoins original Block Explorer. It allows cryptocurrency users to find detailed information about a cryptocurrency digital address. To use the tool, you need a genuine cryptocurrency address. I wanted to test the tool to make sure it works so; I researched on the first Bitcoin digital address which is popularly known as “The Genesis Address.”

I found the information at Open Ledger where other well known Bitcoin digital addresses such as that of Silk Road’s owner Ross Ulbricht and Laszlo’s Pizza (where the first Bitcoin purchase was made) are listed.

When I carried out the search using the Genesis Address, bitFlyer’s Blockchain explorer revealed the following information about that digital address:

Estimated balance
Confirmed balance
Number of confirmations
Number of transactions
List of transactions
Time and date of each transaction
QR code of the Bitcoin address

What you ought to know is that bitFlyer’s Blockchain explorer allows you to add a label to any Bitcoin digital address. You also have access to a Bitcoin audit tool which enables you to view the balance of any address. With this tool, you can specify a date and time. Once you have made the search, download the information inform of a text based file.

Transfer Limits

Remember earlier on I mentioned bitFlyer’s account classes namely Trade Lite, Trade and Trade Pro. Well, this is what determines the transfer limits. For instance, if your account status is Trade Lite, bitFlyer’s allows a maximum Bitcoin deposit and withdrawal limit of up to $2,000 and a maximum USD deposit and withdrawal limit of $2,000. The maximum amount allowed for a single transaction is $3,000.

To attain Trade status, you must fulfill the following requirements:

Provide proof of address
Provide proof of identity

With your new Trade status, you have a maximum Bitcoin deposit and withdrawal limit of $50,000 and a maximum USD deposit and withdrawal limit of $50,000. For Trade Pro accounts, traders have unlimited deposit and withdrawal options for both Bitcoin and USD. Maximum transactions allowed for both Trade and Trade Pro accounts are unlimited too.

bitFlyer’s Fees

At the moment, bitFlyer is running a promotion which has been extended to March 31st 2018. Opening an account is free so is the account maintenance fee. bitFlyer’s Bitcoin trading fee when using the Lightning exchange is 0.0% while the Bitcoin transaction fee (deposit and withdrawal) is 0.0004 BTC.

When it comes to trading with Lightning Spot, bitFlyer charges 0.0% for trades less than $1000 up to trades amounting to $5 million. (Note: the 0.0% trading fee on Lightning Spot may change after the March 31st 2018 promotion elapses).

It is important to note that bitFlyer calculates your Bitcoin Trading fee rate daily between 00.00 and 00.10 AM. These fees may be negotiated based on trade frequency and volume. For US dollars deposits made via Fedwire, bitFlyer offers this service for free and for Wire Withdrawals via Fedwire, bitFlyer charges $10.

Final Thoughts

bitFlyer established its subsidiary in the US in 2017 and since then, it has managed to receive licenses to operate in over 30 states including Alaska. Before 2018 ends, the company will have attained licenses to operate in all US states (hopefully). This will surely heighten the competition between established cryptocurrency exchanges.

bitFlyer offers Lightning Exchange where traders can trade Bitcoin against the US dollar. Although it’s rich in features, the interface is not easy to use for beginners. Yes, it comes with useful trading tools such as charts, orders and indicators but it will take a few weeks to months for a beginner to master it.

Luckily, bitFlyer has incorporated a form of education guide that incorporates tooltips and intuitive buttons. The buttons allow you to explore the different sections while the tooltips displays information about the highlighted section. This gives you a brief summary of bitFlyer’s Lightning trading exchange.

All in all, bitFlyer is positioned to be one of the most trusted cryptocurrency exchanges that assure you of the safety of your assets.

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