A new, Toronto-based crypto exchange will allow users to trade in bitcoin, ether and litecoin (with potential expanded offerings in the near future) for no fees.
The exchange, Newton, is partnered with DV Trading, a regulated proprietary trading firm with over a decade of experience trading stocks, bonds, derivatives and, more recently, cryptocurrency for institutional customers.
Newton CEO Dustin Walper told Bitcoin Magazine what some critics have already been saying, that bitcoin mass adoption will only come when trading is made easier and cheaper.
And Walper thinks it’s time for the adults to step into the Canadian exchange market noting, “Cryptocurrency is growing up as an asset class, and professional management is a must.”
“We felt that Canadians were poorly-served by incumbents, and that there was room for an aggressively low-cost player that doesn’t compromise on UX,” he said. “As a Canadian I also thought it was crucial to increasing adoption and, eventually, lessening the insane grip Canada’s banking oligopoly holds on the payments industry. It’s really, really anti-competitive.”
Is a Fee-Free Crypto Exchange Possible?
Walper told us Newton can offer no-fees trading because the exchange will be making a small profit from the “bid-ask spread,” the difference between buying and selling prices.
“Lower fees and tighter spreads are better for consumers, and a prerequisite to mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency for payments,” he said. “Moving money between fiat and cryptocurrency needs to be low-cost and painless if it’s ever going to be ubiquitous … Even though our spreads are extremely tight, particularly for Canada, we act as a market-maker … and with a firm like DV Trading backing us, it’s an extremely sophisticated market-making operation that allows us to make
