How we score. In full.
Eight axes. Weighted. No hidden sub-criteria. No black box. Every score on every review page can be reproduced from this document and the data file on the platform's review.
One equation. Eight axes.
Regulation.
2× · WEIGHTThe foundational criterion. A platform without a legitimate regulatory anchor is a counterparty risk first and a financial product second.
Banking or e-money licence (if any), MiCA authorisation, FDIC coverage, deposit insurance schemes, securities registration for yield products, and any active regulatory enforcement actions.
Regulator registers (ECB, FCA, BaFin, FINMA, SEC, FINRA, FinCEN), the platform's own compliance page, and quarterly checks against enforcement databases.
10 = full banking licence + MiCA + FDIC (or equivalent); 7 = MiCA or e-money + deposit insurance; 5 = registered with one national regulator; 2 = operating under a grey-zone or transitional regime; 0 = active enforcement / delicensed.
Card & IBAN.
1.5× · WEIGHTFor mainstream users, the usefulness of a crypto bank depends on whether it behaves like a bank — a real IBAN, SEPA/ACH rails, a card that works globally.
Native IBAN (single or multi-currency), card issuance (physical and virtual), card ATM coverage, card FX fee band, SEPA/ACH/Faster Payments integration.
Platform product pages, card scheme directories (Visa/Mastercard BIN registries), and our own field-tested account where we issue the card and record the fee surface.
10 = multi-currency IBAN + physical card + <0.5% FX; 7 = IBAN + card with card-level fees; 5 = IBAN or card only; 2 = card via wrapper; 0 = neither.
Yield.
1× · WEIGHTThe headline most users come for, but also the product most often mispriced for risk. We weight it at 1× — not 2× — because a 16% APY on an unregulated platform is not equivalent to 6% on a licensed one.
Flexible and fixed-term USDC / USDT / BTC / ETH APYs across standard and top-tier plans, net of any token-holding requirement.
Platform rate pages on a weekly cadence, cross-checked against our APY tracker and spread-to-Treasuries model.
10 = >10% net APY on USDC at standard tier; 7 = 6–10%; 5 = 3–6%; 2 = <3% or only with token-holding requirement; 0 = no yield product.
Coin selection.
1× · WEIGHTBreadth of supported assets — relevant mostly for users beyond BTC and ETH. For those users only; we don't inflate scores for platforms that add tokens without adding quality.
Count of supported coins, availability of majors (BTC, ETH, USDC, USDT, SOL), and stablecoin coverage (fiat-backed vs algorithmic).
Platform coin lists and on-chain explorer checks where counts are ambiguous.
10 = 200+ coins including all majors + stables; 7 = 50–200; 5 = 20–50; 2 = 10–20 or majors only; 0 = <10.
App UX.
1× · WEIGHTThe interaction surface. KYC time, onboarding flow, error handling, mobile-first vs desktop-only, notification accuracy.
KYC median completion time (from our field test), onboarding friction points, app-store rating distribution, documented downtime in the last 12 months.
Our hands-on test (we open an account and record every step), app-store APIs, and uptime logs published by the platform or third-party monitors.
10 = KYC <20 min, 4.5+ star apps, zero disclosed downtime; 7 = KYC <60 min, 4.0+; 5 = KYC 1–4 hrs, 3.5+; 2 = KYC >4 hrs or <3.5 stars; 0 = broken onboarding.
Transparency.
1.5× · WEIGHTThe hidden axis. After the 2022 collapses, Proof of Reserves moved from nice-to-have to baseline. We weight it heavily.
Proof of Reserves cadence and auditor, public financials, incident disclosure history, editorial/ownership transparency.
Platform transparency pages, auditor websites (Armanino, Mazars, Chainalysis), public filings (for listed companies), and our own incident database.
10 = monthly PoR by recognised auditor + public financials; 7 = quarterly PoR + public filings; 5 = annual audit only; 2 = no PoR, informal disclosure; 0 = no transparency at all.
Fees & spreads.
0.5× · WEIGHTDeliberately weighted at 0.5× — a good fee structure is a hygiene factor; an excellent one is not a moat. Real difference-makers show up in other axes.
Crypto spread vs market mid, plan-level FX fees, withdrawal fees (both fiat and crypto), account monthly fees, card transaction fees.
Platform fee pages and our field-tested trades (we execute a $100 trade and record the realised spread).
10 = <0.3% spread, no account fees; 7 = 0.3–0.9% spread; 5 = 1–2%; 2 = 2%+ or opaque fee stack; 0 = undisclosed or dynamic with no cap.
Support.
0.5× · WEIGHTHow long it takes to reach a human when something goes wrong. Also a hygiene factor — we weight it light unless it becomes a pattern.
Median first-reply time on a support ticket (our own, not marketing-claimed), availability of live chat vs email only, presence of a phone line, documented escalation paths.
Our own tickets during field testing, plus the Trustpilot response ratio where applicable.
10 = <1h median, 24/7 live chat, phone option; 7 = <4h, live chat; 5 = <24h; 2 = >24h, email only; 0 = no response.
Every score is backed by a real account.
We don't score from a marketing page. For every platform we cover, an editor — usually Stephan Kulik — opens a real account, funds it, makes a trade, and in most cases withdraws. The testing log is visible on each review page; the six most recent appear below.