​LBank Overview

​Nowadays there are numerous exchanges and trading platforms in the crypto universe. Crypto investors’ task is to find the ones that are most suitable to their needs and goals.

However, even though the number of exchanges is high, there are some exchanges that stand out from the crowd and offer exciting features. In this article, I will take a close look at one of those platforms – LBank.

Lbank is a crypto exchange platform based in Hong Kong. I found some different info regarding when the platform officially launched, one source say 2015, and another 2016. But in any case, they have been around for several years now, so Lbank is not a new player on the crypto market. This crypto exchange is owned and operated by a Chinese company known as Superchains Network Technology Co. Ltd.

The main goal (and probably the biggest advantage) of the platform is to provide its users with professional cryptocurrency asset management features and solutions.

Since China’s crypto laws are rather harsh recently, LBank has kept its headquarters in Hong Kong and they operate mainly on the Chinese and Asian markets. With that being said, LBank accepts users from all around the globe, and they offer their services in both English and Mandarin Chinese.

So, let’s jump into the details, In order to better understand how the platform works and what do they offer to their users.

​Services & Features

On the top right corner of LBank’s homepage, you can set a preferred language and currency. Some of the best services and features on the LBank are options to buy crypto, trading, derivatives, finance (savings), and the NFT marketplace. I will try to explain each one, so let’s jump into it.


Before using any of the mentioned features, you will need to create an account of course. The process is not as straightforward as it initially seems You can sign up via google, apple, or create an account just by typing your email, password.

You will need to go through the “I am not a robot” verification and then verify your email with the code they sent you. And that’s it, you are done with registrating in a few minutes basically.

However, once you registered, you will need to complete an ID verification using some of your valid documents, such as passport, driver’s license, or ID.

​Buy crypto

​Once you create an account on LBank, you will need to deposit funds to your account. After that, you have an option to buy and sell cryptocurrencies. On the top left part of the homepage, there is a “Buy crypto” section. Once you click on it, you will be directed to the page where you can buy crypto assets.

Currently, you can buy USDT (Tether), ETH (Ethereum), and BTC (Bitcoin). The payment methods you can choose to buy these crypto-assets are Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and a credit card. The latter is probably the most popular way.

Trade

Another cool feature on the LBank platform is the possibility to trade your crypto assets. Again, on the top of the homepage, you will see the “Trade” section.

Keep in mind that LBank exchange charges a flat 0.10% trading fee on every trade, which is minimal compared to other exchanges. Furthermore, the average fees for the market remain at 0.25%, showing how affordable LBank is, especially if you are not a new player in the crypto trading world. I will talk more about LBank’s fees later in the article.

There are two types of crypto trading techniques available on LBank – spot and grid trading.

Spot trading

​Spot trading is fast and smooth simple trading of different tokens. A successful spot trading must include a buyer, a seller, and an order book. On LBank you can trade assets with other traders in real-time. As the name suggests, transactions are done instantly, or “on the spot” as soon as the buying/selling order is filled.

The interface seems fine here and you should not have any issues settling in if you have at least some experience in trading.

Grid trading

Another type of trading on LBank is Grid trading where you can easily achieve quantitative trading of digital assets. Grid trading is a type of investment strategy that is employed by investors in a cryptocurrency exchange.

With grid trading, you will need to create a series of buying and selling activities that can occur on an automated basis, allowing the trader to take advantage of the constant and big changes that take place in the crypto market.

Derivatives

​Yet another service available on LBank is the Derivates section which is shown next to the “Trading” one on the homepage. Derivates consist of ETF, Futures, and options trading, while Lbank currently does not support margin trading.

Futures

As the name suggests, Futures trading refers to a method of speculating on the price of assets, including cryptocurrencies in the future, without actually ning them. This type of trading is particularly popular among experienced crypto traders.

Once you click on the Futures trading on LBank, the following message appears (the warning kind of sums up the futures trading in general, so I decided to quote it):

ETF

Yet another exciting option on LBank is crypto ETF (Exchange Traded Funds). ETF tracks the value shifts of one or more crypto assets. In other words, ETH tracks the price movements of selected cryptocurrencies.

In order for crypto ETF to work properly, the company issuing and listing it on an exchange platform (LBank in this case) needs to bear custody of the underlying digital coin.

Similar to Futures trading, once you click on the “ETF’ button, a warning message pops up, which basically says that the risk of losses is on you, and not the platform.

​Options trading

Crypto options tradings are a type of derivative trading that provides the purchaser with the right to buy or sell an asset at a determined price and date. A “call” option refers to the buying right, while a “put” option connotes the selling right. Options work in a similar manner to other derivatives.

Please note that options trading is a feature more suitable for experienced traders.

​Finance

Next to the “Derivates” section there is another button simply called “Finance”. The finance tab consists of Apollo, Flexible and Fixed savings, and NFT. All of these are additional advanced features that the LBank offers to its users. So, let me break down each one.

​Apollo (launchpad)

In the “Apollo” section you can find a lot of exciting and hot projects on sale. Apollo s a crypto launchpad for crypto traders to invest in newly launched cryptocurrencies.


In Apollo, there is a list of various cryptocurrencies available to buy. Each asset has an amount that is available for purchase as well as the date when the offer started. Some of the crypto assets offered in Apollo are Doge, Solana, Rose, Atom, Ada, Litecoin, Shiba Inu, Vega, Sushiswap, Uniswap, and many others.

Assets offered in the Apollo section are all from the top100 as per market cap.

​Flexible savings

Yet another advanced option available on the LBank platform is the savings option. Savings can be flexible or fixed/locked.

A crypto interest account or crypto savings account operates pretty much the same way as a normal savings account. Instead of depositing cash to earn interest, you deposit crypto-assets and earn crypto interest in return. Sounds straightforward.

Term flexible is pretty much self-explanatory. You can either trade with your flexible savings or withdraw your funds. You make a profit by lending your crypto to LBank.

At this point, it is good to note that all opinions and suggestions written in this article are not considered financial advice.

​Fixed savings

​A fixed or locked savings account is pretty much self-explanatory as well. The coins are locked with the exchange and the exchange platform uses it to generate rewards for savers. Of course, you need to deposit crypto-assets and earn crypto interest in return.

NFTs

LBank has its own NFT marketplace. It is a centralized trading platform where LBank’s users can buy, sell, and trade NFTs. You can upload and trade your NFT work here, making art more valuable.

On the marketplace itself, there is a long list of items you can choose from. For the majority o items, the price is shown in LBK (LBank’s coin), so it seems you need to be an LBK holder to more freely purchase NFTs on LBank’s marketplace.

LBank supported coins

LBank supports various crypto assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Bitcoin Gold, Qtum, NEO, Ethereum Classic, Zcash, bitshares, siacoin, VeChain, bitcoin-diamond, and many others.

LBank deposits & withdrawals

LBank offers a few types of simple deposits and withdrawals. So, let me break it down.

Deposit Options
- Wire Transfer
- Cryptocurrency

Withdrawal Options
- Wire transfer
- Cryptocurrency

There are fees you have to pay when withdrawing. However, more about them in the next section of the article.

Fees

As for deposits and withdrawals, deposits are free from any fees (which is great since it’s pretty rare that exchanges do not have fees for this), but withdrawals incur a fee that varies from asset to asset. This withdrawal fee is not stated on the website’s fee page but is said to be rather low from user reviews I found online.

LBank Trading Fees

LBank exchange charges a flat 0.10% trading fee on every trade, which is minimal compared to other exchanges. Major cryptocurrency exchanges charge 0.20-0.25% fee per trade. They have implemented this change back in August 2021. However, there is no info on the website how much were the fees before the change.

Does LBank have mandatory KYC?

Yes, LBank has a mandatory KYC (Know Your Customer) verification. But, don’t worry too much about it since it is quick and simple.

All you need to do is to click the account name in the upper right corner of the LBank homepage, enter the personal information page and click “Security Policy”-“Authentication” to verify your identity, which is known as KYC verification.

​LBank supported countries

LBank supports more than 200 countries, so trust me it’s nearly impossible that you are a citizen of a country that is not on their list.

You can also set a preferred language on the platform (English, Russian, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, and a few others).

Are US investors allowed on LBank?

A significant part of the crypto exchanges does not allow US citizens to use their platform due to the SEC (the Securities Exchange Commission). However, LBank is available in the US, so this is a big plus for the exchange.

Does LBank have Fiat Deposit?

Yes, LBank has a fiat deposit. You can deposit fiat money via wire bank transfer to your account and then use it to buy crypto.

Does LBank have a Native Token?

Yes, LBank’s native token is LBK. At the time of writing (November 2021), the value of the token is $0.02397 and it is on #3848 in the world, as per Coinmarketcap.

Is LBank legit and safe?

I think it is safe to say the answer is yes. LBank is a legit exchange that makes sure the safety is on the highest possible level. KYC (Know Your Customer) verification system definitely helps to avoid scammers coming to the platform.

However, I did find some negative reviews on the platform, so bear with me in the next section of the article.

LBank scam accusations (on Reddit)

Yes, so I found some scam accusations on Reddit. I will quote one of those:

“Been over 48 hrs with a confirmed Solana explorer deposit and still nothing in Lbank wallet. The wallet address listed on my account shows my tokens are there on the explorer!! No cap.

Multiple emails inquire and no response was received. Literally, they jacked my money. So pissed. An absolute joke of an exchange.”

Make of it what you want, but it is definitely not a good sign to see these types of reviews of any exchange.

Pros and Cons of LBank

Frequently Asked Questions About LBank

Conclusion

​LBank is an all-around crypto exchange with various features available for its users. I think it is definitely worth trying especially if you are sick of larger fees other exchanges take.

Another big advantage of LBank is that it supports more than 200 countries around the globe. In other words, there is a very low chance that you are not able to use the platform due to your location. LBank also keeps a fair amount of attention to security since it has a solid KYC system.

However, I would not say I am 100% convinced about the exchange, mainly due to those scam accusations on Reddit. As already mentioned above, these types of reviews are never a good sign. So, please do your own research before actually using LBank.

​BEWARE of THIS:
LBank is very slow in processing withdrawals as it appears they are manually reviewing each larger withdrawal. This makes a lot of people uneasy since the probability of a suspended withdrawal is pretty high. Also, LBank is known for wash trading and manipulating trading volumes on their platform (claimed volume is by orders of magnitudes higher than it actually is).