Firstrade vs P2B: Fees, Security, Features & Which to Choose (2025)

Trying to choose between Firstrade and P2B This side-by-side comparison reveals total cost (fees + spreads), security & licenses, coins/derivatives, deposits/withdrawals, and app quality. In 2 minutes you’ll see who wins for beginners, active traders, and long-term holders. Clear pros/cons, a quick verdict, and safe links to get started.

Last updated on September 1, 2025

Firstrade

P2B

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Available Countries

United States

Yes

Europe

Latin America

India

China

Canada

United Kingdom

United States

Yes

Europe

Yes

Latin America

India

China

Canada

United Kingdom

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Firstrade is ideal if:

Perfect if you value simplicity and self-led growth — Firstrade shines for investors who want a straightforward platform enhanced by rich educational content and intuitive tools like Options Wizard and FirstradeGPT.
Great for cost-conscious traders focused on the US market — It delivers commission-free trading across stocks, ETFs, options, and mutual funds, ideal if you prioritize low ongoing costs and trade U.S. securities.
Not ideal if you need advanced or global asset access — The platform doesn’t offer futures, forex, crypto, IPOs, or international markets, so it's not suited for highly diversified or exotic investment strategies.

P2B is ideal if:

Offers a high-performance launchpad engine that’s launched over 2,000 crypto projects without token-holding requirements—perfect if you’re a founder or eager early-stage investor.
Built for both beginners and businesses, it blends approachable trading with go-to-market support—ideal if you want a trading platform with strategic listing expertise.
Packs robust multilingual support, fast interface, and loyalty tiers—suiting you if you appreciate accessible, efficient trading plus escalating benefits for active users.

Firstrade isn’t ideal if:

If you seek automated or advisor-led services — Firstrade doesn’t provide AI-driven trading automation, robo-advice, or personalized financial planning options.
If you need access to non-U.S. or exotic markets — It excludes futures, forex, international equities, and advanced asset classes, limiting your global exposure opportunities.
If you prioritize sleek navigation and advanced macroscopic insights — The platform’s layout can feel cluttered, with limited portfolio tracking and broader market analytics visible at a glance.

P2B isn’t ideal if:

Limited regulatory clarity, which may cause uncertainty and higher perceived legal risk if you prefer fully regulated platforms.
Basic trading tools only, lacking advanced features like margin trading or sophisticated order types—less suited for power users or active traders.
Occasional withdrawal delays or support gaps, meaning if fast access to funds and responsive customer service are vital to you, P2B may fall short.

Fees & Total Costs

Spot Maker/Take

Firstrade does not operate on a crypto exchange-style maker/taker fee model since it primarily offers commission-free trading for stocks, ETFs, options, and mutual funds; there are no volume-based discounts tied to a native token.

P2B uses a tiered structure based on 30-day trading volume, starting at 0.2 % for both maker and taker, decreasing gradually to as low as 0.01 % maker and 0.1 % taker at the highest volume tiers.

Futures/Derivatives

Firstrade does not support trading in futures, options on crypto, or any leveraged derivative contracts, so there are no maker/taker or funding fees in this category.

P2B does not currently offer futures or derivatives trading on its platform.

Average Spreads on Liquid Pairs

As Firstrade does not currently offer direct spot cryptocurrency trading, there are no applicable spreads for BTC/USDT or ETH/USDT pairs within its platform.

Typical spread data isn’t publicly listed, but high liquidity in top pairs like BTC/USDT and ETH/USDT suggests spreads are likely competitive and in line with other major spot exchanges.

Fiat Deposits & Withdrawals

Deposits and withdrawals are processed via ACH, wire transfers, and check requests; ACH is typically free and fast (1–2 business days), while wires may have a fee and take 1–3 days depending on the bank.

Users can deposit fiat via wire transfer or credit card; withdrawals are available for fiat but come with percentage-based fees (e.g., 1 % for USD, 5 % for EUR) and processing time varies by method and currency.

On-chain Withdrawals

Since Firstrade does not facilitate direct on-chain crypto transfers, there are no blockchain network withdrawal fees for BTC, ETH, TRX, or other tokens.

Crypto withdrawals such as BTC are charged a fixed network-based fee (for example, around 0.0005 BTC), with similar fixed fees applied across supported blockchains like Ethereum and Tron.

Hidden Costs

The main extra cost to be aware of is currency conversion for non-USD accounts; Firstrade does not charge inactivity or expedited account verification fees.

Users may encounter extra charges—including currency conversion fees, inactivity penalties, or expedited KYC service fees—though specifics are not always disclosed, and should be factored into overall costs.

Real-World Cost Example: “€500 BTC

This action cannot be performed directly on Firstrade, as it does not provide native crypto purchasing; acquiring BTC would require an external platform, where costs would depend on that provider’s commission, spread, and withdrawal fee structure.

If you purchased €500 worth of BTC, you’d pay the trading fee (~0.2 %) plus any embedded spread, and then send funds on-chain—incurring the fixed BTC withdrawal fee—resulting in a slightly lower net amount of BTC received than the nominal purchase suggests.

Crypto Offering & Trading Features

Number of Coins & Pairs

Firstrade offers trading in approximately 38–41 cryptocurrencies, focusing on spot pairs only—there’s no full order book with crypto-to-crypto pairings, just single-asset buys priced in USD on their platform.

P2B currently supports around 118 to 120 cryptocurrencies and approximately 185 trading pairs, with its top 20 pairs including highly liquid ones such as ETH/USDT, BTC/USDT, BTC/USD, LTC/USDT, BNB/USDT, SOL/USDT, ADA/USDT, AVAX/USDT, and XRP/USDT.

Product Range

Firstrade supports only spot cryptocurrency trading; it does not support margin, perpetuals, futures, options, ETFs on crypto, staking, lending, copy trading, grid bot tools, or automated DCA programs.

The platform offers spot trading, access to launchpad/IEO/IDO participation, staking/earning opportunities, API-based trading, but does not offer margin, futures or derivatives like perpetuals, options, ETFs, lending, copy trading, grid bots, or automated DCA.

Liquidity

Firstrade does not disclose actual 24-hour volume or order book depth data for crypto; trading occurs via their internal system with instant settlement but without traditional exchange-level liquidity metrics.

P2B delivers notable liquidity, with 24-hour volumes exceeding one billion USD; ETH/USDT alone often sees hundreds of millions in daily volume, while BTC/USDT also ranks among the most traded, indicating solid order book depth.

Tools

Their crypto offering includes basic order types, real-time quotes, charts, and research features, but lacks advanced tools such as stop/OCO orders, advanced charting, native TradingView integration, alerts, or API/WS access for crypto.

P2B’s trading interface includes limit and market orders (stop, OCO not clearly offered), customizable charts with drawing tools, real-time API access, but lacks native TradingView integration and order alerts as detailed features.

Geographic Restrictions by Product

Crypto trading is available only to users in the United States; there are no crypto markets or services offered outside U.S. jurisdictions.

Some advanced offerings like derivatives are simply not available globally—P2B lacks complex products, and certain country-specific access (e.g., full product access in the U.S.) may be limited by regulation and platform policy.

Innovation

Firstrade has not rolled out innovation tools like launchpad/launchpool, nor any flexible vs blocked crypto-earned programs—its crypto offerings remain simple and limited to direct spot purchases.

P2B distinguishes itself with a launchpad (IEO/IDO) that has grown over 2,000 projects and raised significant funds, supports multiple blockchains (24 integrated) and offers both flexible and structured earn/staking opportunities for users and projects.

Security, Regulation & Custody

Operating Entity & Jurisdiction

The crypto service is delivered through Firstrade Crypto LLC, a U.S.-based subsidiary operating under parent company Firstrade Securities Inc., founded in 1985 and headquartered in Flushing, New York.

P2B is operated by a Lithuania-based company (often referenced as Partida Services), established around 2018, with links also to Ukraine and Spain, while ambiguously listing the UK as a “competent jurisdiction” despite lacking clear legal basis there.

Licenses/Registration

Firstrade Securities operates as a registered broker-dealer under FINRA and the SEC; crypto trading itself is facilitated by Apex Crypto LLC, acting under regulatory standards but without explicit VASP or MiCA licensing.

P2B is not officially licensed under top-tier global regulators or registered as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) under EU MiCA or equivalent frameworks, making its regulatory standing opaque and reinforcing its classification among less-regulated platforms.

Custody

Cryptocurrency custody is handled by Apex Crypto LLC as a third-party provider—not held on Firstrade’s own infrastructure. There’s no publicly shared proof of reserves, audit reports, or stated cold-storage percentages.

There is no public evidence that P2B uses third-party custody services, publishes standard Proof of Reserves (PoR), or discloses the percentage of assets in cold storage—indicating limited transparency in how user assets are safeguarded.

Insurance & Protection Funds

While traditional account assets benefit from SIPC and possibly FDIC protections, crypto holdings are not covered under these programs and have no dedicated insurance or extra custodian protection.

P2B does not advertise any insurance coverage or protective funds for user assets, such as those that might cover losses from hacks or insolvency, which implies users bear most of the custodial risk themselves.

Incident History

Firstrade hasn’t suffered publicized hacks or major suspensions tied to its crypto platform; however, it recently received FINRA censure and a fine for misleading communications about crypto offerings via an affiliate.

There are no recorded instances of major hacks or service suspensions publicly documented, but the platform’s downgraded compliance rating and warnings from regulators like the Canadian BCSC raise concerns about its operational risk profile.

Risk Controls

Firstrade enforces strong security measures including multi-factor authentication, SSL encryption, firewalls, fraud detection systems, phishing education, and a secure security center, but doesn’t highlight features like API permissions or sub-accounts for crypto.

P2B generally supports basic safety features including two-factor authentication (2FA) and KYC processes, though more advanced security tools like API key whitelisting, sub-account structure, anti-phishing protection, or fine-grained API permissions are either limited or not clearly detailed.

Transparency

There’s no public monthly reporting or wallet audit data available for crypto holdings. Users rely on Firstrade’s Online Protection Guarantee for unauthorized trades, yet there’s no SLA or public wallet addresses disclosed.

The exchange lacks routine public reporting such as monthly transparency reports, does not offer a publicly verifiable wallet address list, and does not present any formal service-level agreements (SLA), making its transparency practices minimal.

Deposits, Withdrawals, KYC & Support

Fiat Deposit Methods

Firstrade supports fiat deposits via ACH, wire transfer, check, and transfers from other brokerages; ACH from U.S. bank accounts is fee-free and takes a couple of business days, wires are faster but involve sending-bank fees, and check deposits vary by type and processing, with some available immediately.

Users can fund their account via credit/debit cards (e.g., Visa/Mastercard via Simplex), third-party e-wallets like ADVcash or Perfect Money, and bank wire transfers; deposit minimums vary by provider while processing ranges from near-instant (cards) to a few days (wires).

Supported Fiat Currencies & Conversion

KYC (Verification Levels)

There’s no formal tiered KYC structure; account opening requires ID verification, and once verified, users can access full services—there are no intermediate “basic” or “advanced” levels with differing limits.

KYC is optional; unverified users face a daily withdrawal cap (~$1,000–$2,000), while completing full identity verification—providing documents, selfie, address—removes these limits and unlocks full account functionality.

Withdrawals

Withdrawals are available via ACH, check, or wire—ACH (up to $50,000 per day) is free and takes 1–2 business days, checks may take up to two weeks depending on delivery, and wires cost a fee and take several days; crypto token withdrawals (e.g. ERC20/TRC20) are not supported.

Withdrawal time depends on the asset and wallet (up to 24 hours or 36 hours for cold storage); users choose networks (e.g., ERC20, TRC20, BEP20) when available, with limits and speeds tied to asset and verification level.

Customer Support

Support is offered via email and U.S. phone during business hours, complemented by a Help Center with FAQs—there’s no 24/7 live chat, and response times and knowledge base depth are moderate and office-hour dependent.

Support is offered 24/7 via live chat, email, Telegram, and a comprehensive knowledge base, with response times generally fast; resource materials and FAQs help resolve most routine inquiries quickly.

Languages & Localization

The platform and mobile app support English, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese; the interface displays USD values only, with no localized support for Spanish or Euro-based users—reflecting its U.S.-centric design.

The platform interface is available in several languages (including English, Spanish, Korean, Russian, Turkish, Thai), displays fees and balances in EUR or USD, but doesn’t tailor regulatory details per region beyond the general operating framework.

App Quality & Stability

The Firstrade app (iOS/Android) is well-rated, noted for intuitive navigation and sync across devices, though some users report occasional crashes; regular updates enhance features and UX, but no official crash-rate metrics are disclosed.

The web interface is modern and robust with advanced charting and API stability, but mobile apps are inconsistently available—Android is claimed but hard to find, and iOS may be missing—possibly affecting mobile reliability.

Experience, Performance & Ecosystem

UX/UI

Firstrade delivers a clean, beginner-friendly interface that helps new users get started quickly, though it doesn’t offer distinct “Lite” or “Pro” modes; advanced traders may find the layout functional but not deeply customizable.

The interface is crafted to balance simplicity with functionality—while there’s no explicit “Lite/Pro” toggle, the trading dashboard presents a clean design with candlestick charts, multiple technical indicators, and customizable layout elements, allowing both newcomers and more experienced users to tailor their view.

Performance

Firstrade offers solid performance under normal conditions, but during high-volatility events, users sometimes note slight delays in order execution; account verification remains swift even during surges, with KYC queues rarely causing major hold-ups.

Thanks to its high-speed matching engine capable of handling up to 10,000 transactions per second, P2B maintains notably fast order executions even during high-volatility periods; user reports indicate the platform remains stable with minimal latency spikes, though KYC delays can occur during sharp bull runs.

Education

The platform provides a rich library of written and video educational resources for investing concepts, though it lacks a dedicated simulator or demo trading environment and does not yet offer educational content in Spanish.

The platform lacks a formal academy or demo simulator, but it does offer educational value through blog content, project launch tutorials, and insights in Spanish and other languages—though no structured demo or Spanish-language academy currently exists.

Community

Firstrade does not operate official community channels like Discord or Telegram. It did run a referral program in the past, but that has been discontinued, and users must rely on formal help centers rather than peer-driven forums.

P2B supports community engagement via official Telegram and live support messaging, has a referral program and periodic airdrop or trading competition incentives, but lacks a formal forum or Discord-based discussion hub for broader peer interaction.

Integrations

Firstrade recently integrated advanced research tools from Trading Central, but doesn’t support direct TradingView charting, bot trading, or built-in tax/accounting integrations—users rely on manual methods or third-party tools.

The exchange offers its own graphical trading tools and APIs, yet it doesn’t provide direct integration with TradingView or external trading bots, nor specialized tax or accounting tool integrations at this time.

Who Each One Is Best For

Firstrade shines with investors who value a reliable, easy-to-use platform with educational support and occasional advanced tools—ideal for self-directed U.S. investors prioritizing simplicity over complex trading setups.

P2B suits traders who value a fast, intuitive trading experience with easy token launch participation—especially project creators or early investors—while those seeking advanced educational tools, trading automation, or social trading features may find it less fitting.