Phemex vs Gatehub: Fees, Security, Features & Which to Choose (2025)

Trying to choose between Phemex and Gatehub 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 August 16, 2025

Phemex

Gatehub

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Available Countries

United States

Europe

Yes

Latin America

Yes

India

Yes

China

Canada

United Kingdom

yes

United States

yes

Europe

yes

Latin America

yes

India

China

yes

Canada

yes

United Kingdom

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Phemex is ideal if:

Fast-paced traders value it: With ultra-low latency and deep liquidity, Phemex's high-performance trading engine offers smooth execution and stability.
Tech-savvy users benefit: Advanced tools—like copy trading, bots, and DeFi-style earning products—empower both automation and strategy innovation.
Privacy-conscious users find appeal: Flexible KYC policies and a streamlined onboarding style suit those preferring minimal verification barriers.

Gatehub is ideal if:

Best for managing XRP and key cryptos: If you regularly work with Ripple and other major coins in one place, GateHub’s wallet-to-exchange setup makes life seamless.
Great for beginners who value simplicity: The web interface is clean and intuitive, with built-in trading and strong security basics like 2FA and AES encryption.
Less suited if you want advanced features: If you're looking for margin trading, a wide altcoin range, or faster customer support, GateHub might feel limiting.

Phemex isn’t ideal if:

Fiat-focused users may face limits: Fiat deposit and withdrawal services are unavailable or heavily restricted in numerous countries, reducing accessibility for those relying on bank transfers.
Newcomers could feel overwhelmed: The platform’s advanced features and high-leverage tools offer power—but may feel complex if you’re new to trading.
Risk-averse investors might be uneasy: Derivatives and high-leverage products carry greater risk, making Phemex less suited to those seeking lower-volatility exposure.

Gatehub isn’t ideal if:

Limited altcoin variety: If you're seeking exposure to emerging or niche tokens, GateHub focuses on key cryptos and lacks a broad altcoin selection.
No advanced trading tools: Features like leverage, futures, or margin trading aren't available, limiting options for active or speculative traders.
Higher transfer friction: Users note relatively steep withdrawal and deposit costs, plus extra XRP requirements, which may weigh on frequent movers.

Fees & Total Costs

Spot Maker/Take

Spot trading fees start at 0.1% for both maker and taker on the base VIP tier and can decrease via VIP-level benefits tied to trading volume or asset holdings; using the Phemex Token (PT) grants additional discounts—around 20% off spot fees—and those can stack with VIP reductions.

GateHub uses a flat fee model for spot trades, applying the same rate to both maker and taker orders rather than tiered pricing; there are no volume-based discounts or native-token incentives for fee reduction.

Futures/Derivatives

Futures (perpetual contracts) begin with a maker fee as low as 0.01% and a taker fee of 0.06%, with lower rates available through VIP status; funding rates vary according to market dynamics and are applied periodically, affecting long or short positions depending on current rates.

GateHub does not support futures or derivatives trading, so there are no applicable maker, taker, or funding fees.

Average Spreads on Liquid Pairs

Phemex delivers tight spreads on major spot pairs like BTC/USDT and ETH/USDT, thanks to deep order-book liquidity and efficient execution, although the exact average spread fluctuates with market conditions and isn’t publicly standardized.

GateHub doesn’t publicly display real-time spreads, but given its limited market depth, you can expect spreads to be wider than on major exchanges with high liquidity.

Fiat Deposits & Withdrawals

Fiat deposits are facilitated via third-party gateways such as MoonPay or Banxa, often with fees imposed by those services; withdrawal in fiat is limited or restricted depending on jurisdiction and may incur fixed charges or banking delays driven by external banking partners.

You can deposit via SEPA (EUR) or SWIFT international wire (USD), with SEPA usually processed in 1–3 business days and wires in 4–7 days; deposit fees vary, while SEPA deposits tend to be free.

On-chain Withdrawals

Crypto withdrawals carry network-dependent fees, which vary by chain and congestion

Withdrawal fees differ by network—BTC withdrawals incur a fixed fee (e.g., specified for BTC), while network-level fees apply to XRPL operations; GateHub uses fixed withdrawal fees for major chains but variable transaction costs for XRPL.

Hidden Costs

Hidden costs may include markups from third-party fiat gateways, potential inactivity penalties (if any), and premium-tier services like expedited KYC—but generally, Phemex avoids additional charges beyond trading, withdrawal, and external service fees.

GateHub’s potential hidden costs include locked XRP reserve that can’t be spent, fees for certain transfers (even within XRPL issued assets), and optional paid security services; currency conversion may include spread costs.

Real-World Cost Example: “€500 BTC

Example

If you convert €500 to BTC, you face the flat trading fee, any spread, then withdraw BTC—so the total cost combines that fee plus the possibly larger-than-average BTC withdrawal fee, resulting in noticeably less delivered BTC than the purchase amount.

Crypto Offering & Trading Features

Number of Coins & Pairs

Phemex offers several hundred tradable assets across hundreds of spot and futures pairs; among the top by volume you’ll typically see major pairs like BTC/USDT, ETH/USDT, XRP/USDT, SOL/USDT, DOGE/USDT, ADA/USDT dominating the leaderboards.

GateHub supports over 16 cryptocurrencies, including more than half of the top 20 by market cap, and offers a broad range of trading pairs across fiat and crypto, enabling users to trade XRP-based IOUs versus major assets seamlessly.

Product Range

Phemex delivers a wide product mix including spot and margin trading, perpetual futures, automated copy-trading, grid-trading bots (spot and futures), DCA and Martingale bots, essential lending/borrow via margin, plus crypto earn products and launchpad functionality.

GateHub provides spot trading and integrated wallet services, and includes staking functionality—but it does not offer margin, perpetuals, options, ETFs, loans, copy trading, grid bots, or automated DCA features.

Liquidity

Phemex sees substantial daily volume usually in the hundreds of millions USD, with order-book depth in BTC and ETH strong enough to support sizable trades without excessive slippage, reflecting healthy active liquidity.

GateHub’s liquidity is relatively thin compared to major exchanges, with low 24-hour trade volume and limited order book depth for BTC and ETH pairs, meaning larger orders may face noticeable slippage or slower execution.

Tools

The platform includes full order-type support such as limit, market, stop and OCO orders, real-time alerts, advanced interactive charts powered by TradingView, and robust API with WebSocket for seamless automation and live data.

You can place basic order types such as limit or market orders; GateHub includes an order book interface and basic charts, plus a public API, but lacks advanced features like stop orders, OCO, native TradingView integration, or real-time alerts.

Geographic Restrictions by Product

Certain services—especially derivatives—are restricted in countries like the United States, United Kingdom, parts of Canada, China, and other regions, while spot and earn products may remain accessible depending on local laws.

GateHub focuses primarily on global spot access and wallet services, with no support for derivatives—thus, there are no region-specific limitations on complex products, simply a uniform lack of them everywhere.

Innovation

Phemex continually expands its ecosystem with launchpad or launchpool-style token sales, and layered earn programs offering both flexible (withdraw anytime) and locked (higher yield) options to fit different investor preferences.

GateHub offers staking as a way to earn rewards and is exploring flexible staking-like models, but it currently does not support launchpad/launchpool mechanisms or offer tiered locked-versus-flexible earning programs.

Security, Regulation & Custody

Operating Entity & Jurisdiction

Phemex began in 2019 and is operated under entities such as Phemex Technology Pte. Ltd. in Singapore and Phemex Limited in the British Virgin Islands, placing it under those legal jurisdictions.

GateHub is operated by GateHub Limited, established in 2014 and headquartered in London, UK, where it carries out its core operations within the UK fintech regulatory environment.

Licenses/Registration

While Phemex holds an MSB registration with FinCEN in the U.S., it currently lacks MiCA or equivalent EU licensing and is not authorized to operate in several regulated regions.

GateHub requires users to complete Know-Your-Customer (KYC) verification before accessing certain services, though it does not promote specific VASP or MiCA registrations publicly—its compliance framework relies on standard KYC procedures relevant to its services.

Custody

The exchange maintains full custody of user assets and provides a self-verifiable Merkle-tree proof-of-reserves (PoR) tool that shows assets are backed 1

GateHub provides a custodial wallet where users retain control over private keys, which are encrypted and hashed with strong algorithms; there’s no public proof of reserves or audit reports, and any cold reserve breakdown or PoR data is not openly disclosed.

Insurance & Protection Funds

There is no publicly disclosed insurance or user protection fund; security relies on reserve mechanisms and risk controls but does not include third-party insurance coverage.

Through the optional Wallet Protect subscription (via Coincover), users can secure multisignature protection and theft insurance coverage up to $1 million per wallet—a paid security enhancement beyond basic account safety measures.

Incident History

Phemex has not reported any major hacks, though it temporarily suspended a hot-wallet after an internal security review; it also faced regulatory scrutiny in Canada and the UK for compliance issues.

In 2019, GateHub suffered a cyber-attack affecting a small subset of accounts; encrypted access tokens were compromised, prompting re-encryption of sensitive data and user notifications, with no widespread fund loss reported.

Risk Controls

Users benefit from standard safeguards including mandatory two-factor authentication, IP or address whitelists, anti-phishing protection, segregated sub-accounts, and granular API permission controls.

GateHub enforces mandatory 2FA for all accounts, lets users customize anti-phishing messages, offers account freezing in suspicious cases, and supports secure recovery and password practices, though it lacks sub-accounts or granular API permission tiers.

Transparency

Phemex offers monthly-updated PoR data, public disclosure of partial cold wallet addresses, and reserve ratios, demonstrating a commitment to transparency though without formal SLAs or comprehensive monthly financial reports.

The platform does not publish routine monthly audit reports or wallet addresses; however, its transparency lies in its responsible disclosure policy, bug-bounty program, and clear security guidelines, though formal SLAs and public wallet visibility are not provided.

Deposits, Withdrawals, KYC & Support

Fiat Deposit Methods

Phemex supports fiat deposits via bank transfers (SWIFT, SEPA, ACH, FPS) and third-party services like MoonPay or Banxa; minimums generally start around $50, maximums reach very high limits, and processing typically takes from instant (via e-wallet) to 1–3 business days for transfers.

GateHub allows fiat deposits via bank transfers (SEPA for EUR and SWIFT for USD), with minimums set at 10 EUR or 50 USD; no card or e-wallet options are supported, with processing times generally ranging from 1–3 business days for SEPA and 4–7 for SWIFT

Supported Fiat Currencies & Conversion

KYC (Verification Levels)

There are three user tiers

GateHub mandates full KYC through an identity verification process (including video and document checks) before enabling fiat gateways—wallet use remains available without verification, but FIAT access is restricted until completion

Withdrawals

limits, times, networks (TRC20/ERC20/BEP20, etc.)

limits, timing, networks

Customer Support

chat 24/7, email, response times, knowledge base

GateHub offers 24/7 support via email along with a comprehensive knowledge base for instant help; while there’s no live chat advertised, support claims around-the-clock availability and timely responses via the support portal

Languages & Localization

The platform’s interface and support are primarily in English, with fees typically shown in USD or equivalent fiat; some content and interfaces are localized for major regions, though comprehensive local regulation compliance varies by jurisdiction.

The platform operates in English, displays pricing and fees in EUR or USD, and offers fiat services through EU/US rails; local regulatory adaptations (e.g., UK restrictions) affect fiat usage, signaling awareness of regional compliance needs

App Quality & Stability

The Phemex mobile app is generally regarded as stable and regularly updated, offering seamless feature parity with desktop—though exact crash rates aren’t disclosed, user feedback reflects a smooth, reliable experience.

GateHub’s app is updated regularly and integrates web-based wallet and market features, though specific metrics on crash rates or stability are not disclosed; the experience is generally smooth across major platforms, with continuous enhancements evident in release notes

Experience, Performance & Ecosystem

UX/UI

The platform offers a clean, intuitive interface with a low entry barrier for newcomers, while also featuring an advanced “Pro” layout tailored to seasoned users that surfaces more chart tools and analytics—all accessible without overwhelming either group.

GateHub features a straightforward interface built around its wallet-first design, keeping the learning curve gentle for newcomers, but it doesn’t offer separate Lite or Pro modes—every user interacts with the same streamlined trading panel and wallet dashboard.

Performance

Known for its fast order execution and robust infrastructure, Phemex handles volatility with minimal downtime, though during peak surges KYC and account approval may experience slight delays—performance remains solid overall.

The platform’s web-based performance stays reliable under normal conditions, though during high volatility or crypto surges, some users have reported slower processing and delays in order execution or identity verification, reflecting typical strain in peak times.

Education

Phemex Academy offers a rich library of beginner-to-advanced tutorials, while a fully functional Testnet simulator lets users practice trading risk-free; however, Spanish-language educational materials are limited or not as comprehensive.

GateHub does not provide a dedicated learning academy, demo simulator, or Spanish-language educational courses; users rely on its knowledge base and general support materials, mostly available in English and focused on functional guidance over structured tutorials.

Community

Users can join lively communities via Telegram or Discord, participate in referral programs offering significant bonus pools and commissions, and access forums where updates and peer tips circulate regularly.

Beyond an official Telegram channel and its relatively low-traffic blog or channel posts, GateHub lacks active community forums, Discord groups, or built-in referral programs—user interaction remains limited to support tickets and general platform announcements.

Integrations

Phemex’s interface embeds native TradingView charts, supports integration with external bot frameworks, and appeals to algorithmic traders via API access, though dedicated tax or accounting tool integrations are limited.

The platform does not integrate with TradingView or external trading bots, but it supports tax-reporting services like Koinly, Cointelli, and CoinLedger via data export or API to ease accounting and crypto tax reporting.

Who Each One Is Best For

Phemex stands out for active, tech-savvy or algorithmic traders seeking powerful tools, automation access, and derivatives options; it’s less ideal for ultra-beginners or those requiring local-language education or deep tax integrations.

GateHub is best suited for users who want a combined wallet and basic spot trading experience on the XRP Ledger, especially those focused on XRP-based IOUs and wanting to bridge fiat and crypto in one place—less ideal for advanced traders or those needing rich integrations.