CoinSquare Cryptocurrency Exchange Emerges in Wake of MintPal Disaster
The crypto community is still recovering after Alex Green, also known as alleged scammer Ryan Kennedy, washed his hands of ownership of popular cryptocurrency exchange MintPal and supposedly stole nearly 4000 bitcoins from their cold storage. MintPal was a go-to exchange for many new altcoin users looking for a simple and easy way to play the markets. Now, users who were stolen from are discouraged while they await legal charges against Green.
In the wake of the MintPal disaster, a new crypto-to-crypto exchange emerged as a new player. Founded by Virgile Rostand, an academic with a Ph.D. in Mathematics and a Master of Mathematical Finance, CoinSquare looks to become a new player in the cryptocurrency exchange industry. In a press release of the launch, Rostand commented on the opportunities cryptocurrencies bring.
“Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are offering a tremendous opportunity at developing new segments of our financial system moving forward. We are designing CoinSquare to enable people into accessing these rapidly evolving new markets and participate in them with an emphasis on simplicity and security.”
As of right now, it looks like Rostand runs the company entirely on his own. He’s listed as the founder, managing director and media contact. While it’s a relief that Rostand seems easy to find on social media and in the public knowledge domain, CoinSquare has room to grow over time and expand.
At first glance, the user interface seems blocky compared to a few other exchanges. Functionality wise, the site is easy to navigate and responsive in real-time. All markets are denominated into bits, a controversial measurement system among the bitcoin community still. Users are also able to customize their portfolio and watch their favorite coins on their market list.
According to Rostand, CoinSquare integrates “top-notch security features such as time-base one-time passwords, email verifications and confirmations and active IP monitoring through a security center section.” They also claim to hold 95 percent of all coins in cold storage.
How to Avoid Repeating Past Mistakes of Cryptocurrency Exchange
The major issue that the cryptocurrency exchange world is left with is the total lack of transparency from the MintPal disaster. 4000 bitcoins were gone in a flash as Green and Moopay LTD. destroyed the credibility of a once-popular crypto-to-crypto exchange.
If the cryptocurrency community wants to learn from the experience, they need to demand total transparency and accountability from their services. A lot of the accounts will come from government regulation; although regulation is something the cryptocurrency mostly opposes.
The accountability mindset is also a large responsibility of the exchanges themselves. Exchanges like Coinbase, Circle, and OKCoin all have public profiles of their top-level employees. All of them risk their credibility on a failed service, pushing them to provide a better experience for their customers.
Cryptocurrency exchange still has a long way to go before the system is considered trustworthy. Exchanges risk being replaced by decentralized systems as cryptocurrency technology evolves If exchanges don’t make sure they follow the industry standard. That goes for exchanges as large as Coinbase and Bittrex, as well as small as new exchanges like CoinSquare.
What do you think of the new crypto-to-crypto exchange CoinSquare? Comment below!
Images from CoinSquare and Shutterstock.
