VALR offers access to 36 Spot, 10 Margin, and 13 Futures Crypto pairs. It offers a 0.01% reward for market makers (those who make fiat pairs orders) and up to 30% in commissions to its affiliates.
The taker fee for Spot / Margin trading is 0.05%, and for Futures is 0.04% or 0.03% for VIP clients.
VALR; Company Information and Regulation
VALR (Pty) Ltd was founded in 2018 by CEO Farzam Ehsani. The company is headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The exchange is licensed and registered as a financial services provider (FSP #53308). Key features of VALR:
- Registered with the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) in South Africa
- Backed by prominent investors, including Pantera and GSR
The exchange is also allowed to operate in Europe through its VASP license from the Ministry of Finance and the Tax Administration Chamber of Poland.
VALR Exchange Specific Features
The platform offers a robust set of features designed to cater to both beginners and advanced traders, including:
Exchange | VALR |
Launch Date | 2018 |
Levels | Standard, VIP |
Trading Fees | Spot Maker / Taker (0% / 0.05%) Futures Maker / Taker (0% / 0.04%) |
Restricted Countries | Canada, Cuba, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Russia, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, United States Of America |
Supported Coins | 75 |
Futures Trading | Yes |
Minimum Deposit | ZAR 0.0, $10, €1 |
Deposit Methods | Wire Transfer, SEPA, EFT, South African Credit / Debit Cards |
Withdrawal Methods | Crypto, Bank Transfer (ZAR) |
Maximum Leverage | 1:10 |
Minimum Trade Size | Variable based on the asset |
Security Factors | Cold Storage, 2FA, SSL encryption |
Services | VALR Pay, Staking, Lending, Futures Trading |
Customer Support Ways | Chatbot, Email, Help Center, Ticket |
Customer Support Hours | 24/7 |
Fiat Deposit | Yes |
Affiliate Program | Yes |
Orders Execution | Market |
Native Token | None |
VALR User Levels
The company has a simple single-tier user level program: VIP. Traders must meet certain conditions in order to upgrade from the Standard to the VIP level.
Key features of VALR VIP:
- Trade more than 2% of the exchange’s monthly spot and futures trading volume;
- Maintain a balance of over $100,000;
- Exceed 30D trading volume of $10M across Spot and Futures markets;
- Get a 01% discount on the Futures taker fee.
VALR Exchange Fees Explained
The platform has implemented a transparent fee structure for trading, deposits, withdrawals, and simple buy/sell.
Market | Maker | Taker |
Fiat Pairs | -0.01% | 0.1% |
Spot / Margin | 0% | 0.05% |
Futures | 0% | 0.04% |
USD Stable to USD Stable (e.g., USDT/USDC) | 0% | 0.01% |
The ecosystem charges a 0.13% commission on EUR and USD deposits and a 3.9% fee on ZAR card deposits.
Listed Cryptocurrencies
The exchange provides Spot / Margin and Futures trading services alongside a simple buy / sell feature on a list of 75+ digital assets, including:
- BNB
- USDC
- PYUSD
- SHIB
- XAUT
- AVAX
- BTC
- XRP
- ETH
- DOGE
Account Opening and Verification
The company has been licensed in multiple jurisdictions. As a result, it has to comply with AML and KYC policies.
So, upon registration, users need to complete the verification process.
- Visit the exchange’s official website;
- Click “Get Started”;
- Fill out the sign up form;
- Verify your email address;
- Provide your phone number and the OTC sent by SMS;
- Click “Verify your identity”;
- Fill in the residency and personal information forms;
- Upload proof of ID (passport or driving license).
Is VALR Exchange Safe?
The company is licensed in multiple regions, including Europe, India, Dubai, South Africa, and Zambia.
In addition to a strong regulatory framework, VALR has implemented a multilayer protection system containing:
- Two Factor Authentication (2FA)
- White list (Crypto withdrawals to address book only)
- SSL Encryption
- Cold Storage
Payment Methods
The platform supports both fiat and crypto transactions for funding and withdrawals.
While bank transfer is the only option for fiat (ZAR) withdrawals, you can deposit EUR, USD, and ZAR through various options, including:
- USD: Wire and Swift
- EUR: Wire and SEPA
- ZAR: South African credit / debit cards and EFT
Crypto deposits are free, and the platform offers 30 free ZAR withdrawals per month with an R 8.50 fee thereafter.
VALR Trust Score
Exploring the platform’s ratings on reputable websites like TrustPilot is one of the most important topics in this VALR review, which helps potential client to get feel of what they should be expecting.
2.7/5 based on 20 comments | |
Reviews.io | 2.0/5 based on 6 reviews |
CoinGecko | 6/10 |
Despite the wide range of services, user reviews paint a poor picture of the exchange. The most recurring subject in negative comments is withdrawal delay.
Growth Plans and Copy Trading on VALR Exchange
While the platform doesn’t offer a dedicated copy trading service, it provides 2 earn programs, including Staking and Lending, with the following key features:
- Lend your assets (e.g., ZAR, BTC, ETH, USDT, and USDC) and earn up to 67% APR;
- Stake Solana (SOL), Avalanche (AVAX), TRON (TRX), and other cryptocurrencies and benefit from returns of up to 6%.
The exchange has implemented a referral program and rewards its affiliates with commissions of up to 30%. It also hosts seasonal trading competitions, such as Futures Trade Arena, which offers up to 120K USDT in rewards.
Writer's Opinion and Conclusion
VALR provides access to Crypto Spot, Futures, and Margin trading with leverage options of up to 1:10 and 0.0% maker fees. The exchange accepts EUR, USD, and ZAR deposits via SEPA, Swift, and South African credit cards.
Despite the variety of services and a global clientele (more than 1M users), there are many negative VALR reviews on TrustPilot, gaining the platform a score of 2.7/5.
