Etoro is a broker with its legal headquarters in the British Virgin Islands that offers its clients the opportunity to trade stocks, cryptocurrencies, currencies, commodities, and indices, using a simple and easy-to-understand interface.
In general, it does not represent the best platform available on the operational side, due to high commission costs and high spreads, however it represents an excellent temporary solution for those approaching the financial markets for the first time.
In this article we will see all the main features of eToro and the main cryptocurrencies listed on the broker.
eToro: a simple and intuitive broker to buy crypto and other financial instruments
eToro is a multi-asset social trading and investment platform, which allows you to easily trade cryptocurrencies, stocks, commodities, currencies, and CFDs.
Founded in 2007 in Tel Aviv by Yoni Assia, the company is now based in the British Virgin Islands and has approximately 1700 employees with an annual revenue of 1.2 billion dollars (data 2021-2022)
In Italy, eToro has only recently become famous, driven by the adoption of retail investors who have appreciated the social component of the broker, so much so that it has become the most used trading portal in 2024.
The possibility to communicate with other users through posts and comments is indeed the feature that most distinguishes the platform and has allowed its expansion throughout Europe.
Also very important is the function of “copy trading” present within it, which allows you to copy the portfolios of more experienced traders by replicating their operations.
The variety of tradable instruments is another feature that sets eToro apart from other competitors, with over 5000 assets to trade.
It is also worth noting the broker’s compliance with international regulations in the financial sector: it is regularly registered with CySEC and the Italian Consob.
Although the platform is overall reliable, comprehensive, and intuitive to use, it also has several flaws:
First of all, commissions: they can go up to 1% on crypto trading, 0.5% on stocks and ETFs, and variable fees on CFDs with overnight charges.
If you want to deepen the topic of eToro’s commissions you can click here.
On top of the scary commissions, there is also the spread that is generally always high for almost all tradable instruments. In particular, on stocks, since there are no direct commissions but only stamp duties, the platform makes most of its profit from the difference in bid/ask prices.
Even on the CFD front we find the same “flaw” of particularly high spreads, in addition to the costs of managing positions held open overnight.
Speaking of CFDs, we remind you that according to a recent survey by eToro, about 75% of real traders who use these products, lose money over time: certainly not a good omen.
We can conclude this initial presentation by saying that eToro is not the best platform out there, and certainly does not even rank in the top 10 of the best brokers in terms of convenience and operational competitiveness.
Anyway, if you are a beginner and want to start investing your first money in traditional or crypto financial markets, eToro could be the solution that suits you for the moment.
As you become more professional in this sector, you can consider moving to other competitors that are much more cutting-edge such as Trading 212, Trade Republic, Plus 500, and Interactive Brokers.
If you are mainly interested in cryptocurrencies, the next step will be to switch to one of the most reliable exchanges in circulation such as Binance, Coinbase, Bybit, Bitget, and Okx, and then proceed to trade on DEX and store with private wallets.
Which cryptocurrencies are available on Etoro? How to buy them?
eToro allows trading with about 100 different cryptocurrencies, starting from the most capitalized ones like Bitcoin and Ethereum to the lesser-known ones with lower market capitalizations.
Among the most traded coins by platform users we find: BTC, ETH, BNB, SOL, XRP, LINK, SHIB, DASH, LTC, ADA, ETC and BCH.
Buying cryptocurrencies on EToro is very simple: first of all, register on the official website and create your account.
Use the search function to find the crypto you want to buy and select the “invest” option. Once you have done that, enter the amount you want to invest and click on “open transaction” to confirm everything. Wait a few seconds and the game will be done.
It is worth noting the presence of the “signal” function, which, by leveraging Etoro’s technical analysis indicators, provides an indication of what to do with a position (buy, sell, hold).
As mentioned in the previous paragraph, even on crypto eToro applies a high spread.
For example, at the time of writing the article, the price of Bitcoin on Binance is 70,209 dollars while on Etoro it is 69,494 dollars.
This is a difference of 715 dollars, more than 1% of the total value of the asset, to which an additional 1% commission and another 2% fee must be added if we want to withdraw that coin and transfer it to the blockchain.
Speaking of transfers, the crypto networks accepted by eToro for deposits and withdrawals are Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Cardano, Ethereum, Litecoin, Stellar, Tron, and Ripple.
Given the complexity of the cryptocurrency sector, we remind you that before using a more professional and less expensive exchange or broker than eToro, it is essential to be aware of the typical practices of this industry along with all the related technical terminology.
If you are a beginner, paying a few extra dollars in commission on eToro could save your entire account and avoid larger losses due to inexperience (hack, sending funds to the wrong address, buying/selling with limit orders executed at the wrong price, etc).
Etoro CEO’s opinion on the world of cryptocurrencies
Staying on the crypto topic, we report what was said during the Paris Blockchain Week by Yoni Assia, founder and CEO of the trading platform eToro, regarding the future of the sector.
Assia, who has a decade of experience in the cryptographic market, has told all her ups and downs in the industry, starting from the catastrophic collapse of the Mt.Gox exchange, to the ICO bubble, up to the last bear market and the fall of Terra/Luna and FTX.
According to the founder of eToro, this market is full of opportunities, but it is necessary to understand how the bullish and bearish cycles that have characterized the price action of the major assets over the years work.
The famous entrepreneur emphasized the importance of having a long-term vision of +5 years in order to ride the growth of the crypto sector without being caught up in the emotions and short-term price fluctuations.
Furthermore, Assia also mentioned that there are now many more investment choices compared to 15 years ago, and one can explore beyond Bitcoin to look for more profitable and at the same time riskier solutions.
Finally, the visionary CEO of Etoro has given his forecast on the future of this industry, which is evolving in terms of new technologies year after year.
According to him, in the next ten years the market capitalization of crypto projects will exceed 100,000 billion dollars, establishing the asset class among the best in the world.
Most of the investments in physical assets will shift to the digital realm and the Bitcoin standard will be appreciated everywhere, with the price of BTC continuing to skyrocket, protecting investors from losses due to inflation of FIAT currencies.
