Costs, licensing, consumer protection Privacy, self-custody, censorship resistance
B D Regional Crypto Exchanges

Phemex

Phemex

Phemex Limited (BVI); ex sussidiaria Phemex Technology Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, UEN 202000691C, struck off 2023)

Status
Private company
Legal HQ
Singapore / Samoa
Founded
2019
Corporate site
phemex.com

Centralized custodial exchange founded in 2019 by ex-Morgan Stanley traders. Hot wallet hacked on 23 Jan 2025 (~$70-85M, suspected Lazarus Group): withdrawals restored and users compensated. Restricted in US, UK, Canada (some provinces) and other sanctioned jurisdictions.
3.7/5 1.2/5
Taker fee 0.06%

Data verified on unchanged since the sources

Worth it if you trade spot at high volume and subscribe to Premium: it zeroes spot fees, with an ex-Morgan Stanley team and 10M+ users.

Avoid it if you are in the US (not covered) or won't pay a subscription: 0% spot applies only with the Premium plan.

Visit official website ↗

An exchange founded by an ex-Morgan Stanley team, with over 10 million users and 0% spot fees. The zero spot fee requires a $9.99/month Premium subscription, however, and the platform is unavailable in the United States.

73
Transparency: Medium
73/100 · see methodology
73
Data exposure: Medium
73/100 · lower is better for sovereignty · methodology

Data & conditions

Maker / Taker fee 0.01% / 0.06%
Markets Spot + Derivatives
Max leverage 100×
Supported assets 300+
Trading pairs 600+
24h volume $2B
Fiat on-ramp Yes
Deposit methods SEPA, SEPA Instant, SWIFT, Bank wire transfer, Credit/Debit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Crypto deposit
Geo restrictions US, GB, CA-ON, CA-QC, CA-AB, CA-SK, AE, AU, CN, HK, IN, ZA, IR, KP, SY, CU, VE
Fund custody Custodial (platform holds funds)
KYC Full
Supported countries APAC, EEA · 60+ countries
Regulator FinCEN, Lithuania FCIS, Poland
Segment B2C
MiCA / License status VASP Registrazione Singapore

Strengths

  • 0% fee spot (Premium); ex-Morgan Stanley team; 10M+ users.
  • No notable sovereignty advantage documented.

Weaknesses

  • 0% spot only with abbonamento; no USA.
  • Custodial: the platform holds your funds and can freeze or lose them.
  • Full KYC required: verified identity, zero pseudonymity.
  • Subject to regulation (Registrazione Singapore): reporting to authorities and freezes on order.
  • Geographic restrictions (US, GB, CA-ON, CA-QC, CA-AB, CA-SK, AE, AU, CN, HK, IN, ZA, IR, KP, SY, CU, VE).

Verdict

B D ★ 3.7/5 ★ 1.2/5

The positive score reflects a serious platform: founded by an ex-Morgan Stanley team, over 10 million users and very low fees (0.06% taker, 0.01% maker). The asterisk holding the score back is that 0% spot requires the $9.99/month Premium subscription, plus unavailability in the US; regulation rests on a Singapore registration. It is available in Italy.

For the crypto-native, Phemex remains a custodial with full KYC: aggressive fees don't buy sovereignty, because the keys are never the user's and anonymity is ruled out. Leverage up to 100x on derivatives speaks to speculators, not to anyone seeking self-custody, privacy or censorship resistance.

Privacy & anonymity 30% 0.8
Fund control 20% 0.0
Censorship resistance 20% 1.5
Costs 10% 4.4

Promp's editorial rating based on real fees and net annual cost. Promp reviews third-party products independently.

"Sovereignty" rating: score computed on privacy/anonymity (30%), fund control (20%), censorship resistance (20%), trustless/auditability (20%) and costs (10%). Same data, different weights.

Reputation

What happened to people who used Phemex, and what users say. External signals: they do not feed the promp.it rating.

Incidents & regulatory actions

History not verified

We have not yet completed the incident search for this service: no entries here does not mean no events.

Public reviews

4.4/5 3,035 reviews
  • App Store ↗ 4.7/5 2,759 reviews

    'Phemex: Buy Crypto & Stocks' app (trackId 1499601684), US storefront via itunes lookup.

  • Trustpilot ↗ 2.0/5 276 reviews

    TrustScore rated 'Poor' on Trustpilot UK domain.

Weighted average across 2 public review platforms (3,035 reviews in total), weighted by volume. This is not our rating: it is those platforms’ average.

FAQ

What are Phemex's fees?

On Phemex, spot fees are maker 0.01% / taker 0.06%. They drop with monthly volume and VIP tier.

Is Phemex regulated in Europe?

Regulatory status of Phemex: Registrazione Singapore. Licence: VASP.

Does Phemex publish Proof of Reserves?

Phemex publishes Proof of Reserves. No third-party reserve audit is documented. Reserve transparency is a critical factor after the FTX collapse.

Can I send transfers to third-party IBANs from Phemex?

No, Phemex is an exchange and does not allow transfers to third-party IBANs: fiat withdrawals return to a bank account in your own name.

Does Phemex support derivatives and futures?

Phemex offers derivatives trading, with up to 100x leverage.

Sources

Show 7 more sources

Update history

✓ Terms unchanged since Jun 1, 2026

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