Compare BlockFi vs Nexo

In order to earn interest on BlockFi you must transfer funds from your BlockFi wallet to your BlockFi Interest Account. This means that when you want to make a withdrawal from an interest account you must first transfer your funds to your BlockFi wallet and then make a withdrawal request. This adds a minor amount of inconvenience but no significant delay to the withdrawal process.

Withdrawals from your BlockFi wallet are processed the next US working day. Requests made before 00:00 UTC will be processed the next day, requests made after this time will be processed in two working days time. This means that from the time of making a withdrawal request you could typically be waiting 24 hours before the request is actioned. BlockFi claim that this delay is for security reasons as it allows time for withdrawals to be reversed if necessary.

Withdrawals are only processed on US working days. This means that if your withdrawal request was submitted during a weekend or public holiday then you could be waiting even longer to get your funds.

Some withdrawals are subject to additional fraud checks. If the withdrawal gets flagged then BlockFi may ask for further confirmation of the withdrawal.

You get one free crypto withdrawal per month, after which a withdrawal fee is charged. These withdrawal fees can be quite high, for example the withdrawal fee on most stablecoins is $50 USD.

As an additional security measure you can whitelist withdrawal addresses, which means that only those addresses can receive funds.

Overall BlockFi has adopted a very strict withdrawal process, which should provide protection against fraudulent withdrawal requests. However the long withdrawal time and high withdrawal fees have attracted many complaints from users.

Nexo does not use separate savings wallets, so all crypto deposits immediately start earning interest. This means that when you need to make a withdrawl there is no need first transfer funds our of your savings account before then withdrawing them from the platform. This can be a significant time saving compared to other platforms.

In our tests, withdrawls from the Nexo platform were very smooth. The process is automated, so a withdrawl request is processed by Nexo within minutes of you making it. The total withdrawl time then just depends on the network speed. Typically most withdrawls in our tests were completed in well under an hour.

Nexo has never frozen withdrawls on any of its currencies and it claims to hold sufficient liquid funds at any point in time to handle anticpiated requests.

Withdrawls attract no fees for your first few withdrawls. This means that Nexo will pay the network transaction fee on your behalf. After the first couple of free withdrawls every month you will then have to start paying this fee. Nexo does not charge any additional withdrawl fees on top of the network fee. Your number of free withdrawls increases with your Nexo loyalty level.

BlockFi implements the usual security measures to protect assets held in your crypto wallet. These assets are secure by a third party custodian, Gemini. It is likely that BlockFi has some level of insurance against loss of these assets, but we have not been able to confirm that this insurance exists or what level of cover is provided. The BlockFi app utilises two factor authentication and biometric face id. Users can enable crypto wallet address whitelisting so that funds can only be withdrawn to accounts that you have previously approved.

BlockFi provides extensive detail on its investment strategy for funds which are deposited in a BlockFi savings account. These activities including lending to retail and instutional clients. BlockFi state categorically that "they may ... lend, or invest ... assets without retaining in our possession a like amount of digital assets". This is somewhat concerning as it suggests that some loans made by BlockFi may not be fully collateralised. Full loan collateralisation is important as it means that the loan can always be repaid by using the collateral in the event of a default by the borrower. Having said this, BlockFi provides a detailed breakdown of how it manages loan risk, including its current allocations and credit risk methodology. A well managed credit risk strategy will allow BlockFi to generate higher savings rates for users.

BlockFi is very transparent on the measures it takes to ensure sufficient liquidity remains on the platform to service user withdrawl requests. It keeps 10% of client deposits readily available on hand at all times to service immediate requests. It aims to keep 50% of deposits either on hand or in loans that can be called in with in 7 days. It aims to keep 90% of deposits either on hand or in loans that can be called in within 1 year.

BlockFi does not provide a public audit of its reserves, although it does provide a snapshot of its financial assets here. Proof of reserves can provide significant reassurance to deposits as it is typically undertaken by a third party and it proves that the platform holds more assets than customer liabilities (i.e. it is in a position to be able to repay all users if necessary).

Nexo has contracted with Armanino, a top 20 US accounting firm, to independently audit Nexo's assets and customer liabilities and to verify that these assets are greater than the liabilities. This verification can be checked live on Armanino's website.

Nexo has £775m of insurance on custodial assets, spread across a number of custodians including BitGo, Ledger Vault, Bakkt and others.

Nexo claims to insist on overcollateralisation on all loans that it makes, even to the biggest borrowers. This means that Nexo should always hold assets great then a borrower's debt, so the debt could be paid off in full by using the collateral at any time.

Nexo has contracted with Armanino, a top 20 US accounting firm, to independently audit Nexo's assets and customer liabilities and to verify that these assets are greater than the liabilities. This verification can be checked live on Armanino's website.

Nexo has £775m of insurance on custodial assets, spread across a number of custodians including BitGo, Ledger Vault, Bakkt and others.

Nexo claims to insist on overcollateralisation on all loans that it makes, even to the biggest borrowers. This means that Nexo should always hold assets great then a borrower's debt, so the debt could be paid off in full by using the collateral at any time.

Nexo states that its investment strategy is market neutral, i.e. it is not speculating on the potential increase in certain assets. Overall Nexo appears to have one of the most prudent financial risk management strategies out there and they have an impecable track record having never suffered any hack or ever frozen withdrawls. There does however always remain some risk with any crypto based business, such as a severe lack of liquidity in the markets of the loan collateral held.