Recommended Resources

What it is: an online-only alternative to a bank account.

Why it's recommended: Wise is the best banking user experience out there. They pioneered low fee transfers internationally and across currencies. Easy to set up multiple currency accounts and separate accounts for expenses, personal runway etc.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: get your transfer fees waived on your first transfer if you sign up through our link.

What it is: internet bank with an emphasis on mobile app and social payments.

Why it's recommended: similar to Wise - featuring a user-friendly app and low fee transfers. They make payments between Revolut users simple and fast. This is especially useful in regions where Revolut is popular and has loads of users. Also provides basic access to stock and crypto investing.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: none.

What it is: online broker & stock trading app.

Why it's recommended: A solid app for investing & trading, both as a web app and mobile app. Gives access to every tradable asset type you can think of, except crypto. Low fees & support for buying fractional shares included. This is a serious broker that gives you all the power-user tools without being overwhelming or complicated.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: none.

What it is: online broker & stock trading app.

Why it's recommended: A good alternative to Interactive Brokers (and Robinhood, Webull and all the other mobile-first trading apps). It also has many of the same features & advantages to the other apps. It's a "real" broker that doesn't rely on a shady business model. It gives you all the features you could want, and also comes with user friendly apps.

Referral link: no.

What it is: the largest international cryptocurrency exchange.

Why it's recommended: Binance has grown into the largest crypto exchange and they have established themselves as a key player in the market. Among exchanges, this one has probably gone through the most crypto cycles with the least drama, compared to all others. Binance also offers a good app and very conventient auto-DCA options.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: none.

What it is: the "mainstream", US-based crypto exchange.

Why it's recommended: Coinbase is user-friendly and widely considered a very safe exchange. It has been around since forever and it's a publicly traded company. This means you don't have to worry about getting scammed by them. They offer good apps for crypto trading/investing. They also offer staking rewards, interest accounts and have a crypto debit card in the works.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: get $10 worth of free BTC the first time you buy crypto for $100 or more.

What it is: a mobile wallet for Ethereum-based crypto assets.

Why it's recommended: A highly secure, fully-featured, user-friendly wallet. Argent gives you full ownership and control over your crypto assets. It also gives you easy access to Defi protocols, so you can earn interest without relying on any 3rd party. Argent uses a social recovery mechanism. This gives you a high degree of security without requiring that you manage a seed phase. Social recovery is, in practice, more secure than seed phrase-based wallets.

Referral link: no.

What it is: a mobile crypto wallet for BTC, ETH and other assets.

Why it's recommended: Offers full self custody of your assets. Also provides a user-friendly security and recovery mechanism. It uses a combination of security features that are superior to the usual seed phrase backup. It also gives you easy access to some crypto earnings opportunities. But unlike Argent, it uses a centralized 3rd party (Nexo) to do so. Great alternative or addition to Argent, if you want to store your Bitcoin.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: get $10 worth of Bitcoin with your first crypto purchase. Use the code "ZENIIGPG" during signup to claim your reward.

What it is: Metamask is a browser extension that acts as a crypto wallet. It lets you interact with Web3 applications such as Defi protocols and decentralized exchanges.

Why it's recommended: free and easy to use, it's a great way to get started and dip your toes into crypto, Web3 and decentralized finance. As a standalone wallet, it's not ideal. But, advanced users and anyone wanting to store more value can combine it with hardware wallets (see below).

Referral link: no.

What it is: a hardware wallet for crypto assets.

Why it's recommended: Trezor is one of the most popular and longest-running hardware wallets created by a well established company. They've been selling highly secure hardware wallets for a long time. It's a good extra layer of protection for anyone wanting self custody over considerable amounts of crypto assets.

Referral link: yes

Referral bonus: none.

What it is: a crypto asset that gives you hands-off access to the earning potential of decentralized finance.

Why it's recommended: integrated in the Argent wallet, GRO gives you access to 2 different assets. One with higher and one with lower risk/reward. Instead of directly interacting with Defi lending and yield farming protocols, these assets basically do it for you. You can think of it like an index fund. It invests in a range of different yield generating protocols and pays out earnings back to investors.

Referral link: no.

What it is: Nexo is a centralized crypto "bank". Through Nexo, you can buy and sell crypto assets, as well as borrow or lend.

Why it's recommended: with Nexo, you can earn interest on crypto assets as well as fiat currencies. Could be a good place to "store and forget" your assets for a while. If you're worried about the decentralized, trustless nature of Defi, then using a service like Nexo is worth considering. It's a matter of what kind of risk you prefer, as a centralized service is not risk-free either.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: receive $10 worth of free BTC the first time you purchase $100 or more of crypto through Nexo.

What it is: A decentralized finance borrowing/lending protocol. Here you can earn interest on crypto assets and stablecoins.

Why it's recommended: if you want to experience "real" Defi that doesn't go through a centralized party, Aave is a great place to start. It's fairly easy to use (with Metamask, for example). It's also one of the most used and established protocols in the space. In Aave, you can deposit crypto assets and earn interest. The interest is variable since it's based purely on supply and demand. And you retain full custody over your assets.

Referral link: no.

What it is: a card and service that rounds up your purchases and invests your "spare change".

Why it's recommended: Use Acorn cards for everyday spending. The prices are rounded up (e.g. from $9.70 to $10) and the difference is automatically invested. This is a good way to slowly build up assets without having to think about it.

Referral link: no.

What it is: a debit card that pays cashback in BTC.

Why it's recommended: basically the same idea as the Gemini card (see above). You can get your cashback in either NEXO or BTC (which is what I recommend). The Nexo card is likely to become available to EU customers sooner than the Gemini one.

Referral link: yes.

Referral bonus: receive $10 worth of free BTC the first time you purchase $100 or more of crypto through Nexo.