Digital Surge Review for Australians
Last Updated on December 24, 2023 by Kevin GrovesThe cryptocurrency industry has made huge strides. In the past, you could only use digital currencies as an investment commodity, but currently, their transactional values have been unlocked, and more merchants are accepting crypto payments. Digital Surge is one of the best Australian crypto exchanges that allow you to pay bills using Bitcoin. This platform was launched in 2019, but it recently released Digital Surge 2.0, a new platform that could change the game. If you’re considering opening an account on this exchange site, read our comprehensive review below on Digital Surge.
Digital Surge
Trading fees:
0.5%
Number of cryptos:
310+
Deposit methods:
Bank transfer, POLI, PayID
Supported countries:
Australia, New Zealand
Promotion:
$10 Free Bitcoin
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Quick Overview
The table below provides a summary of the most important information on Digital Surge.
| Exchange Name | Digital Surge |
| Supported countries | Australia, New Zealand |
| Available fiat currency | AUD |
| Deposit methods | Bank transfers, POLi, PayID, cryptocurrency |
| Number of cryptocurrencies | 310+ |
| Trading fee | 0.5% |
| Deposit Fee | None, except for POLi ($2 – $3.30) |
| Withdrawal Fee | None |
| Mobile App | Yes (Android, iOS) |
The Bottom Line
When it comes to buying and selling crypto in Australia, Digital Surge is one the of the best places for beginners to start. It has a modern user experience and sports simple but elegant crypto features that are specifically designed for the Australian market The key features that we want to highlight include its highly competitive trading fee structure that starts at a maximum of 0.5%, the abundance of over 310 digital currencies that you can buy with cash, and the ability to passively earn interest on your idle crypto.
Whilst there is plenty to like from a beginner perspective, there is a lack of advanced features to keep experienced or serious traders enthused.
What we liked:
- Excellent crypto HODL option for everyday investors.
- The modern and clean interface.
- Attractive interest rates on crypto.
What we didn’t like:
- Lack of advanced trading features.
- Annoying minor fees for POLi payments.
What Is Digital Surge?
Founded in 2019, Digital Surge is a Brisbane-based cryptocurrency exchange that provides Australians and New Zealanders with an easy way to buy, sell and store over 310+ cryptocurrencies. The brokerage platform was established in response to common problems the founders saw in the Australian crypto market, of which complex trading platforms being the most prominent. In addition to a seamless user experience and streamlined processes, Digital Surge also participate in several grassroots events for anyone interested in starting their crypto journey.
Digital Surge is perfectly suited for both beginners and experienced investors who want value for money, choice in the cryptocurrencies they want to invest in, and a stress-free way of obtaining them.
So, Do We Think Digital Surge Legit?
Digital Surge is a legitimate cryptocurrency brokerage platform that is based in Brisbane, Australia. The AUSTRAC compliant platform is backed and works with major players in the Australian Fintech industry and has been recognised by several media outlets for their crypto products and services. Digital Surge is highly regulated by AUSTRAC, the Australian government body responsible for the identification, prevention and mitigation of organised financial crimes.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
Cons:
Here’s How Their Features Stack Up
Perfect for beginners
Digital Surge has a simple and intuitive interface that allows you to buy and sell cryptocurrency with ease. They’ve put a lot of thought into the user experience on the platform to ensure that even beginners with no experience with crypto can navigate the site smoothly. Combine the streamlined user interface with its low fees of 0.5% and the wealth of digital currencies to buy and interest on, Digital Surge is the perfect starting platform to HODL crypto. Expert traders may find the site and charting options too simplistic.
Get paid interest on your crypto
To further entrench itself as an ideal HODL option for everyday crypto investors, Digital Surge offers an interest-earning wallet where you can receive passive payments on 20 cryptocurrencies. At the time of writing (September 2022), you can earn interest payments between 1% Annual Percentage Yield (APY) and 21% APY.
Some examples of the supported assets include the popular Solana (SOL), Kusama (KSM), Cosmos (ATOM), and Polkadot (DOT). With consideration of other interest-earning wallets in Australia, Digital Surge’s offering is a respectable starting point but doesn’t offer the widest selection.
You can pay your bills with Bitcoin
This feature allows you to pay credit card statements or any Australian bills using Bitcoin held in your Digital Surge wallet. You only need to have the biller’s BPAY details, and you can easily make the transaction.
First, log in to your Digital Surge account, and navigate to the PayWizard. You’ll be given 3 payment options;
- Pay to Credit Card
- Pay BPAY bill
- Pay to Bank Account
Once you select your preferred payment option, input the details of the biller, and the BTC will be transferred from your Digital Surge wallet or an offline hardware wallet. Paying bills using this option is very convenient because it allows you to spend their cryptocurrency without swapping their Bitcoin for money.
Support for retirement fund investors
Digital Surge allows its customers to invest in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum as part of their Self-Managed Super Funds (SMSF). Digital Surge is a viable SMSF option due to its attractive fee structure, regulatory compliance, and industry-leading security measures. Having said that, Independent Reserve is one of the best SMSF crypto exchanges in Australia with its strong security track record.
Premium educational resources for newbies
When it comes to crypto trading, every bit of information goes a long way into ensuring you meet your investment goals. Digital Surge has a detailed FAQ section, premium blog resources, and content workshops to keep you ahead of the game. This also ensures that you only reach out to the customer support team for serious issues such as account security.
An attractive affiliate program to refer your friends
Digital Surge has one of the best affiliate programs in Australia. They pay up to 50% of all fees from your referrals, while most of the other platforms only offer you 10%-30%. This is a great way of earning passive income, but you have to be a verified user. You can easily obtain your affiliate link on the affiliate section on the main dashboard.
This is also where you’ll be keeping track of the total commissions earned, unpaid commissions, and the total users that have used your referral link.
Crypto tax reporting tools are useful
Similar to a lot of other Australian crypto platforms, Digital Surge has integrated itself with popular crypto tax tools to make the End of Financial Year (EOFY) reporting tasks easier. These include CryptoTaxCalculator, Accointing, and Koinly.
Connecting your Digital Surge account to any one of these service providers will require you to either:
- Download a .csv file of your Digital Surge transactions for the financial period and uploading them into the tools.
- Using an API connection.
What Coins Are Supported?
Digital Surge has more than 310 cryptocurrencies listed, which is more than enough for beginner and intermediate investors and traders. These coins are a mixture of the most popular crypto like Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Cardano (ADA), Solana (SOL), and and newer coins like Civic (CVC). Popular meme coins Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) are also supported.
With this vast range of digital assets, you can easily spend cash to invest in multiple coins, thereby diversifying your portfolio. With 310 supported assets, crypto platforms Binance Australia and CoinSpot offer more cryptocurrencies than Digital Surge.
Digital Surge Fees Explained
Deposit & withdrawal fees
Digital Surge don’t charge deposit fees to fund your account with cash, with the exception of POLi payments which incur a minor fee between $2 and $3.30. All other payment methods are free to use.
Withdrawing cash from your account and into your nominated Australian bank account can be done for free. Even though Digital Surge doesn’t charge withdrawal fees, you incur a standard network transaction fee when you send funds to an external wallet. The fee is dependent on the type of coin and how busy the network is.
Trading fees
Digital Surge’s trading fees to buy and sell crypto are highly competitive in the Australian market. Their fee structure is based on cumulative trading volume, and the more you trade, the less you are charged. The trading fees start at a maximum of 0.5% for trades less than $100,000, and reduce to 0.1% for large trades (more than $1 million).
So where does Digital Surge’s trading fees sit in the Australian market? There are some cheaper alternatives such as Binance Australia (0.1%) provided that your experienced enough to use it. other global platforms that offer services in Australia are typically the cheapest due to their massive trading volumes. Digital Surge is on par with most locally operated exchanges such as Independent Reserve (0.5%) and Swyftx (0.6%). It is worth noting that there are several platforms that are more expensive to buy crypto, including BTC Markets (0.85%) and CoinSpot (1% via the Instant Buy/Sell feature).
Security Measures We Encountered
Digital Surge is a trustworthy and secure crypto trading platform that has top-notch security protocols to ensure that your funds and assets are safe. Digital Surge only stores 2% of its funds online, with the rest hidden away in offline wallets to ensure your assets are well protected from hackers. Other security measures include data encryption of all user information and automated verification procedures to keep your accounts safe.
Digital Surge has implemented a variety of security features to fortify the safety of funds and user accounts. Some of the security protocols implemented include;
- 2-factor authentication for account logins to prevent access from authorised parties and on all withdrawals.
- Encryption and hashing of all passwords in the database to add an extra level of protection.
- Sophisticated multi-layer security protocols to prevent hack attacks.
- Storage of funds on both online and offline wallets to provide the best blend of security and functionality. Most of the funds are in cold storage as they are extremely difficult to hack,
- Regular security testing and updates.
- An SSL certificate on the website to protect your data and secure server-client communication.
- Separation of application credentials from the codebase and database.
Digital Surge also conducts a criminal background check on its employees to help maintain the highest levels of internal security.
How To Get Started With Digital Surge
Creating & verifying your account
Registration on Digital Surge is pretty straightforward. All you need is an email address and a strong password, and you’re good to go.
Like most Australian exchange sites, Digital Surge is registered and regulated by AUSTRAC and ASIC, which means that you have to verify your identity before you can start buying crypto with your money. In our experience, the verification process was smooth and we completed in it under 5 minutes.
You only have to pass the facial recognition check (you can do this with a smartphone camera), verify your phone number, and upload some form of official ID like your passport or drivers licence.
Funding your account
Digital Surge accepts most popular deposit methods to fund your account, including POLi, PayID, bank transfers (OSKO) and, cryptocurrencies from external wallets. All of these methods can be used to fund you account for free, with the exception of POLi payments where a $2.00 – $3.30 fee will apply. If you’re a small volume investor then you should consider depositing higher volumes to reduce the effects of the fee, or use one of the alternative methods.
In terms of the limits, all deposits and withdrawals on personal accounts have a maximum limit of $20,000. A notable difference is with POLi where a $8,000 limit applies. Corporate accounts such as SMSF and Business or Trust transactions have a $50,000 daily limit.
| Deposit method | Speed | Fees | Daily Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer (OSKO) | Near-instant | None | $20,000 |
| PayID | 24 hrs for first deposit then near-instant | None | $20,000 |
| POLi | Near-instant | $2.00 – $3.30 | $8,000 |
Unfortunately, buying crypto with a credit card is not supported as Digital Surge consider this method to carry a high risk of fraud. If this is your preferred method then you may wish to consider crypto exchanges such as Swyftx.
What Is Trading Like On Digital Surge?
The trading Dashboard on Digital Surge is easy to use and gives you a holistic view of your portfolio and how various investments are doing. A watchlist feature is also provided to allow you to monitor your favourite digital assets and identify the ones that are performing best.
To trade cryptocurrency, you should navigate to the asset you’d like to trade, and once you click on it, its current prices (in AUD) and a live chat will appear.
You should then input the amount of funds you’d like to spend on the coin you’d like to buy on the order entry box, and this will display the number of coins you’ll receive.
There are 2 main ways for you to trade on this platform:
- On the buy and sell screen: for this option, instead of trading with other users, you buy or sell Bitcoin and crypto assets directly from Digital Surge with AUD. This is like an instant buy and sell feature, and unlike other platforms, the charges are fairly reasonable, and you only incur a 0.5% trading fee.
- On the markets screen: this allows you to trade cryptocurrency with other users on the platform. You’re only charged 0,5% if your crypto trading volume is below AUD 100,000 over a 30 day trading period.
Since both options incur the same amount of fees, which one should you trade on? In such a scenario, you should consider factors such as:
- The difference between seller asks and buyer bids (spreads). If the trading volume is high, the spreads should be low, making your investment more profitable.
- The trading volume on the Market screen: more investors prefer this feature which is why it has a higher trading volume. This makes it easy to complete trades at low prices.
Currently, the trading volume on Digital Surge’s Market screen is low, so it’s advisable that you trade on the Buy & Sell feature.
Customer Support Was Excellent
Digital Surge has one of the most responsive customer support teams in the country. he customer support team is 100% Australian-based, and you can reach them by email or through their live chat app feature. Email tickets often take longer to get responses, but on the app, you’ll get a response within the hour. They also have a detailed FAQ section.
The customer reviews on Digital Surge are pretty impressive, and most of them are about how helpful their customer support team is. All queries sent on the live chat are responded to within an hour, and even though email responses take longer, they are timely. Digital Surge has excellent reviews on Trustpilot and Review.io, both of which are above 4.5 stars.
Our Final Verdict
Digital Surge is a relatively new cryptocurrency brokerage platform where you use your money to buy and trade a wealth of digital currencies. The design of the platform and its resulting user experience caters to the inexperienced and beginner investors who may be buying their first crypto. With its low trading fees, great selection of altcoins, and streamlined account management processes, Digital Surge is an economical and viable option for friends and family who want to buy and hold their assets.
Since Digital Surge is orientated to beginners, it comes as no surprise that advanced traders will feel left out due to to the lack of features. The interest-earning wallet might strike some appeal but other platforms, particularly the global exchanges, will offer more to experienced traders.
Frequently Asked Questions
How fast will my funds reflect on Digital Surge?
Since Digital Surge is Australian-based, the accepted payment methods easily integrate with financial systems. This is why all deposits and withdrawals are near-instant, except for cryptocurrency transactions.
The amount of time it takes for cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals to reflect in your account is dependent on the network congestion and type of coin. For Bitcoin deposits, you receive 3 confirmations before they are credited to your account.
The first confirmation message is in the form of an email and is sent to let you know that your bitcoin transaction is being processed. The second message lets you know when your BTC deposit is fully processed, while the final one comes after your account has been credited.
What Are the Best Digital Surge Alternatives?
If after this review you’re still not convinced that Digital Surge is the best fit for you, check out our Digital Surge comparisons and alternatives below:
Warren is the co-founder of CoinCryption. He has a passion for cryptocurrency and has been involved in this space for more than 7 years. His other love is digital marketing and has over 15 years of experience.