StormGain Crypto Exchange Review: What Happened and Why It’s Gone

StormGain used to be one of the most talked-about crypto exchanges for traders chasing high leverage. With up to 300x leverage on Bitcoin and Ethereum, a simple mobile app, and a $50 minimum deposit, it pulled in over 12 million users by 2023. But here’s the truth: StormGain no longer exists. As of January 13, 2025, the platform shut down completely. All active accounts were moved to YouHodler, and StormGain’s website now just redirects users to a notice about the transition.

Why StormGain Was Popular (Before It Disappeared)

StormGain didn’t win users by being the safest or cheapest exchange. It won them by offering something almost no other retail platform dared to: 300x leverage on crypto futures. For comparison, Binance caps leverage at 125x, and Bybit at 100x. That meant if you had $100, you could open a $30,000 position. For experienced day traders, that was a magnet.

The interface was clean, especially on mobile. You didn’t need to be a quant to place a trade. There were video guides, 24/7 live chat (mostly for European users), and a mining feature that paid out small amounts of BTC daily just for having an active account. The referral program gave you 10% of your friend’s trading fees - a solid perk if you had a network of active traders.

It also had a few flashy partnerships. StormGain was the official crypto trading partner of SS Lazio, an Italian football club. That kind of branding gave it a veneer of legitimacy, even if it wasn’t regulated anywhere.

The Hidden Costs and Missing Features

But StormGain’s appeal came with serious trade-offs. For one, its fees were higher than advertised. The platform claimed “lowest fees,” but in reality, maker/taker fees were 0.05% / 0.10%. That’s double what Kraken charges for standard accounts. And if you deposited with a debit card through Simplex? You were hit with hidden markups - sometimes over 8% - that weren’t clearly shown until checkout.

Its asset selection was tiny. You could trade spot on about 10 coins: BTC, ETH, LTC, XRP, BCH, and a few others. That’s it. No Solana. No Cardano. No Dogecoin. Meanwhile, Kraken offered over 115 perpetual futures, and Binance listed more than 350 assets. If you wanted to trade altcoins, StormGain wasn’t the place.

And there were no bots. No copy trading. No API access for advanced traders. No limit orders on futures. Just basic market and stop-loss orders. It was designed for quick, high-risk trades - not long-term strategies or algorithmic trading.

Customer Service: A Mixed Bag

User experiences with support varied wildly. European users often got replies within 15 minutes. But users in Asia and Latin America reported waiting days - sometimes over two weeks - for responses. On Reddit and Trustpilot, complaints about withdrawal delays were common. Some people waited 72+ hours just to get their funds out. Others said their support tickets vanished into thin air.

The mining feature was another point of frustration. Some users got consistent daily payouts. Others woke up one day to find their mining rewards cut off with no explanation. There was no transparency around how payouts were calculated or why they stopped.

Why Did StormGain Shut Down?

StormGain operated without any financial license. It wasn’t registered with the FCA in the UK, the SEC in the US, or any major European regulator. That was fine when crypto was still a wild west. But in 2024, things changed. The EU’s MiCA regulations came into force, requiring all crypto platforms offering leverage above 25x to be licensed. StormGain couldn’t get one.

Analysts at Messari and Delphi Digital pointed to the same issue: high leverage without regulation is a business model that collapses under pressure. StormGain’s entire value proposition - 300x trades - was exactly what regulators were cracking down on. When they couldn’t adapt, they chose to shut down rather than risk fines or legal action.

The shutdown wasn’t sudden. In late 2024, StormGain started quietly migrating users to YouHodler. By January 13, 2025, the platform was gone. If you had funds left in your StormGain account, they were automatically transferred. If you had pending withdrawals or unresolved issues, you had to contact [email protected] - but even that email is now largely unresponsive.

StormGain vs YouHodler: What Happened to Your Account?

YouHodler is a different kind of platform. It’s regulated in the EU, offers crypto-backed loans, and has a more transparent fee structure. But it doesn’t offer 300x leverage. The max is 50x. If you were using StormGain to scalp Bitcoin with extreme leverage, YouHodler won’t feel like a replacement.

On the plus side, YouHodler has better customer support, a wider selection of assets, and real regulatory oversight. If you were just holding crypto and occasionally trading spot, the move might be an upgrade. But if you were chasing 300x trades, you’re out of options. No major exchange now offers that level of leverage without being completely unregulated - and even those are getting squeezed by global enforcement.

Who Was StormGain Really For?

StormGain wasn’t for beginners looking to buy Bitcoin and hold it. It wasn’t for long-term investors. It wasn’t even for traders who wanted diversification.

It was for one type of person: experienced, high-risk day traders who knew exactly what they were doing and wanted to bet big on short-term price swings in BTC or ETH. Even then, the platform’s lack of advanced tools, inconsistent support, and hidden fees made it a risky choice.

Its user base was 92% retail traders. Only 8% were institutional. That tells you everything. StormGain wasn’t built for stability. It was built for speed, hype, and high-volume trading - the kind of environment that thrives in unregulated markets… until the regulators come knocking.

What You Should Do Now

If you still have funds tied up in StormGain, check your email. You should have received instructions about your migration to YouHodler. Log in to YouHodler using your old StormGain credentials. If you don’t see your balance, contact support there - not StormGain.

If you were using StormGain for mining rewards, those are gone. The mining feature was tied to the platform’s infrastructure, which no longer exists.

And if you’re looking for a high-leverage exchange today, be careful. Most platforms that offer 100x+ leverage are either unregulated, have poor track records, or are about to get shut down. The safest path now is to stick with regulated exchanges like Kraken, Bitstamp, or Coinbase - even if their leverage caps are lower.

The lesson from StormGain isn’t about leverage. It’s about trust. A flashy interface and a football sponsor don’t make a platform safe. Regulation, transparency, and user protection do.