Alto Crypto IRA Review – A Quick Overview
Alto Crypto IRA is a product of a reputed custodian, Alto IRA. The crypto IRA lets you invest in more than 200 cryptocurrencies including notable names such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and DASH.
Alto has been in the industry since 2016 and has partnered with Coinbase to provide consumers with seamless trading facilities. However, the company has received complaints about poor customer service and delayed responses. Also, their selection doesn’t include any precious metals, unlike their competition.
Pros:
- Over 200 cryptocurrencies in the selection
- Partnered with Coinbase
Cons:
- Received multiple negative reviews for poor service
- Relatively new
- Multiple complaints on BBB
Table Of Content
What is Alto Crypto IRA?
Alto Crypto IRA is a product of the reputed custodial services provider, Alto IRA. The company has been in the industry since 2016 and has grown quickly to become one of the top crypto IRA firms in the sector.
They are headquartered at 500 11th Ave N Ste 790 Nashville, TN 37203-5498. Similarly, their contact number is 877-673-1557.
Recently, the IRA provider succeeded in raising more than $40 million.
This review focuses on their crypto specialized offering: Alto CryptoIRA.
They have partnered with a reputed crypto exchange, Coinbase, to let their investors buy, sell and trade cryptocurrencies.
The company has dedicated mobile apps which give consumers 24/7 access to their assets.
Moreover, the crypto startup has put in a lot of effort towards client education. They run a podcast, an active blog and publish research to help consumers get more acquainted with the cryptocurrency and alternative investments industry.
While their partnership with Coinbase has enabled them to offer highly secure and effective services, it doesn’t let them offer their services in Hawaii.
People Behind Alto Crypto IRA:
The founder and CEO of Alto IRA is Eric Satz. He founded the company in 2015 and has been leading it since.
Eric also hosts the Altogether Show, a podcast where he interviews entrepreneurs. Also, he is a Partner at Tennessee Community Ventures Fund.
From 2015 to 2019, he was the Board Director of Tennessee Valley Authority.
Alto Crypto IRA isn’t his first venture. Before it, he had co-founded and run Plumgood Food.
His extensive experience in leadership and management has played a huge role in helping him establish Alto IRA as a major retirement investment firm.
Eric Satz has a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Amherst College.
How to Invest with Alto Crypto IRA:
The signup process with Alto Crypto IRA is quite easy. Just follow these steps and you’ll be good to go:
Step #1: Create an Account
First, you would need to visit their website or download the Alto Crypto IRA app. There, you can create an account on the platform for free.
The registration takes only a few minutes and only requires an email and a password.
Step #2: Choose an IRA Type
After you have created an account with Alto, you would need to choose an IRA type. Alto Crypto IRA offers the following options to choose from:
- Traditional IRA: In a Traditional IRA, your contributions might be tax-deductible while your qualified distributions would be taxable.
- Roth IRA: Here, your contributions would be taxable but your qualified distributions would be tax-free
- SEP IRA: SEP IRAs are for self-employed business owners. Here, your contributions are tax-deductible while your qualified distributions are taxable.
All three of these accounts offer tax-deferred account growth. You should choose the IRA type based on your personal and financial requirements.
Your account representative will help you throughout the process.
Step #3: Add Funds
After you have chosen your preferred IRA type, you would need to add funds to your new IRA.
You can do so by rolling over funds from an existing retirement account or sending cash directly from a bank account.
Both of the processes take relatively the same amount of time.
Step #4: Begin Investing
Once your account has received the funds, you can begin trading the cryptocurrencies available in Alto Crypto IRA’s selection.
That’s it.
With just these 4 steps, you can use your IRA funds to buy and sell crypto assets.
Alto Crypto IRA Coins and Products:
Alto Crypto IRA has one of the largest collections of cryptocurrencies to offer. Their selection consists of more than 200 digital currencies including all of the popular names.
Some of the notable names present in their selection include:
- Bitcoin: Bitcoin is the first cryptocurrency that entered the market. It is a peer-to-peer transaction currency based on blockchain and is generated through a computing process called mining. It is estimated that all Bitcoin will be mined by 2140.
- Bitcoin Cash: Bitcoin Cash came into existence because of a “hard fork”. Basically, a large section of Bitcoin miners disagreed with other miners and branched out. Still, it has grown into one of the most popular cryptocurrencies in the market.
- Ethereum: Ethereum is a highly popular cryptocurrency and infrastructure. Its digital token (Ether) is used on its platform. Ethereum utilizes Smart Contracts to facilitate transactions.
- Litecoin: Litecoin is similar to Bitcoin but the difference is in its cost and processing speed. The processing speed is 4x faster than that of Bitcoin, making it more accessible and cheaper than its predecessor.
- Chainlink: Chainlink has been in the market since 2017 and is becoming increasingly popular. It acts as a bridge between two separate blockchain systems and lets any blockchain connect with another.
Apart from these popular names, you will find many cryptocurrencies in their selection such as:
- Alchemy Pay
- Cardano
- 1Inch
- ApeCoin
- BitDAO
- Boba Network
- Braintrust
- Coin98
- Compound
- Crypterium
- Cartesi
- Dash
- Dogecoin
- Flow
- Jasmy
And many more.
You can view the complete list here.
While their selection is certainly impressive, it doesn’t feature any precious metals which might be a disappointment for some investors. Considering how both of their major competitors (Bitcoin IRA and iTrustCapital) have added precious metals to their asset selection, it can certainly dissuade investors from investing with Alto Crypto IRA.
Alto Crypto IRA Fees and Charges:
There are no Alto Crypto IRA fees for setting up a new account. Similarly, the platform doesn’t charge any custody fee for storing your digital assets.
Instead, the company charges a 1% fee per transaction.
If you decide to close your account, you would need to pay an additional charge of $50. For outbound wire transfers, the company charges a $25 withdrawal fee.
Also, the minimum deposit requirement is $10.
Apart from these charges, Alto Crypto IRA doesn’t charge any additional fees. The company highlights that you wouldn’t need to pay any additional charges for IRA rollovers, E-statement generation, Roth conversion and tax reporting.
| Initial Set Up Fee | $0 |
| Account Maintenance Fee | $0 |
| Transaction Fee | 1% of Order Size |
| Account Closure Fee | $50 |
| Outbound Wire Transfer Fee | $25 |
| Account Minimum | $10 |
Additional Highlights of Alto Crypto IRA:
Apart from being a crypto startup with a unique offering, there are plenty of qualities which make Alto Crypto IRA stand out:
Partnership with Coinbase:
Alto has partnered with Coinbase for their CryptoIRA program. Coinbase is an industry leader in the cryptocurrency sector with a vast infrastructure. It is a cryptocurrency exchange platform and has been in the industry since 2012.
Partnering with Coinbase has allowed Alto Crypto IRA to offer customers one of the largest asset selections. Furthermore, it saves customers the hassle of opening a separate account on any crypto exchange.
Another prominent crypto IRA company that has partnered with a prominent exchange is BitIRA. They are partnered with Genesis Trading, a premier trading platform.
Advanced Security and Insurance:
Alto Crypto IRA has many security measures in place to ensure its clients’ assets remain safe and secure.
This includes cold storage of its clients’ digital assets. In cold storage, your digital assets go offline when they are not in use. This way, they are safe from any hacking attempts.
Again, their partnership with Coinbase comes into play here. The crypto exchange utilizes state-of-the-art encryption and security to ensure the customers’ funds are safe from any emerging threats.
Also, the company uses multi-factor authentication to fortify security.
On insurance, the company states: “Undirected cash in your Alto CryptoIRA is held in FDIC-insured accounts.”
Your funds held in cash at Coinbase would be maintained in pooled custodial accounts at one or more banks insured by the FDIC. The company provides insurance coverage up to $320 million.
Free Resources (Podcast, Blog and Research):
Alto has put in a lot of effort into client education. Their founder, Eric Satz, hosts the Altogether Show, where he interviews entrepreneurs and experts and discusses various topics.
Some of the featured guests on this podcast include Shane Mac, Rachel Horwitz, Sheel Mohnot and Brian Feroldi.
The company has conducted a lot of research and has published the findings on its website. If you’re interested in getting deep insights of the industry, this section might prove to be useful for you.
For example, the company has surveyed millennials to find out how they perceive retirement and their investing habits.
However, to get this report, you would need to sign up with them.
Apart from these resources, Alto Crypto IRA has a dedicated blog which covers the latest industry news. They add new content to the blog regularly.
Some of the recently covered topics include:
- What is a Self-Directed Roth IRA? (And Why You Need One)
- 5 Strategies to Help You Research What Crypto to Buy Now
- What the 2023 IRA Contribution Limit Increase Means for You
If you like staying updated on the crypto industry, this might be a good resource for you.
Alto Crypto IRA Vs iTrustCapital
Alto CryptoIRA and iTrustCapital are two of the most popular cryptocurrency IRA providers. They offer similar account offerings, trading fees, and custodians. However, there are some subtle differences between the two companies.
The differences are more subtle:
| Alto CryptoIRA | iTrustCapital | |
| Minimum Investment | $10 | $1,000 |
| Fees | – 1% for crypto trades – $50 over the spot (per ounce) for Gold – $2.50 over the spot (per ounce) for Silver | – 1% for crypto trades – $50 over the spot (per ounce) for Gold – $2.50 over the spot (per ounce) for Silver |
| Asset Selection | – 200+ cryptocurrencies | – 30 cryptocurrencies– Physical gold – Physical silver |
Alto CryptoIRA allows you to invest in a wider range of cryptocurrencies than iTrustCapital. Alto also has a lower minimum investment requirement. However, iTrustCapital offers more educational resources and customer support.
Ultimately, the best cryptocurrency IRA provider for you will depend on your individual needs and preferences. Do some research to compare the different options and choose the one that’s right for you.
Alto Crypto IRA Reviews and Complaints
On Trustpilot, the company has received over 1,000 reviews and its overall rating is 4.4 out of 5 stars. Out of these reviews, 72% of them give the company 5 out of 5 stars while 14% give the company 4 out of 5 stars.
Most of the reviews praise the company’s coin selection and easy account set-up. For example, Michael shares that the customer service of this company is great. His transfer from Fidelity was seamless and he doesn’t have any complaints.
Alto Crypto IRA has received an A+ rating from BBB. However, their customer rating is horrible. There are 4 Alto IRA reviews on their BBB profile and their aggregate rating is 1 out of 5 stars.
Certainly, this doesn’t look good for the company.
At the time of writing this review, their BBB listing shows 7 complaints.
Are There Any Alto Crypto IRA Complaints? Should You Be Concerned?
Yes, there is a significant number of Alto Crypto IRA reviews criticizing the company’s services. Most of the complaints are regarding delays in responses from the company’s customer support.
On BBB, the company has received 7 complaints within the last 3 years.
Here, the user shares that his institution had sent a 5-figure transfer and Alto communicated that they voided and shredded the check upon receipt due to envelope damage.
Now, the customer’s institution has been trying to get Alto IRA to fill out an affidavit so they can cancel the check and get their assets back into their account.
However, the company isn’t helping the customer. Instead, it is giving them the run around with ignored emails and no callbacks, according to the customer.
The company responded by accepting that the incident took place but put the blame on the customer’s bank.
There were similar complaints against Alto for its delayed customer support.
This can be a major red flag for many investors.
Is Alto Crypto IRA Legit?
Yes, Alto Crypto IRA is legit. The company behind this service has been in the industry since 2016 and provides consumers with a ton of free resources including a blog, a podcast and reports.
They have partnered with Coinbase, a crypto industry leader which allows them to offer a seamless trading experience. The company utilizes both hot and cold storage for its customers’ digital assets.
Furthermore, the Alto Crypto IRA has received hundreds of positive reviews on different platforms.
However, the company has received a decent number of complaints as well. Most of the complaints are about delayed responses and poor customer support. Also, the company’s asset selection doesn’t feature any precious metals, unlike some of its top competitors.
These can be some major issues for investors.
Summary
Opening a crypto IRA can be an effective means to preserve your wealth and expand your portfolio. A huge advantage of crypto IRAs is the tax-deferred trading of various cryptocurrencies. However, your returns would largely be dependent on the IRA provider you choose.
That’s why I recommend checking out multiple service providers before selecting one.
If you’re interested in opening a crypto IRA, I suggest you visit our list of top crypto IRA companies.
It will give you the most comprehensive idea of what the industry has to offer.
Have you dealt with Alto Crypto IRA? Share your experience below!