Withdrawing from an exchange to another exchange

[CursedHeretic]

Since most exchanges do not process transactions directly from smart contracts how do exchanges transfer withdrawals between each other?

Is everything kept on a cold wallet until traded/withdrawn or is the process deeper than that?

[MadGamer]

A withdrawal is a withdrawal, It doesn't matter where It's going to (exchange, another person etc.) as long as It's a valid address.

Most of the funds are kept in cold storage for security purposes (since hackers can't touch it)  and the remaining funds that that are moving are kept in a hot wallet otherwise It would take forever to process them.

[CursedHeretic]

So the process goes like this?

Deposit funds into exchange, they go to a cold wallet
Confirm withdrawal
Multisignature confirmation from exchange
Funds move to hot wallet
Withdrawal transfer is made

Is that right?

[TryNinja]

I'm pretty sure every exchange has some liquidity in their hot wallet, so they don't need to keep pulling coins from their cold wallet every time someone wants to withdrawal.

[buwaytress]

So the process goes like this?

Deposit funds into exchange, they go to a cold wallet
Confirm withdrawal
Multisignature confirmation from exchange
Funds move to hot wallet
Withdrawal transfer is made

Is that right?

I think most cold wallet funds are manually accessed, and kept away from that process you mention. Deposited funds typically are swept up periodically (you can see this on explorer, every so often your deposit address funds are spent into another address and is usually left empty), depending on size of output. You can see some cold storage wallets of exchanges in the top 100 wallets. Bitfinex's cold wallet shows only a handful of txs a day

Hot wallets are probably continously funded by deposits and automatically process some withdrawals... liquidity as TryNinja points out.

Quoine claims to be a 100% cold wallet exchange, and indicates it's likely the only one to make that claim.

I'm pretty sure every exchange has some liquidity in their hot wallet, so they don't need to keep pulling coins from their cold wallet every time someone wants to withdrawal.

Absolutely. It would simply cost too much, in terms of not just time and human resources but risk. Cold storage is supposed to be what it suggests. Storage. Accessing it multiple times just makes it too exposed, too vulnerable... if not to malicious attempts of theft, then of carelessness.

[stomachgrowls]

Since most exchanges do not process transactions directly from smart contracts how do exchanges transfer withdrawals between each other?

Is everything kept on a cold wallet until traded/withdrawn or is the process deeper than that?

Dont hassle your mind too much on whats the process on where most exchanges do and as being said withdrawal is withdrawal. Exchange do have commonly active transactions which its just clear that these funds came from hot wallet and cold wallet would be total irrelevant in this matter. Above informations had already been explain on how a cold wallet works and based on transactions it wont really involve active transactions from time to time. Cold wallets are just being used if hot wallets is being emptied or what other purpose those exchange have.

[mobnepal]

Lets just answer two of your question and nothing much to discuss here;

Since most exchanges do not process transactions directly from smart contracts how do exchanges transfer withdrawals between each other?

Smart contract? Most of the exchanges warns you to not withdraw ETH to ICO platform because tokens from ICO smart contracts are sent directly to the ETH address from which funds come from so if you send ETH to those smart contracts they will credit ETH address of exchange rather than yours with the token. You can exchange from one exchange platform to another if you want to save money on transaction fee but I don't recommend doing that.

Is everything kept on a cold wallet until traded/withdrawn or is the process deeper than that?

It depends on the exchange and for sure no any exchange can process instant withdrawals without zero fund in hot wallet.

[Soots]

A withdrawal is a withdrawal, It doesn't matter where It's going to (exchange, another person etc.) as long as It's a valid address.

Most of the funds are kept in cold storage for security purposes (since hackers can't touch it)  and the remaining funds that that are moving are kept in a hot wallet otherwise It would take forever to process them.

I guess that's the safest ways on how to take care of our funds, and these days as cryptocurrency involved lots of money the hacker is merely aggressive to attack those vulnerable accounts specially in trading sites. With regards to withdrawal issues of exchange to another exchange, you shoud have an authenticator app in order to have much secured access to avoid any entrusion from hackers. Having tight security on your funds could definitely give you more safer funds transfer.