Starting a trade site?

[delinquent]

I have two domains available to me, so it only makes sense to use one for trading. First of all, I'd like to gain some insight from people here about what they specifically want from a trading/banking site, and what precautions I should take against attacks. I'd like to have some sort of two stage security, whether it's worth it is another question entirely.

So:
What services should a new trader offer?
What banking services should be available in conjunction?
Is the likes of cloudflare a good idea?
What is an acceptable charging threshold? (I'm out to make a profit, as dirty as it sounds.)

[aandcmedia]

These questions are very broad and seem as if you don't really know what you want to do. Not to be negative but running a trade/exchange is a huge amount of work and takes a lot of experience. I would shy away from this if you don't know much about the technical/law/PR/etc

[bitrainbow]

request - we really need a good exchange that trades between the crypto currencies -- eg. BTC/LTC, BTC/NMC, BTC/TVC, LTC/NMC etc - - more transfers between currencies.

Currently, www.btc-e.com is down for trading BTC/LTC - so in order to transfer BTC into LTC, you have to exchange your BTC into USD, RUR or TRC first, and then exchange that into LTC and then pay $2 fee (or .5LTC) for withdrawing your LTC -- so you end up paying three fees.

Also, as far as I've read, all sites other than mtgox have terrible customer service complaints

[OdinHephaestus]

request - we really need a good exchange that trades between the crypto currencies -- eg. BTC/LTC, BTC/NMC, BTC/TVC, LTC/NMC etc - - more transfers between currencies.

Currently, www.btc-e.com is down for trading BTC/LTC - so in order to transfer BTC into LTC, you have to exchange your BTC into USD, RUR or TRC first, and then exchange that into LTC and then pay $2 fee (or .5LTC) for withdrawing your LTC -- so you end up paying three fees.

Also, as far as I've read, all sites including mtgox have terrible customer service complaints

ftfy

If a public service exists, someone is going to complain about it.

[bitrainbow]

true. but if you google btc-e.com reviews, all you get is angry people whose money has gone missing or who have contacted customer support and not heard back for over a week, etc.

I wish I could feel comfortable going through btc-e.com - it just seems too risky

We need a better solution

[OdinHephaestus]

The reason I don't trade at btc-e, is the difficulty getting USD to the site.

I'm currently trading on bitstamp and campbx mostly, if you want to give them a shot.

To actually answer OP:

What services should a new trader offer?

Multiple currencies, crypto (BTC, LTC, etc.) and fiat (USD, EUR, GBP, RUR, etc)

What banking services should be available in conjunction?

Dwolla is a good place to start, they will want some sort of AML system setup though.  US Cash deposits would be nice (ZipZap). Bank transfers, of course.
The one to win the exchange war, I think, is going to be the one that has exchange locations available on Earth, not just on the net.

Is the likes of cloudflare a good idea?

Meh.  I'd rather get a 500 or 404 than a cloudflare page, personally, when dealing with an exchange.  Cloudflare is good for blogs, and other mostly-static sites; but for a second-by-second, dynamic site like an exchange, cloudflare just pisses me off.

What is an acceptable charging threshold? (I'm out to make a profit, as dirty as it sounds.)

3% max.  Anything over, and you will never see most than 1Ƀ in transfers.

[delinquent]

These questions are very broad and seem as if you don't really know what you want to do.

My aim is to build an exchange that is more focused on what the customer wants, as opposed to making a profit. I'm aware that that is the general aim anyway, but I think more focus on CS is necessary in this environment.

Not to be negative but running a trade/exchange is a huge amount of work and takes a lot of experience. I would shy away from this if you don't know much about the technical/law/PR/etc

I can do the GUI and backend no problem. I have a working knowlege of law in my country, and as far as PR goes, I'm just going to be brutally honest with people. I have no qualms about telling people if I have a problem, I'd rather my customers be able to make a correctly informed choice.

we really need a good exchange that trades between the crypto currencies

You're right. That is a good idea, but in practice it would have to allow for small deviations in the correct stock prices, since the blockchains all seem to update at different times. It's workable though.

If a public service exists, someone is going to complain about it.

Yup. The very least a service proprietor can do is listen to and respond to those complaints. A lot of these exchanges don't seem to do so.

[aandcmedia]

May want to take a look at http://www.reddit.com/r/buttercoin

[MPOE-PR]

Go start a blog on your domains available to you. You'll live longer and happier.

[Lemon]

If you're starting an exchange, please make sure to investigate all of the relevant financial regulations and laws that you will be subject to, as well as starting talks with whomever you wish to bank with (talk to them at a corporate level). Solid KYC and AML procedures and vital to any exchange that wants to survive.