How and Where to Buy Bitcoin in the UK?

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21,368.00 GBP

Rank: 1
Market cap: 414,185,000,000

Abbreviation:

BTC

Blockchain support:

Bitcoin

Features:

Decentralization of Bitcoin's Network, censorship Resistant, hard cap of 21 million Bitcoin

Creator:

Satoshi Nakamoto

Website:

bitcoin.org

Rating: 4.5/5

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Today, everyone talks about how to buy Bitcoin. A recent study conducted in the UK by Crypto Radar has demonstrated that 5.3 of the UK citizens already are in possession of Bitcoin. And 6.8% of the interviewees are planning to buy it as soon as they can. It is worth knowing that more than 2,500 people participated in the survey.

Beginner traders may have some good questions in mind:

  • How to buy Bitcoin in the UK?
  • What are the services and platforms that I need to know of?
  • What is the best place to buy Bitcoin in the UK?
  • Is it difficult?

For everything you need to know about Bitcoin trading in the UK - history, regulations, prices, and revenues - take a look at our guide. It will enable you to find answers to all your questions and help you find the best place to buy Bitcoin in the UK.

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What Is Bitcoin (BTC) and Why Should You Buy It?

Bitcoin has become a legendary cryptocurrency that exceeded most of the economists’ expectations and went beyond most forecasts. Its history has witnessed an unprecedented increase in volatility since first presented by its creator Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009. The initial price of Bitcoin in the year of its unfamous launch was as little as 0 USD. It hit a 1 USD mark at the beginning of February 2011. At that time, no one in analytics expected Bitcoin to be such a huge success.

The next rise in price came in 2013 when the price of one digital coin became 220 USD. It was followed by a consequential decrease to 70 USD later the same year but has made Bitcoin a hot topic widely discussed by investors.

The swift deceleration in price was a defining characteristic of Bitcoin in its early times. In December 2013, the price again rose to 1156 USD to see a drastic fall only three days later. In 2015, the average price would be around 315 USD at best.

To have a better idea of how rapid the changes were, take a look at the year 2017. In February 2017, the price was 1189 USD per coin, falling down to 1048 USD by March and rising again to 13,062 in December.

In 2017 governments, bankers, investors, and developers began talking about the opportunities of cryptocurrencies. The price remained quite stable, and there were no major resurgences.

Interestingly enough, its next price burst happened in the year 2020. Despite the fact that the global pandemic has affected pretty much all the large economies and FOREX market, Bitcoin seemed to only gain from the crisis. 28768 USD was the price of Bitcoin in December 2020.

Today, the price of 1 Bitcoin is 55,981.50 USD (as of 27 March 2021, 5:20 PM UTC). The recent increase in price can be partially attributed to Elon Musk and Tesla company, which invested 1.5 billion USD in cryptocurrency this year. It is easy to calculate what could be one’s investment if acquired right after the BTC was launched, it’s an increase of more than fifty thousand times.

Moreover, the forecasts for the future denominations of this crypto coin are incredibly reassuring. According to investment expert Jeremy Liew, Bitcoin could easily be sold at a price of 500,000 USD in 2030. Bitcoin is a valuable investment opportunity that should be pursued by those who look to receive high profits on their investment portfolios.

How to Buy Bitcoin in the UK: Step-by-Step Guide

For beginners, buying Bitcoin can be complicated. This is why we prepared an easy-to-follow step by step guide to buying BTC in the UK:
  • Choose a cryptocurrency exchange and register your account. Nowadays, Bitcoin can be purchased pretty much on all the major cryptocurrency exchanges. Examples of popular Bitcoin platforms in the UK are BC Bitcoin, Coindirect, Binance, etc.
  • Activate your account. You can do so by offering the following information: email address, phone number, name and last name, ID number, and your bank information.
  • Make a deposit using the payment method of your choice.
  • Select your choices of cryptocurrency and the local currency. For example, GBP/BTC.
  • Choose the number of coins that you are willing to purchase.
  • Confirm the details and finalize the purchase.

Where to Buy Bitcoin in the UK

There are plenty of exchanges where you can buy Bitcoin. We have made a selection and reviewed the most popular places to buy Bitcoin in the UK.

eToro

Payment methods: Visa, Mastercard, Diners Club International, PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, Union Pay, WebMoney, Yandex.

Supported currencies: USD

Supported crypto: 14 crypto options: BTC, ETH, BCH, XLM, DASH, LTC, ETC, ADA, and more

Limits:

  • Minimum transfer amount for BTC is 0,008
  • Maximum transfer amount for BTC is 2
  • Minimum deposit 50 USD
  • Maximum deposit 50 USD

Fees:

  • 0.75% for BTC
  • Deposit fees: None
  • Withdrawal fees: 5 USD
eToro fees

Pros

Cons
  • Regulated by the FCA and CySec
  • High privacy policy, no data will be shared without a written permission
  • Competitive fees and 0% commission on socks
  • Basic interface
  • Only USD fiat currency

How to buy Bitcoin in the UK with this exchange:

  • Visit the www.eToro.com webpage and click “Join Now”.
  • Fill in your personal information and attach a photo of your passport.
  • Make a deposit.
  • Choose BTC in the cryptocurrency section, indicate the number of BTC, approve the fees, and press buy. 

Libertex

Payment methods: Visa, Mastercard, Sofort, iDEAL, GiroPay, Skrill, Trustly, MB, Przelewy24, Neosurf, Rapid, TeleinGreso, Neteller.

Supported currencies: GBP, EUR, USD, and more than 90 currency pairs are supported

Limits:

  • Minimum withdrawal fee is 10 GBP
  • Minimum deposit amount is 10 GBP

Fees:

  • Transaction fee at the beginning of the trade
  • Rollover fee at the end of the day as an interest
  • High commission
Libertex fees

Pros

Cons
  • No spreads
  • Leverage of 1:600 for loyal users
  • Authorized and regulated company
  • High Commission
  • No ECN/STP model

Here are the instructions to buy Bitcoin in the UK with Libertex:

  • Register an account;
  • Make a deposit;
  • Choose Bitcoin from a list of instruments;
  • Set up the amount of BTC you’re willing to buy. Set up the multiplier factor. Press buy.

CoinJar

Payment methods: Blueshyft, BPAY, Cryptocurrency, PayID, NPP

Supported currencies: AUD, GBP

Supported cryptocurrencies: BTC, ETH, LTC, XRP, USDC, DAI, BAT, ZRX, XLM, COMP, LINK, MKR, OMG, YFI, UNI

Fees:
  • Trading Fee: Maker: 0.0-0.15%
  • Taker: 0.1-0.25%
  • Deposit Fee: No fee for BPAY and NPP, 1.5% for Blusehyft
  • Withdrawal fee: Free of charge

Limits:

CoinJar fees

Pros

Cons
  • Includes a wide range of crypto options such as BTC, ETH, XRP, LTC, ZRX, BAT, DAI, USDC
  • Quick deposits and an option to depose in cash
  • No fee on withdrawals
  • No credit or debit cards deposits such
  • High trading fees
  • No regulation status

Below is a step-by-step on how to buy Bitcoin in the UK using CoinJar:

  • Register and verify your account.
  • Create your first deposit via one of the supported systems.
  • Select Bitcoin in the list of currencies, you can also select LocalBitcoins.
  • Make a conversion.
  • Press “convert now”.

Bitpanda

Supported currencies: EUR, GBP, CHF, USD

Supported cryptocurrencies: BTC, LTC, ETH, DASH, XRP, BCH, KMD, MIOTA, EOS, PAN, and more.

Payment methods: credit card (Visa, Mastercard), cryptocurrency, cash, Neteller, bank transfer (SEPA), SOFORT

Fees:

  • The highest possible maker fee is 0.1%, and the maximum taker fee is 0.15%.
  • The trading fee does not exceed 0.1% or 0.15%.

There is a 24-hour limit for online payments such as NETELLER, Skrill, Papara, and iDEAL - 10,000 GBP. The credit card limit is 2,500 GBP, and the bank transfer limit is 500,000 GBP.

Bitpanda fees

Pros

Cons
  • Instant transactions
  • Easy to use platform, especially for beginners
  • Opportunity to depose in cash
  • Fees are not indicated openly and clearly, only “the maximum”
  • Single signature

How to buy Bitcoin in the UK on this exchange if you don’t have an account:

  • Create a Bitpanda account and verify your email address;
  • Verify your identity;
  • Deposit funds;
  • Choose BTC in your wallet;
  • Press buy now.

Coinbase

Supported currencies: USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, MXN, HRK, CZK, DKK, and more

Supported crypto: BTC, ATOM, BAT, BCH, XRP, DAI, DASH, EOS, ETH, ETC, and even the infamous Dogecoin

Payment methods: credit card, debit card, bank transfer, wire transfer

Fees vary per location:

  • Cryptocurrency conversions: 2.00%
  • Credit/debit card: 3.99%
  • Bank Transfers (SEPA): None

Limits:

Limits can be verified in the Account limits section in Settings. Purchase and deposit limits vary on the region and payment method.

Coinbase fees

Pros

Cons
  • Good reputation and a wide variety of positive reviews
  • Great quality customer service
  • More than 25 cryptocurrencies available
  • High limits to purchases
  • Pricey to maintain

The process of buying BTC through Coinbase is done in the following way:

  • Create and verify your Coinbase account;
  • Choose Buy or Sell option;
  • In the “Buy” field, choose BTC;
  • Enter the amount in crypto or GBP;
  • Choose your payment method;
  • Preview;
  • Buy.

Coinbase Pro

Supported currencies: USD, EUR, GBP

Supported crypto: BTC, ETH, XRP, BCH, EOS, LTC, XLM, DASH, ETC, ZEC, and more. A total of 47 crypto options.

Payment methods: bank transfer, cryptocurrency, debit card, PayPal, wire transfer

Fees:

  • Trading Fee: Maker: 0-0.50%. Taker: 0.04-0.50%.
  • Deposit Fees: No fee for cryptocurrency, ACH, 0.15 GBP for SEPA: 10 GBP for wire transfer

Withdrawal fees: No fee for cryptocurrency and ACH, 0.15 GBP for SEPA, 25 GBP for wire transfer, 1 GBP for Swift withdrawal

The limit is 50,000 GBP in 24 hours.

Coinbase Pro fees

Pros

Cons
  • Advanced functions and design for professional traders
  • Low fees
  • Regulated
  • Largest selection of cryptocurrencies
  • Complicated to understand for beginners
  • Only three fiat currencies

If you want to become create an account through Coinbase Pros and buy Bitcoin in the UK, do the following:

  • Sign up;
  • Select “Buy” option and go for BTC;
  • Enter the amount;
  • Preview Buy;
  • Confirm;
  • Click buy to finalize the transaction.

Coinmama

Supported currencies: USD, EUR, AUD, CAD, GBP, JPY

Supported crypto: BTC, ETH, ETC, BCH, LTC, ADA, QTUM, XRP, XTZ, EOS

Payment methods: Bank transfer, credit card, debit card, SWIFT, SEPA

The limits are based on “verification levels”.
  • Level 1: 10,000 GBP
  • Level 2: 50,000 GBP
  • Level 3: No limit

Fees:

  • Commission fee of up to 3.90%
  • Credit/debit/prepaid/virtual cards: On transactions with a locked crypto rate and instant delivery, there is an additional 5.00% express fee.
  • Transaction fee: 5.5%
  • Trading fee: 2.9-3.9%
  • Withdrawal fees: no fee
  • Sell fee: 0.9-1.9%.
Coinmama fees

Pros

Cons
  • You can buy a fraction of crypto coin, for example, as little as 0.1 of BTC
  • Easy to sell BTC
  • Privacy
  • Limited deposit methods, no PayPal, American Express, or other payment systems
  • Unclear fees and limits depending on your account status

How to buy Bitcoin in the UK through this exchange:

  • Create and verify your account;
  • Create a digital peer-to-peer wallet and verify your wallet;
  • Select the amount of BTC, note that you can also buy a fraction of it;
  • Confirm your purchase and fees;
  • Select buy.

CEX.io

Supported deposit currencies: USD, EUR, GBP, RUB

Supported crypto: BTC, USDT, BCH, LTC, DASH, ETH, XRP, ATOM, ADA, TRX, and more. Around 22 in total.

Payment methods: bank transfer, credit card, cryptocurrency, SWIFT, SEPA, Faster Payments (FPS)

Fees:

  • Trading fee: Maker fee of 0-0.16%, taker fee of 0.10-0.25%
  • Deposit Fees: 2.99% for credit cards, 3.99% for Skrill, no fee for ACH and Faster Payments
  • Withdrawal Fees: Fees vary for credit cards, 0.3% + 25.00 GBP for bank transfer, no fee for ACH and Faster Payments, 1% for Skrill
CEX.io fees

Limits:

  • Daily deposit: 3,000 GBP
  • Daily withdrawal: 10,000 GBP

Pros

Cons
  • Good trading fees and no commission
  • Opportunity to deposit by card
  • Equally good for beginners and professionals
  • High deposit fees

If you’re planning to buy Bitcoin in the UK through CEX.io, here is what you should do:

  • Create your account and confirm your email;
  • Verify your identity;
  • Make a deposit using your preferred payment method;
  • Choose a market;
  • Indicate the number of BTC you’d like to buy;
  • Press “buy”.

Paybis

Supported deposit currencies: EUR, GBP, USD, AUD, CAD, PHP, SGD, CHF, HKD, JPY, and many more

Supported crypto: BTC, ETH, LTC, XRP, BCH, XLM, BNB, NEO, TRX

Payment methods: AdvCash, credit card, debit card, Neteller, Payeer

Fees:
  • For the first credit/debit card transaction: no fee
  • For the second transaction and more: fee of 2.49%
  • The minimum payment processing fee is 4.5%
  • Network fee: varies

Limits:

  • Limits for buying Bitcoin using Visa/MasterCard or other credit or debit cards: 20,000 GBP per week or 50,000 GBP per month
  • For bank transfers, the limit is up to 200,000 GBP of purchases per week

Pros

Cons
  • Easy to use and purchase
  • Clearly defined fees
  • Good customer service
  • Easy to use for beginners but too simple for professionals
  • There is a need to create a third-party wallet to store your crypto

Interested to learn how to buy Bitcoin in the UK, Paybis facilitates the process in the following way:

  • Create and verify your account.
  • Verify your identity using a valid ID.
  • Go to “My transactions”. Start a transaction by entering your payment method and the amount of BTC you’d like to buy.
  • Provide your cryptocurrency wallet address and verify your choice.
  • Review and complete your purchase.

BitBargain

Payment methods: cards credit or debit, bank transfer, Pingit/PYC accounts, Ukash vouchers

Supported deposit currencies: GBP

There are no fees for buying coins. The seller pays a fee after the purchase is complete but not the buyer.

Limits on BitBargain vary and are established for each user independently.

Pros

Cons
  • No commission
  • No major fees
  • High privacy settings, some anonymous functions
  • Opportunities for escrow
  • High dependency on the seller
  • Medium to low speed
  • Low volume

Here are the instructions to buy Bitcoin in the UK on this exchange:

  • Click “buy BTC” and find an online seller.
  • Request the trade by indicating the amount of BTC and the payment method.
  • Wait for the response for around 3 minutes.
  • Make the payment and press “pay”.
  • Wait for the seller to confirm the funds receipt.
  • Find your BTC in the BitBargain wallet.

Where to Store Bitcoin?

Let’s say you’ve found the cheapest way to buy Bitcoin in the UK. Now what?

Some trading and exchange platforms do not have an integrated crypto-friendly wallet to cheaply store your newly acquired Bitcoins. To solve this problem, take a look at these three popular wallets that support Bitcoin.

Trezor Model T

Trezor Model T is the newest model of a BTC-supported wallet that offers a high degree of security to its users by taking the wallet offline.
Trezor Model T wallet

The major benefits:

  • High privacy settings
  • Open-source and peer-peer
  • Cost-effective
  • With this wallet, no third party can affect your funds, you get the highest protection against hackers, viruses, and keyloggers.
  • The user is the only person to get the keys to the wallet due to the offline nature of the device. Strict authentication process.

Ledger

Ledger is another option for an offline Bitcoin wallet that is also used offline.

Ledger wallet

The benefits of Ledger are:

  • Supports over 1,500 digital coins and gives you more options than just Bitcoin;
  • Supports various currencies;
  • Has Bluetooth support and plugin functions.

Robinhood

Robinhood is an example of an online platform where it is possible to store crypto.

Robinhood wallet

The benefits of it are:

  • It is free of charge;
  • No commission for buying BTC;
  • Easy to use.

Final Thoughts

Bitcoin turned out to be one of the most profitable investments of the decade, attracting beginners and professionals and changing lives. Nowadays, you can buy Bitcoin in the UK with minimal effort and very quickly.

There are many options of exchange platforms that one can use to buy BTC, so take notice of our list to choose wisely. It’s hard to name the best place to buy Bitcoin in the UK, but we certainly narrowed down all the possibilities as much as possible.

Cryptocurrency Regulations in the UK

Users in the UK can legally buy and sell cryptocurrencies. From 2021 though, trading of crypto derivatives is illegal. In addition, any exchanges that want to operate in the UK must be registered with the Financial Conduct Authority. Those exchanges that are UK-based also must comply with the following regulations: KYC (Know-Your-Customer), AML (Anti-Money Laundering), and CFT (Combatting the Financing of Terrorism).

Bitcoin ATMs are legal in the UK if they have a government-issued license from the FCA. Do not forget to double-check the BTC-to-GBP exchange rate and consent policy.

FAQ

What Is the Best Exchange to Buy BTC?

There are currently many exchanges and blockchains where you can buy BTC. The most convenient exchanges for beginners are Bitpanda, CEX.io, Libertex. The best exchanges for professional traders are Coinbase Pro and eToro.

Where Can I Buy Bitcoin (BTC)?

You can buy Bitcoin on Bitcoin exchange platforms. If you don’t know where to buy Bitcoin in the UK specifically, the best examples are eToro, Libertex, CoinJar, Bitpanda, and Coinbase.

Is BTC Worth Buying in 2021?

Bitcoin can be considered the best investment of the decade. Despite that the price of BTC this year is quite high, the predictions for its growth are even higher. Some BTC experts, such as Jeremy Liew, predict that Bitcoin will be sold at a price of 500,000 USD in 2030.

Is Bitcoin a Good Investment?

Bitcoin is a great investment and reinvestment idea that has been showing amazing returns this year. The brokers’ predictions for its price growth are high up to the year 2030.

jack evans
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Jack Evans

I became a crypto asset owner in 2014, when the industry was in its infancy. Before that, I was working in the classic US and European stock markets. Since then, I have gained extensive experience in both cryptocurrency investing and day trading. I am happy to share with readers my experience with crypto exchanges, DeFi and NFT instruments.

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