Bitbuy Review November 2024 – Canada’s Best Cryptocurrency Broker

Bitbuy Review Summary

Bitbuy is one of the most popular cryptocurrency trading platforms here in Canada, and for good reason.

The platform’s simplicity with its Express Trade feature for beginners and its more advanced option Bitbuy Pro Trade makes Bitbuy appealing to any cryptocurrency investors of all levels. Even large volume traders and institutional investors will appreciate its Bitbuy Private Wealth marketplace.

Bitbuy’s fees are some of the best around, and it has a plethora of information available in its FAQ, so you can navigate the platform with ease. With all major cryptocurrencies available on Bitbuy, it truly is a one-stop shop for all Canadian residents looking to take advantage of the crypto rush.Overall Rating: 4.5/5 stars

FEES

Security

Customer Service

Platform

Crypto Types

Account setup

Cryptocurrency trading is taking the world by storm, and we don’t expect it to slow down anytime soon. It’s considered by many new investors a strong alternative to buying stocks.

As such, many Canadians are looking for an easy way to trade cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin and more. For some, they purchase ETFs in their RRSP or TFSA.

There’s plenty of ETFs that track the prices of these cryptocurrencies, however many Canadians have the mentality that if you don’t hold the real thing, you really don’t hold it at all.

This is why we decided to publish this in depth Bitbuy review, so you can decide if the platform is worth getting started with cryptocurrency. In our opinion, this is one of the best crypto trading platforms in the country.

Much like all of our reviews here on Stocktrades, we’re going to tackle this Bitbuy review on multiple fronts, speaking on deposit options, security, what cryptocurrencies can be traded, fees and customer service.

Let’s get started.

Bitbuy review – What exactly is Bitbuy?

Bitbuy is one of the most popular cryptocurrency trading platforms here in Canada.

The company is headquartered in Toronto and actually first started out as InstaBT in 2013, but transitioned to Bitbuy in 2016.

Its founder, Adam Goldman, initially wanted to provide Canadians with a safe platform to trade Bitcoin, but soon realized that other cryptocurrencies were going to take over the world of Blockchain. This is when Bitbuy is born, in 2016. Since then, Bitbuy has been ranked one of the fastest growing start-up in Canada.

Bitbuy is now approved and regulated by the OSC, and the company has been acquired by WonderFi (a Kevin O’Leary backed company). WonderFi is also acquiring Coinberry, setting Bitbuy’s Web3/FinTech group as a leader in Canada and employing the most Web3 professionals in the country.

It’s quite impressive to watch this company grow, and is one of the number one crypto trading platforms we recommend to Stocktrades Premium members.

Bitbuy fee review – how much will you pay to trade cryptocurrencies?

Unlike some other cryptocurrency platforms, I found Bitbuy to be extremely transparent when it comes to their fees.

And, another added bonus is the fees are really simple. Within a couple seconds of hitting their fee page, I knew what I was going to pay to trade cryptocurrency. It’s also explicitly mentioned at the time of the trade, no hidden fees there, you’ll know exactly what you pay.

The company is adamant in the fact that it hides nothing, unlike some other platforms that hide fees inside their spreads, and it also states it has some of the best liquidity in the country.

Bitbuy deposit and withdrawal fees

Whether you’ve just signed up for a Bitbuy account or you’re looking to withdraw some money from Bitbuy, there are fees and as you can see in the image below, minimum withdrawal amounts.

* CAD deposit and withdrawal fees

And Keep in mind that although this may be frustrating, this is practically par for the course. Most cryptocurrency platforms have fees to deposit, trade and/or withdraw money.

If you’re looking to deposit in Canadian dollars, here is the low down of what you’ll pay, and the processing times:

If you’re looking to withdraw in Canada, you’ll pay the following withdrawal fees:

Bitbuy trading fees

If you’re looking to express trade cryptocurrencies on Bitbuy, the fees are quite simple. You’ll pay 0.20% to buy and sell.

So, if you purchase $10,000 worth of Bitcoin, you’ll pay $20 to purchase. If you decide to sell that Bitcoin, and it is now worth $20,000, you will pay $40 to sell. The total for your transactions will have cost you $60. 

The maker fees are slightly lower (0.1%) when you use the Pro Trade feature, which is more advanced and offer more trading options. Also note that, for Bitcoin only, Bitbuy offers a 1:1 insurance at no extra cost to you ! More on that later.

Bitbuy Private Wealth

If you’re looking to move large amounts of cryptocurrency, Bitbuy has you covered with Bitbuy Private Wealth trading.

When you’re buying up large amounts of cryptocurrency, you can scoop up a lot of the open orders and end up paying a much higher price than the current “market” price.

 Bitbuy knows this, and with Bitbuy Private Wealth you can avoid slippage and get truly live quotes on a large amount of crypto’s for a fixed price.

In order to qualify for Bitbuy Private Wealth trading, you must create an account and fund it with over $50,000 in cash, or the Bitcoin or Ethereum equivalent.

Bitbuy’s Private Wealth desk has made over half a billion dollars in trades, promises real time rates set by global markets and gives you same day outbound wire transfers to any bank in Canada.

If you’re a large volume crypto trader, you’ll find Bitbuy Private Wealth trading useful.

What types of cryptocurrencies can you trade on Bitbuy?

Bitbuy has numerous cryptocurrencies for trade on its platform, including the following:

• Bitcoin (BTC)
• Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
• Ethereum (ETH)
• Litecoin (LTC)
• Stellar Lumens (XLM)
• EOS (EOS)
• Aave (AAVE)
• Chainlink (LINK)
• Dogecoin (DOGE)
• Polkadot (DOT)
• Cardano (ADA)
• SushiSwap (SUSHI)
• UNICORN (UNI)
• Polygon (MATIC)
• Solana (SOL)
• Decentraland (MANA)
• USD Coin (USDC)
• APEcoin (APE)
• Terra (LUNA)
• Maker (MKR)
• Curve (CRV)
• Basic Attention Token (BAT)
• Compound (COMP)
• Fantom (FTM)
• Axie Infinity (AXS)

Review of Bitbuy’s security measures

Security is paramount when we are investing, more so with cryptocurrencies. In fact, crypto fraud cost people more than $1.2 billion in 2019 alone.

Most discount stock brokerages are affiliated with IIROC and under the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.

However, cryptocurrency brokerages are different, and many investors are worried that their money may be at risk. Fortunately, Bitbuy’s security is some of the best in the country.

The most important security feature Bitbuy has? Well, it is the only Canadian exchange to offer 1:1 BTC insurance.

The company partnered with Bitcoin security firm BitGo, which made Bitbuy the world’s first platform to keep the full value of its Bitcoin holdings insured. If you’re looking for more details on this partnership and what exactly is insured, Bitbuy has a great explanation and FAQ here.

The company also goes through routine Proof-of-Reserve audits, which are reports that look at all aspects of the business including cold storage, security practices and team background checks to ensure Bitbuy is operating as transparently and compliant as possible.

So, Bitbuy will insure your Bitcoin and routinely proves that it has the reserves, but how exactly do they make sure your account is secure?

Let’s take a look.

2 factor authentication (2FA), which should without question be used on almost anything you sign up for these days, is a mandatory requirement at Bitbuy.

The company also allows you to store your bitcoin holdings in an offline vault, protected by value matched insurance. The company routinely conducts financial audits using trusted third parties, and suspicious activities are tracked on a weekly and daily basis.

Bitbuy is also a regulated Money Service Business in Canada under FINTRAC.

The company’s codebase is privately maintained, meaning your intellectual property is safe from external eyes.

And finally, Bitbuy uses a “KYC” model, which is short for Know Your Customer. This verification process, primarily done through the exchange of documents proving your identity, is one of the main ways the company prevents things like crypto related fraud.

Overall, in terms of security features, I don’t think there is a better platform in Canada than Bitbuy, and the company is extremely transparent about it.

Bitbuy customer support review

With the volatility of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, price fluctuations can be rapid. So, if you need to get a hold of customer service, you need to do it fast. Fortunately, Bitbuy offers some of the best customer service in the industry.

Bitbuy has an extremely in-depth FAQ support center, to the point where you’ll rarely need to contact customer service anyways.

But if you need to, they also have a very simple contact form you can fill out with your inquiry and they’ll get back to you.

What was exceptional in my eyes, is the fact the company is very active on social media. In fact, if you have a social media account, I’ve found this is a very strong way to get a hold of them with general inquiries as well.

Overall, what I would like to see is a live chat function added on to the site like most major discount stock brokerages have. The delivery of information in this day and age is becoming quicker and quicker, and most new customers will expect a feature like this.

However, it’s far from a deal breaker, as the company is extremely quick to reply to most inquiries anyways.

Bitbuy platform review

With Bitbuy’s Express Trade feature, beginners who simply want exposure to cryptocurrency in seconds can do so. If that’s you, with Express Trade, all you have to do is enter the amount of CAD you want to invest in a certain cryptocurrency and click “Buy”. In a few seconds only, you’ll see your newly acquired crypto on your account.

However, if you’re looking for more trading options, the company has come out with Bitbuy Pro Trade, which is a platform made available for more advanced users. The best part about it, you don’t need an account to see what it looks like. In fact, simply head here to see a demo.

The platform, especially if you’re new, will seem quite advanced. However, if you click the 3 dots in the upper right corner to get to the Pro Trade menu, it has an excellent tutorial that is going to walk you through everything you need to start making more advanced trading decisions.

Bitbuy mobile platform review

What I really like about Bitbuy is the fact that it has a mobile platform available on both Android and IOS.

I found the app extremely easy to use, and the interface allowed you to deposit, withdraw or purchase cryptocurrency all with a few clicks.

With the volatility of cryptocurrencies these days, viewing price fluctuations and your current positions on the go is critical. Bitbuy provides that.

Key developments to the Bitbuy platform

I hate a platform that stays stale. My reasoning?

Well, no platform is perfect. Bitbuy isn’t, nor is any other cryptocurrency trading platform.

However, what I love about Bitbuy is it is constantly listening to its customers’ feeback and making changes to the platform that are of benefit to the end user. Let’s go over a few that they’ve made recently.

• They’ve made the sign-up and onboarding process entirely automated, resulting in you trading crypto faster.
• They’ve created a new username feature, resulting in a more streamlined login process.
• They’ve added more 2FA options, so you can secure your account even more.
• They’ve improved Canadian funding options with instant eTransfers.
• They’ve lowered transaction fees.
• They’ve created new “Gold Account” status, allowing for faster and higher wire deposits and withdrawals.

Bitbuy sign-up process

So, if you’ve read this Bitbuy review and finally decide you want to open up an account and get started trading cryptocurrencies, fortunately the process is extremely easy.

The sign-up process is extremely easy. The initial sign up requires only a few things from you, like a username, a password, and a North American phone number (+1). Yes, Bitbuy is to this day only available to Canadian residents.

Side note: Make sure you enter your correct phone number on the first form. This is because the next step would be to confirm an SMS code that Bitbuy will send to your phone.

From there, you’ll enter in basic personal information like your occupation, date of birth, address. This is requested to verify your identity and prevent identity fraud.

This is all pretty basic. However, if you were not automatically verified, as it can happen for those who recently relocated to Canada or changed addresses and banks, you’ll be required to manually upload verification documents such as your ID, a selfie and a financial statement.

Give Bitbuy some time to review your information, and you’ll be trading cryptocurrency in no time!

Overall, Bitbuy is the best crypto trading platform in Canada

There isn’t much more to say about Bitbuy than I’ve stated in this review. In my eyes, it’s the best platform in the country to trade Cryptocurrency.

Sure, the platform has flaws, much like any other platform. I’d like to see them introduce a live chat, as most brokerages and online platforms I operate with now have one. But, this isn’t a deal breaker because as I mentioned, the platforms FAQ is so in-depth I hardly think you’ll need to contact them.

If you’re serious about trading cryptocurrency, you’ll want to have a Bitbuy account to do so.