Advice On How to Get Bitcoin if your Bank Blocks Your Crypto Purchases
Good morning Bigga'z!
A topic of interest here for everyone!
Please bare in mind that this is ADVICE ONLY and that we strongly recommend that you do your own research before making any decisions and going ahead with anything.
We have seen a few of you Bigga'z recently posting comments and topics relating to your Crypto purchases being banned by your banks and we have also been approached by some of our own customers in relation to the same issue. It’s a funny old world, even when you own something, you never seem to truly own it! Yes, we're all grown ups here so how and what we spend our money on is our choice, surely? Yet alot of banks would like to take that choice and that freedom right out of our hands! Very annoying indeed. So - we have been doing some research and have tried to put together a helpful topic offering up some advice and pointers that we hope might help some of you Bigga'z out.
If the general pointers below cant or dont help then we hope that the topic atleast creates enough of a discussion amongst all you Bigga'z out there that other solutions are provided off of the back of other users experiences. So any additional suggestions or walkthroughs please put them in the comments below this topic. It might just help a fellow Bigga out.
Many banks across the world are seemingly anti-crypto and so they block crypto purchases and stop you spending your very own hard earned on Bitcoin and other "negatively" viewed digital currency.
In some instances they are genuinely (or atleast apparently) trying to protect you BUT one cant help but think they are looking after themselves that little bit more.
Here are some steps that you might be able to consider if your bank has blocked your crypto purchases - including tips on how to buy crypto in other ways.
1. Dont Use Your Overdraft
This might sound obvious but a lot of people do forget that their overdraft is an allowance of money that does not belong to them as the account holder but is instead loaned by the bank therefore giving the bank much more say as to what you can and cannot spend that ‘loaned’ money on. So make sure you have enough money in your account to fund the transaction.
2. Potential Account Security Feature?
Often when banks put a block on a purchase, it is an automatic security feature designed to protect you. A lot of bank accounts have implemented features of this nature only very recently with most account holders not even being aware the feature has been actioned. Often it is part of a new set of terms and conditions that you will have had to click in agreement to at some point. Most banks tend to inform you via email or text but very often it is held within the hundreds of pages of tiny text that you are urged to read as part of your banking agreement!
Think about it, if you normally make regular, small purchases at the local supermarket and then suddenly a large online transaction for something such as Crypto (which banks are already very wary of) hits your account out of the blue - it might look a little suspicious, no matter your intentions.
Dare I say it but… Try contacting your bank or checking your settings online. believe it or not it is actually often very possible to get the bank’s crypto block lifted. Once lifted, it’s a simple process of repeating the transaction. At the end of the day if you have cleared funds, those funds are yours! If they cant lift the ban ask if they can suggest a way around it and if they still cant help, maybe its time to start looking at an alternative bank to use solely for the purpose of your crypto ventures.
3. Simply buy at a Bitcoin ATM (albeit - few and far between and frustratingly so)
This is a relatively new thing in the UK and as such most people aren’t even aware that these strange things do indeed exist in our country! There is even a website called coin atm radar that you can use to locate your nearest Crypto ATM. A Bitcoin or crypto ATM is exactly as the name suggests and is a kiosk that you can purchase Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. There is however a catch or more, a downside, in that for the convenience - they often charge a large premium for doing so, but they let you buy cryptocurrencies more often than not with little to no questions asked.
Occasionally a crypto ATM will require you to create an account with an exchange and complete the verification stages that you would have to with any exchange. That said though there are plenty of ATMs that do not require you to do this. Bare in mind - this is still a relatively new thing so we're yet to see them in abundance.
4. Use a Cryptocurrency Broker
Cryptocurrency brokers are a brilliant way to buy cryptocurrencies if the bank restricts your purchases.
Peer to peer (p2p) cryptocurrency sites are very popular. This sort of service connects you to other individuals who wish to sell Bitcoin by way of a direct transfer between you and that person rather than using established platforms or crypto businesses.
There are many advantages to this method – Mainly that your payment shouldn’t be blocked for any reason as you are buying from an individual and not a crypto platform, in fact you can buy crypto this way using many other means of payment if you find the right p2p provider. In fact most transactions using this method use a randomly generated code, so the bank will never see any cryptocurrency-related words on your statements.
If your buying a larger sum of crypto and your bank still won’t play ball, then a method of purchase known as otc trading this simply stands for Over The Counter Trading is the next logical step. These trade counters allow for huge trades of cryptocurrency, more often than not, with contracts and escrow accounts. There aren’t many banks around the world that will reject payments to legal firms! This is a method that requires some research beforehand but there are plenty of good ones floating around in this country!
5. The most obvious of all - Use a Crypto-Friendly Bank
If you trade a lot in cryptocurrencies or you have recently found that your bank has blocked your crypto purchases and have tried, tested and still have not succeeded by using the other known methods to get around it then it may be time or you may wish to consider a crypto-friendly bank account. This is a new revolution in banking and new businesses are literally popping up like meerkats all over the place, looking to oust these dreaded financial institutions that are plaguing our land. ; )
There are a number of companies offering bank accounts with a twist of lime! These accounts are designed specifically with crypto in mind and are actually designed around most standard crypto wallets, thus enabling the buying and selling of Bitcoin (as well as some other cryptocurrencies) straight from your account. Unfortunately we cant recommend any as LB doesn’t seem to allow it, but with a bit of research you’ll find plenty!
Obviously we wouldn’t advise a complete change in bank accounts just to counter the problem of buying crypto but it definitely doesn’t hurt to have a second, or third, or fourth account specifically for your crypto needs!
There are a number of known financial brands who allow you to use them to purchase crypto and a number of methods of purchasing crypto. Its all about doing your research and not jumping in feet first at the first one you come across! Just make sure you have read any terms and conditions before proceeding with anything like this. You don’t want to be left red faced just because you rushed into something without reading the fine print.
There is also another wave of banking facilities surfacing which are predominantly app based or online and come highly recommended (However we have no experience having used these facilities yet so cannot vouch for them ourselves). These are known as ‘challenger’ banks. Again, unfortunately we cannot name drop or offer suggestions but you will be able to find some great ones with a little bit of light research.
These are predominantly crypto-friendly, internet first banks and tend to support popular cryptocurrencies within their apps.
We do hope the above proves useful to some of you and if not, we hope it develops some heathy and informative conversation in the chat feed below. Knowledge is power and we are all constantly learning and adapting. The best way to do so is to help each other and guide each other as much as possible – This is how progress is made and a positive environment is achieved! So please get involved in this feed if you have any additional helpful advice that you can add.
And please do remember that this is offered up as FRIENDLY ADVICE ONLY so please do your own research before committing to and going ahead with anything.
Right - time to roll a blunt - sorry for the book Bigga'z!
Oh and as always – Keep smoking the best and stay high!
Much Love –
NugNinjaz!
