If you are looking for lightning-fast transactions, with complete anonymity – look no further than the popular privacy coin Monero.
Just about any Joe Investor can buy Monero these days – however, it’s important to have a good broker of crypto exchange on your side for the smoothest experience possible.
Today, we talk about every aspect of how to buy Monero in the UK. This includes the best two cryptocurrency platforms to facilitate your purchase, the key advantages of this crypto asset, and how to get started and buy XMR coins today in under 5 minutes!
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How To Buy Monero – Choose a Broker
When searching for the best Monero broker, you need to be selective. There are hundreds of platforms on the internet – all promising a great service. It goes without saying that some will offer a better experience than others.
After many hours of research and much consideration, you will see below the top two crypto platforms to buy and sell Monero:
- OKEx – Overall Best Broker to Buy Monero in the UK
- Binance – Best Broker to Buy Monero UK via Debit/Credit Card
Some of the most important metrics to consider when you are looking to buy XMR coins are; regulatory standing, safety and storage, low fees, ease of use, and deposit options. The above trading platforms pass all these points with flying colours – so you can gain exposure to this market without worry about either being a disappointment in terms of customer service.
Correctly timing the markets is another matter. This is a high speculative marketplace, so you must learn to have realistic expectations. Please note that we review each crypto broker in full shortly.
How to Buy Monero in the UK – A Quick Guide For 2021
If you lack the time to read this guide in its entirety right now, you can follow the simple 4 step walkthrough below to get the ball rolling.
- Step 1: Open an Account with OKEx- First thing is first, sign up with a reputable crypto platform that lists Monero and ticks plenty of boxes. OKEx is a top-rated online broker that offers XMR coins and low commission fees.
- Step 2: Upload Your ID – As per KYC rules, the broker will need POI – for this you can send in a clear copy of your Government-issued ID. This can be your driving license or passport.
- Step 3: Deposit Funds – Once OKEx has verified your identity, you can add some funds to your account using a credit or debit card. The reason we must do this is that it is not possible to buy Monero directly, without first purchasing an alternative coin such as Bitcoin or Tether to exchange XMR coins for.
- Step 4: Buy Monero – At this stage, you should have a newly funded account. Now you can search for Monero and use your new BTC or USDT tokens to buy XMR coins on the crypto platform.
As you can see, it’s never been easier to buy Monero in the UK! Once you have confirmed everything and completed your purchase, you will see your new digital investment appear in your OKEx portfolio. For anyone who has never bought cryptocurrencies in any capacity – stick with us. Throughout this guide, we cover the fundamentals and offer a step-by-step run-through of how to get started today.
Where to Buy Monero in the UK
When you are looking to buy a privacy coin like Monero, one of the most challenging aspects is choosing the right crypto platform for the task. As we touched on, we look at a wide variety of factors when reviewing the best online brokers.
To save you a little online legwork, you will see the top two platforms to buy Monero in the UK today.
1. OKEx – Overall Best Broker to Buy Monero in the UK
This top-rated crypto exchange came out as the overall best broker to buy Monero in the UK for various reasons – which we discuss throughout this review. OKEx serves more than 20 million clients from over a hundred locations around the globe, which speaks volumes. In addition to XMR coins, you will find in excess of four hundred digital pairs to trade. This guide found other crypto assets to include Litecoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, EOS, TRON, OKB, and many more.
As we touched on earlier, when you have created an account with OKEx, it will require you to buy another digital currency such as Ethereum or Bitcoin.. That is, unless you already have some, in which case you may use your digital investment to fund your account and then swap said tokens for Monero. Alternatively, to buy USDT coins (Tether) using your fiat money, you can easily use the aforementioned credit and debit card, bank transfer Apple or Google Pay. This process is relatively simple.
Head over to your account and select deposit. Next, you can choose from a long list of different digital assets to fund your account with and exchange for Monero. Note that this is inclusive of so-called ‘stable coins’ – digital assets pegged to fiat currencies, such as the aforementioned USDT. Note that funding your account with credit or debit cards comes with with fees. However, this crypto platform won’t charge you a penny to fund your account using a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin. Furthermore, the withdrawal fee is a very competitive 0.0005 BTC. OKEx is based upon a market taker and maker pricing framework.
As such, the more active you are, the smaller these fees will become. To clarify, if you are entirely focused on how to buy Monero – you fall into the ‘market taker’ camp. Leverage up to 1:100 is available depending on various factors and the commission fee to trade at this platform is very competitive. This starts from 0.10% – OKEx charges this upon entering and exiting the market. If, like most of us, you like the option of checking your crypto portfolio and keeping an eye on the markets on the move, you will be happy with the free app on offer. This is available for iPhone and Android users and includes a plethora of useful features.
We found this one-stop investing platform to comprise customizable adjustable trading strategies, real-time push notifications on crypto-assets of interest, live price data on futures, options, and spot markets. Whether you are an experienced or newbie investor, you will find this platform easy to navigate. We also like the consideration of educational material that has gone into this spot and derivatives exchange. Here, you will find academic videos, beginners tutorials, articles on specific strategies and much more.
Pros
- Trusted crypto exchange with over 20 million users
- More than 400+ digital currency pairs
- Buy and sell cryptocurrencies with a debit/credit card or bank transfer
- Low commissions that start from 0.1%
- Fully-fledged mobile app on Android and iOS
- Great reputation and highly secure
Cons
- Debit/credit card fees could be more competitive
- Derivative products too complex for beginners
2. Binance – Best Broker to Buy Monero UK via Debit/Credit Card
Binance is no newbie on the crypto scene and is a name well known by both novice and experienced traders. This major exchange is one of the largest of its kind – based on daily trading volumes alone. This is the best broker to buy Monero in the UK via debit and credit cards, which is something that not all crypto brokers accept. Notably, you may also opt for a UK bank transfer to make a deposit. This platform lists over 500 alternative cryptocurrencies – this includes Binance Coin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Ethereum, Zcash, Ripple, TRON, Polkadot, and more.
Please note that if you decide to add funds to your account using a credit or debit card to buy Monero, you will pay a 1.8% fee. We found this to be competitive, considering the advantages of using this crypto exchange. Furthermore, thanks to Binance’s use of the Faster Payments network, you have the alternative option of using a UK bank transfer, which usually lands in your account within minutes. Best of all, this comes with no deposit fees. You will pay commissions though – which is a very competitive 0.10% per slide.
The same charge (0.10%) applies if you opt for a crypto deposit. With regards to commission fees, this exchange does reduce the amount you pay, the more active you are in your trading/investing endeavours. Another bonus of using Binance to buy Monero, is that the platform will not require you to purchase alternative digital assets and exchange these for XMR coins. Moreover, you will find crypto-crypto and fiat-crypto pairs to trade here with tight spreads. All in all this platform is user-friendly and we found buying and selling digital currencies a stress-free experience.
In terms of noteworthy features, we found that this crypto exchange will allow you to earn interest on your crypto investments. This can be achieved by signing up for the Binance savings account. For a lock-up timeframe of 90-days, you can take advantage of 7% APY on Bitcoin. In this instance, you are essentially giving permission for third-party borrowers to loan your idle assets – much like how savings accounts work in a traditional fiat bank setting. You may withdraw your funds whenever you see fit. The broker will incorporate the daily interest into the total figure.
Pros
- Facilitates billions of dollars in daily trading volume
- Supports hundreds of digital asset pairs
- Near-instant deposits via debit/credit cards and local bank transfers
- Trading commission starts at just 0.1% per slide
- Offers crypto savings accounts
- Ideal for both beginners and experienced traders alike
Cons
- Not all supported cryptocurrencies can be purchased with a debit/credit card
- No e-wallet deposits or withdrawals
How to Buy Monero in the UK – Detailed & Explained in Full
If you are inexperienced in buying and selling cryptocurrencies, you may not know how to get the ball rolling and sign up with a brokerage or exchange. With this in mind, we have included a detailed and beginner friendly walkthrough. This step by step guide will show you how you can sign up and buy Monero in a safe UK environment – within minutes.
Step 1: Open a Crypto Broker Account
For the purposes of this guide, we are using OKEx, the overall best broker to buy Monero in the UK according to our detailed reviews. The platform is easy to navigate for both newbies and seasoned crypto investors alike. Furthermore, fees are low, and signing up takes next to no time at all! Head over to the official website and elect to open a new account. It will require you to enter your full name, email address, and memorable password.
You will also need to enter your residential address, date of birth, and mobile number. Please note that should you decide to add funds to your account using a bank transfer or credit/debit card, you will need to verify your identity with some documentation.
UK citizens can use a passport or a driving license and this process rarely takes very long. You will receive confirmation of your account as soon as the OKEx team has substantiated your information.
Step 2: Add Funds to Your Account
Before you can buy Monero, you will need to add some funds to your new account. This platform accepts an impressive 60 fiat currencies and making a deposit is straightforward on the OKEx platform.
To recap, if you are keen to get started right away, you can opt to fund your account with a credit or debit card – for a small all in commission fee of 1.8%. If you are looking to buy a specific amount of Monero, you can buy that value of USDT (or Binance Coin for instance) as soon as your deposit shows in your account. This should set you up nicely to exchange it for your desired XMR coins in step 3.
Step 3: Buy Monero UK
When you have completed your purchase of USDT (or your chosen digital currency), you can exchange it for Monero. On the main page of your account, you can hit ‘Trade’ followed by ‘Basic Trading’. Now you can hit ‘BTC/USDT’, before typing ‘XMR’ into the search bar. When you have found what you are looking for you can click the asset and a new page will appear.
You can now buy Monero by clicking ‘Market’ and completing a buy order. Enter the amount you wish to exchange and the platform will swap your USDT (or other tokens) for XMR coins. Now that your purchase is complete, you can request a withdrawal into your chosen crypto wallet if you wish.
Buy Monero – Best Place to Buy Monero in the UK
Although we have already discussed the best exchanges to buy Monero, next we talk about all available options. Notably, as we said, no matter which route you take – look for regulation, low fees and other factors before committing to a platform.
Online Cryptocurrency Broker
When it comes to the least complicated way to buy Monero, it is likely via an online cryptocurrency broker. For instance, both OKEx and Binance are fully regulated and are, therefore, a secure option for buying digital assets online. Furthermore, the platforms are able to accept fiat deposits via credit and debit cards and bank transfers.
Additionally, regulated brokers will adhere to a certain duty of customer care. Most will keep your digital investments, or at least most of them, in cold storage This extra practice of securing your cryptocurrencies offers you further protection against the many cryptojackers in operation online.
Cryptocurrency Exchange
Traditional cryptocurrency exchanges have been in the news many times over the years, having fallen victim to online theft from hackers. These platforms are more often than not unregulated by any authority – and are therefore not answerable to anyone for how they conduct business.
As such, in contrast to the institutional-grade security procedures seen at the aforementioned best brokers to buy Monero – unregulated crypto exchanges are likely to leave your investment vulnerable. For this reason, you should stick with reputable and regulated providers to purchase digital currencies.
Ways to Buy Monero UK
There are plenty of different methods by which you can buy Monero. To give you some inspiration about what your preferred type might be – see the most commonly seen purchase options below.
Buy Monero With Debit Card
As we mentioned in our earlier reviews of the best two brokers to buy Monero – some platforms accept debit card payments. As the providers we reviewed are regulated, you will be required to validate your identity with the aforementioned documentation when using this method.
The easiest way to prove who you are is to upload a clear copy of your valid passport or driving license. Once this has been confirmed, you will be able to fund your account with your usual card details and then exchange your fiat cash for USDT (or digtial tokens) to exchange for XMR coins. This payment method sometimes comes with fees, so always check the fee table.
Buy Monero With Credit Card
As an alternative to investing using your debit card, you may prefer a credit card to buy Monero? Be aware that some card providers charge their own fees for crypto transactions – it will display this as a ‘cash advance fee’.
The reason they sometimes charge this, is that the credit card companies in question often consider a crypto investment transaction at a brokerage to be a cash advance by definition.
Buy Monero With PayPal
Some crypto brokers will let you buy Monero with PayPal – these are few and far between, as the fees put many platforms off offering this option. Also bear in mind that if you find a broker compatible with this payment type, there may be fees attached.
If you opt for a PayPal friendly brokerage, the platform in question will simply redirect you to your PayPal log in page to complete your purchase.
Buy Monero With Bitcoin
An attractive option – particularly for people who have already purchased cryptocurrencies before – is the option to buy Monero with Bitcoin. Both of the top-rated crypto brokers we reviewed today will swap your Bitcoin for Monero with little fuss. The same goes for alt coins like Ethereum, or even Tether. As we mentioned earlier, the latter is pegged to the US dollar.
Notably, if you decide to buy Monero by selling another crypto coin, you will not be required to upload documentation to complete your purchase. This is because all transactions remain anonymous and digital currencies aren’t regulated in the same way as fiat. You will, however, be limited to how many digital tokens you are permitted to deposit and withdraw. At OKEx for example, this will depend on your daily trading volume over a 30-day period.
Why Buy Monero UK?
The chances are you already know why you want to buy this highly speculative asset class. With that said, we are going to offer a few key benefits to give you a clearer understanding of what makes this cryptocurrency so popular.
Monero Offers Real Fungibility
For those unaware, a fungible asset is characterised by the fact its units can be swapped and replaced. With no traceable transactions or history – this means that these types of digital coin are completely interchangeable with each other.
You are your own bank, you will be responsible for keeping your own keys safe. Furthermore, there is no method of tracking down historical Monero transactions – or linking them together. This also means any previous activities will not affect its value – because they are unknown.
Monero Provides a High Level of Anonymity
One of the biggest goals of the team behind Monero is to enable your average Joe Investor to make transactions anonymously – with a huge focus on privacy. Bitcoin is much more transparent, so although safe, payments are traceable if you wish to find the identity of the initial source. XMR coins, on the other hand, use sophisticated cryptography to conceal the personal details of the sender. As such, there should be no worries about censorship.
When you buy Monero privacy is assured. The creators of this coin use the following advanced cryptographic functions:
- Ring Signatures: In a nutshell, this is a unified digital signature – made up of one main signer and a ring of other people. This authorizes the transaction in question and also ensures that its origin is hidden. This is because the signatures are merged into one to represent the group.
- Monero Stealth Addresses: This means that it will give the sender a brand new and unique public key (or address) for each and every transaction. This is still the case if they are making several at once.
- Ring Confidential Transactions: Ring CT is an encoding feature tasked with hiding the monetary amount of your transactions for privacy.
As you can see, privacy and anonymity are the name of the game with this cryptocurrency. With features like Ring Signatures, this theoretically enables you to claim plausible deniability – as there is no possible way to tell who the true original signer is.
Monero Gives Unlimited Scalability
Largely due to the aforementioned functions and features, there is thought to be unlimited scalability with this particular cryptocurrency. As we said, each transaction made with XMR coins has new and unique data associated with it. As such, the Blockchain continues to expand.
The team behind this dis-inflationary currency say that the block reward of Monero will not fall below 0.3 XMR and inflation will continue to fall. However, nominal inflation will remain at 0.3 XMR per minute.
The Cost of Buying Monero
If you have any experience at all with online brokers – you will know that there are fees to look out for. The same goes for crypto brokers. As such, if you are new to the world of digital currencies and trading platforms, you should check out the two most common charges below.
Deposit Fees
Deposit fees are common with online brokers. For instance, if you decided to buy Monero with a debit card at crypto exchange Coinbase, you would have to pay 3.99%.
In stark contrast, Binance charges a very competitive 1.8% on the same payment type. Furthermore, if you instead make your purchase with a UK Faster Payments you will not pay any deposit fee.
Commission Fees
Commission fees vary by a country mile between trading platforms. Some charge a fixed fee on each purchase, others charge a variable percentage of the size of the position.
To give you an example, Coinbase charges 1.49% on each slide. Binance charge just 0.1% per slide, which is highly competitive in the cryptocurrency space. Just be mindful to always check the fee framework of any online broker before signing up.
Selling Monero: A Quick Overview
When you buy Monero, you will probably want to sell it at some point to make a profit. The least stressful way to do this is to use the same online broker you used to make your purchase initially. The reason for this is that your investment will usually be stored in your portfolio on the trading platform – and will therefore be easily accessible to you.
All that you need to do to cash out your investment is create a sell order with the broker in question. If you used another crypto exchange to buy your coins, you will need to ensure you send them to the brokerage before you can cash out your position.
How to Buy Monero UK – Conclusion
Monero is a digital currency making headlines thanks to its fungibility, high level of anonymity, and seemingly unlimited scalability. There are so many online brokers and crypto exchanges jostling for top position that it can be difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff.
It’s important to join a reputable Monero provider that is able to keep trading costs down with low commissions and deposit fees. You should also be concerned with the safety and storage of your digital investment, as well as what deposit methods will be available – i.e. fiat, crypto, or both.
Top-rated crypto platforms OKEx and Binance are both regulated and serve millions of clients globally every day. This means that most of your cryptocurrencies will be kept in cold wallets for security, and KYC requirements will be adhered to. Furthermore, both are respected providers in the industry and list hundreds of digital currencies. This guide found commission to be competitive too – with both platforms charging just 0.10% per slide.
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