While you can make a deposit using Bitcoin and withdraw back to your Bitcoin wallet, your Forex broker will almost always convert your deposit into USD for trading purposes.
Deposits can either be made with direct transfer between a wallet and the broker or by using an intermediary like Skrill’s Cryptocurrency Exchange.
Withdrawals of funds will only be returned to the same wallet, and additional profits will be sent to a bank account or e-wallet. The name on the withdrawal bank account or e-wallet needs to match that on the trading account.
Be aware that when a Forex broker receives a bitcoin deposit, most of them will instantly convert the Bitcoin to USD. When you request a withdrawal back to your Bitcoin account, the broker will convert the USD amount in your trading account back to Bitcoin. This means that even if you do not make a trade, you are still exposed to the fluctuations in the rate between the Bitcoin and the USD.
All Forex Brokers Accepting Bitcoin Deposits
These are all the brokers we have reviewed with accept Bitcoin deposits, ordered by overall score. The broker with the highest score is listed first.
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The Best Wallets for Transferring Funds to your Broker
Recommended Bitcoin wallets for Forex trading are:
- BitPay – Founded in 2011 and used by thousands of businesses worldwide (including Microsoft, Twitch and the American Red Cross), BitPay offers personal Bitcoin wallets with all the security and features you would expect.
- Bitcoin Wallet (Schildbach Wallet) – Launched in 2011, this was the first mobile Bitcoin wallet. This app is only available on Android and security is not as tight as other wallets, so do not move all your Bitcoin here at once. Extremely useful though.
- BRD – Another mobile Bitcoin wallet, this app is available on both Android and iOS. BRD is a fully decentralized wallet that connects directly to the blockchain using a securely generated 12-word paper key. This means there are no accounts to set up, no passwords to remember, and no servers to hack.
- Blockchain Wallet – The world’s most popular cryptocurrency wallet, also available on iOS and Android. Security is very tight, with both biometrics and advanced two-factor authentication. This wallet also supports 21 languages and gives you access to Bitcoin markets in 36 countries.
- Copay – Developed by BitPay to hold the company’s funds, Copay is a multi-signature wallet. This means that more than one user can have access to the same wallet. It also supports multiple wallets in different cryptocurrencies.
- Mycelium Wallet – Mycelium boast of having bank-grade security on their wallets. Available on iOS and Android, this wallet has five levels of security depending on your needs.
Deposits from Bitcoin wallets fund your trading account instantly. If a client is transferring a more substantial amount, it is commonplace to provide a screenshot of the summary of the account. This request is to prevent the Forex broker from being used as part of a fraud scheme.
Why do People Keep Bitcoin?
In some countries, residents often keep their savings outside of bank accounts and in foreign currencies or cryptocurrencies. Residents choose to save their money in a different currency, such as the USD or Bitcoin because their local currency is subject to sudden drops in value.
Since the creation of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies more people are keeping their savings in Bitcoin wallets rather than stuffed under a mattress in dollars. While Bitcoin is more volatile than USD it has two major advantages: It is anonymous, and it can be stored online.
These two qualities also make it particularly useful for online payments, especially in countries where some online activities are illegal.
To take advantage of this demand for Bitcoin payments, a few Forex brokers have recently started accepting Bitcoin deposits. However, most brokers do not for several reasons:
Forex Brokers and Bitcoin Volatility
Bitcoin, and other cryptocurrencies, are very volatile. In the past few years, the price of a single Bitcoin has gone from 500 USD to 20,000 USD, back down to 3,000 USD and then up again to 10,000 USD.
For a broker to accept Bitcoin deposits and withdrawals it must accept the risk of paying out withdrawals that could be more valuable, in USD terms, than they were the day before. This also goes for accepting Bitcoin deposits: A Bitcoin deposit today can be worth much more today than it might be tomorrow.
Forex Brokers and Bitcoin Anonymity
Forex brokers are also concerned by the anonymous nature of Bitcoin transactions. Well-regulated brokers have strict anti-money laundering obligations and anonymous trading accounts are prohibited.
Online wallets, bank accounts and credit cards require the account holders name and details to be attached, while Bitcoin wallets do not. This makes it harder for Forex brokers to verify the identity of Bitcoin depositors.
But, the first thing to know before opening a Bitcoin trading account is that you will not be able to remain anonymous just because you are using Bitcoin.
Know your customer (KYC) documentation is needed to for all Forex trading accounts, regardless of the broker or funding method. Although Bitcoin is an anonymous currency, all account holders will need to identify themselves and provide the standard documentation to support their application.
Brokers for Trading Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency
Traders do not need to deposit in Bitcoin to trade cryptocurrency pairs. Regular USD, ZAR or GBP deposits can be used to trade these pairs.
Most Forex brokers offer cryptocurrency CFD trading. The best will have a broad range of cryptocurrency pairs to offer traders. Those such as eToro and easyMarkets are some of the best and most trusted in this area.
Please note that there is no open cryptocurrency interbank market, and all brokers offering cryptocurrency trading are market makers, and counterparty to all trades. For the same reason, cryptocurrency trading runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, rather than the 24/5 of the Forex market.
Final Word
When choosing a broker, the same conditions should apply regardless of the deposit method or what you intend to trade.
You always need to trust your broker completely, so it is important to verify that it is well-regulated and compliant with the regulations. Trading conditions should be competitive with other similar brokers, if not better. You should also consider what trading platform you will be using. We use these metrics and more when judging all the brokers we review, and so should you.
Forex Risk Disclaimer
Trading Forex and CFDs is not suitable for all investors as it carries a high degree of risk to your capital: 75-90% of retail investors lose money trading these products.
Forex and CFD transactions involve high risk due to the following factors: Over-leveraging, unpredictable market volatility, slippage arising from a lack of liquidity, inadequate trading knowledge or experience, and a lack of regulatory protection for clients.
Traders should not deposit any money that is not disposable. Regardless of how much research you have done, or how confident you are in your trade, there is always a substantial risk of loss. (Learn more from the FCA or from ASIC)
Our Methodology
Our State of the Market Report and Broker Directory are the result of extensive research on over 180 Forex brokers. The explicit goal of these resources is to help traders find the best Forex brokers – and steer them away from the worst ones – with the benefit of accurate and up-to-date information.
With over 200 data points on each broker and over 3000 hours of research and review writing, we believe we have succeeded in our goal.
In a world where trading conditions and customer support can vary based on where you live, our broker reviews focus on the local trader and give you information about these brokers from your perspective.
All research has been conducted by our in-house team of researchers and writers, gathering information from various company representatives, websites and by sifting through the fine print. Learn more about how we rank brokers.
4.53
Accepts Ugandan Clients. Average spread EUR/USD 1.00 pips on trading account with lowest minimum deposit. Max leverage 2000:1. Islamic account available. MT4 & MT5 platforms supported. HF Markets Group regulated by the FSCA, FCA, FSC, CySEC and the DFSA.
