Bitpanda review and comparison
By: Ofir Beigel | Last updated: 1/15/23
Bitpanda is one of the biggest names that come up when looking for reputable exchanges to buy cryptocurrencies. This post reviews the company’s services and compares it to other exchanges out there.
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Bitpanda Review Summary
Bitpanda is a cryptocurrency broker that specializes in buying and selling Bitcoins within the Eurozone. The company was founded in late 2014 and has since grown to become one of the more popular options to purchase Bitcoins around Europe. If you leave inside the EU it’s one of the cheapest ways to buy Bitcoin with a credit card or SEPA transfer.
That’s Bitpanda in a nutshell. If you want a more detailed keep on reading, here’s what I’ll cover:
- Bitpanda Overview
- Bitpanda Services
- My Personal Bitpanda Experience
- Currencies and Payment Methods
- Fees
- Buying Limits
- Supported Countries
- Customer Support and Reviews
- Bitpanda vs. Other Exchanges
- Conclusion
Bitpanda Overview
Bitpanda GmbH (formerly known as Coinimal) is a fintech company based in Vienna, Austria specialises in selling and buying Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. It has quickly grown to become Europe’s leading retail broker for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple and more.
With over 900K users the company has recently expanded its services to allow users to invest in precious metals (gold, silver) as well.
Bitpanda Services
Bitpanda offers a brokerage service which enables its customers to buy and sell cryptocurrencies. Basically, this means Bitpanda supplies you with the coins directly, unlike a trading platform where you interact with other traders. The company charges a premium above market price for their services.
Bitpanda To Go offers the ability to buy cryptocurrency with cash through their “service”. This service allows you to purchase cash-equivalent coupon codes in post offices around Austria, and later redeem those codes on Bitpanda for purchasing cryptocurrencies.
Bitpanda Savings allows you to commit a certain amount each month and create a savings plan by buying Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.
Bitpanda Metals allows you to diversify your portfolio with physically backed and 100% insured precious metals. You can also swap gold and silver with any other digital asset on Bitpanda.
Bitpanda Swap allows you to instantly swap one cryptocurrency for another. There are no limits on the transaction size of swaps.
Bitpanda Plus allows high net worth individuals to buy large amounts of Bitcoin or other cryptos with better terms than the regular platform.
Bitpanda Pay allows you to connect your account to the traditional fiat world including paying your rent or sending money to friends.
Bitpanda Pro offers a full order book style trading exchange for advanced cryptocurrency users to trade and connect APIs.
Bitpanda Stocks allows users to invest in traditional financial instruments including fractional shares and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Users can invest as little as €1 into some of the most popular companies and funds in the world – 24 hours, 7 days a week.
Bitpanda Token (BEST) is a Bitpanda ecosystem token providing customers with better rates on trading and functionality across its platform, similar to Binance Coin.
Finally, the Bitpanda team has launched an ICO backed project called Pantos (PAN) which aims to be an open-source, open-innovation driven scientific research project. However, this project is outside the scope of this review (more information can be found here).
My Personal Bitpanda
Experience
I’ve been a Bitpanda customer for around 2 years. Since I don’t live inside the EU I couldn’t verify my account but I have used it several times to deposit cryptocurrency, trade it and send it to other wallets.
I find Bitpanda’s user interface appealing and pretty easy to use. The service itself is ultra fast and transactions are processed instantly. When I withdraw money it usually arrives in the following block of confirmations.
I dealt only a little with Bitpanda’s customer support and always got a quick response. The main reason I didn’t interact with them that much is because I didn’t need to, everything worked as expected. Overall I’d say I had a good experience with Bitpanda so far.
Bitpanda Currencies and Payment Methods
Bitpanda supports the buying and selling of the following cryptocurrencies:
- Bitcoin (BTC)
- Ethereum (ETH)
- Ethereum Classic (ETC)
- Ripple (XRP)
- Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
- Litecoin (LTC)
- IOTA (MIOTA)
- EOS (EOS)
- Dash (DASH)
- Stellar (XLM)
- Zcash (ZEC)
- NEM (XEM)
- Augur (REP)
- 0x (ZRX)
- Tezos (XTZ)
- OmiseGO (OMG)
- Komodo (KMD)
- Pantos (PAN)
- Cardano (ADA)
- Neo (NEO)
- Chainlink (LINK)
- Waves (WAVES)
- Tether (USDT)
- USD Coin (USDC)
- Lisk (LSK)
- Tron (TRN)
- Basic Attention Token (BAT)
Bitpanda accepts the following fiat currencies:
- US dollar (USD)
- Euro (EUR)
- British Pound (GBP)
- Swiss franc CHF
Bitpanda accepts the following payment methods:
- Credit card
- Debit card
- SEPA
- Bank transfer
- EPS
- GiroPay
- Sofort
- Neteller
- Skrill
- Cash (Bitpanda on the go)
- iDEAL
- Zimpler
Keep in mind that different payment methods have different fees incorporated within them, so make sure to double-check before completing a deposit. Usually, the chargeback methods such as credit cards and Skrill will have higher fees than non-chargeback methods such as a wire transfer.
Bitpanda Fees
Transaction Fees
Bitpanda fees for buying and selling cryptocurrencies are 1.49%. However, fees are already incorporated into the price in real time so they are somewhat invisible to the user.
This is good since you know exactly how much you’ll pay. On the other hand, it sometimes distorts the real price of the cryptocurrency.
Cryptocurrency Deposit Fees
If you deposit money in a currency that is not in the supported currencies you will be charged a conversion fee by the processing bank (this changes depending on the currency). All fees for all currencies are detailed here.
Fiat Deposit Fees
These fees were shared with us by Bitpand’s support, however this cannot be found anywhere online:
Bitpanda Buying Limits
Bitpanda offers very low limits for unverified users as it complies with standard AML policies. However, verified users have extremely high limits depending on their payment method. For example, verified users can withdraw over €5 million a day via a SEPA transfer.
Obviously, limits differ between deposit and withdrawal. Fiat deposits can’t be made at all for unverified users. Cryptocurrencies aren’t limited in deposit / withdrawal.
All limits for different payment methods can be found here.
Bitpanda supported countries
Bitpanda is open to all users worldwide however some operations are limited.
Buying cryptocurrencies is currently only available for EU residents that are within the SEPA. This means most of the EU members plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and Monaco.
Users outside the EU can use their accounts to store and send crypto. They can also sell cryptocurrency or receive payouts via Neteller. Additionally, Bitpanda Pro is now available worldwide to trade cryptocurrencies except for the USA or China.
Customer Support and Reviews
Bitpanda offers an online knowledge base for most common questions and dedicated email support for specific issues.
What’s really interesting to see is that in a space where most cryptocurrency exchanges get an average customer rating at best, Bitpanda is killing it with a 4 star average score on TrustPilot, and that’s not something to take lightly.
The main complaints about the company revolve around long waiting time for support to respond, the verification process and missing funds. However, it seems that Bitpanda’s support is making it a habit to respond to each reviewer personally so that’s a good sign.
Finally, it seems that the company has won a startup award in late 2016, however, I can’t really tell what this award was all about.
Bitpanda vs. Other Exchanges
In the following section I’ll compare Bitpanda to some of the more popular cryptocurrency exchanges out there.
Bitpanda vs. Coinbase
When it comes to fees Bitpanda and Coinbase are nearly identical – both charging 1.49% as a transaction fee. However, they take their base price from different sources. Coinbase’s price is derived from Coinbase pro + 0.5% while Bitpanda doesn’t state where their base price is taken from.
After comparing the two options in real time I got an almost identical price (Bitpanda was cheaper by $2). It seems that there isn’t much of a difference between the two.
To sum it up, the main decision point should be which of these exchanges support your country (since the supported countries don’t overlap that much between them).
Bitpanda vs. Kraken
Comparing Bitpanda to Kraken is a bit like comparing apples to oranges. Bitpanda is a brokerage service that aims to simplify the buying process by selling cryptocurrency directly to the user. Kraken, on the other hand, is a trading platform aimed at more experienced traders.
That’s also the reason why the price on Kraken will be substantially low than Bitpanda since they don’t charge the premium for the brokerage service. Kraken’s fees schedule shows a 0.26% fee at max while Bitpanda is 1.49%. Although, the introduction of Bitpanda Pro means you can now trade for a cheaper rate of between 0.10% and 0.15%.
To sum it up, if you’re an experienced trader you can get a cheaper price on Bitpanda Pro. If you’re just starting out I personally believe the simplicity of the broker service on Bitpanda is worth the extra money.
Bitpanda vs. Coinmama
Coinmama is a service very similar to Bitpanda. Coinmama’s advantage is that it caters to most countries worldwide unlike Bitpanda that is restricted to the EU. However, Coinmama’s services are more expensive than Bitpanda’s.
How much more expensive? A lot. Their processing fee is 5.9% which is almost 4 times Bitpanda’s fee. So if you have the option, it’s better to use Bitpanda.
Bitpanda vs. Bitstamp
While Bitstamp is also a trading platform (like Kraken), they also offer a brokerage service. If you compare Bitstamp’s brokerage service to Bitpanda’s you’ll find that Bitstamp charges 5% – more than 3 times of what Bitpanda charges.
On the up side, Bitstamp is available almost all around the world. So if your country is supported by Bitpanda, I believe you will get a much better deal on Bitpanda than on Bitstamp.
Conclusion – Is Bitpanda Safe?
Bitpanda is a good mix of a reputable company, fast service and a cheap alternative to other cryptocurrency exchanges out there.
The team seems to have built a good reputation within the community since the company was founded in 2014 and it’s very refreshing to find an exchange with such positive customer feedback.
Bitpanda is a very safe option for newbies and experienced bitcoiners alike. The main downside being the fact that they don’t support enough countries.
If you’ve had your own experience (good or bad) with Bitpanda, I’d love to hear about it in the comment section below.
Bitpanda
Pros
- Wide variety of payment options
- Relatively low fees
- Beginner friendly
Cons
- Not available Worldwide
- Fees aren't stated explicitly
Bitpanda is preaty unprofessionel.
Take care – your account can be closed without any explanatio.
Even if you explain your transsacions and provide docu for it
bitpanda is worse then ministery of finance
useless piece of s
Nice article. Bitpanda also trades DGB and other coins not listed above. Some, for some strange reason, like DGB are only available to buy or sell on the bitpanda app.
Keep the good work.
Regards
Ticket ID – 1229759. So from initially starting on Sunday to try and withdraw money from my bitpanda account I’m still no further ahead. I’ve been contacted by bitpanda that withdrawls are being stopped until they can determine if money laundering is taking place. This comes on the back of being fully KYC with bitpanda and after numerous deposits from my bank account into bitpanda account where all crypto has been purchased previously. If this was a concern then how come this was never flagged when depositing money!! I’ve now sent through numerous bank statements and proof of where funds have come from but with no response. In an interesting or some may say concerning twist I’ve tried to convert some of my fiat currency back to BTC which I’m allowed to do till but when I try and send it from bitpanda another wallet it’s also blocked. I have emailed why this is the case which I’m sure is illegal but suprise zero response. I’m now in a position where I have funds in bitpanda that I can’t withdraw or convert to crypto and withdraw, absolutely shocking. I will continue to to add updates via trust pilot to share with the wider community how bitpanda treat loyal customers who try to withdraw funds from their accounts or move crypto assets. Make your own mind up from this review.
Very similar here…
Similar here ,have you resolved yours please ? Any clue ?
BItpanda, Just INSANE !!
One morning you wake up and your money is totally blocked. Bitpand has decided to block you and asks you, suddenly, without any warning, to justify your transfers. Which is totally normal, as do all the other companies. The difference with Bitpand is that they don’t warn you, it blocks everything, and asks you to justify your transfer since opening your account (4 years in my case), but the worst is that you cannot give any documents older than 2 years!!
The situation is gruesome, ridiculous, you are paying the price for the incompetence and the lack of organization of this company. Do you think that they would have asked you for your documents, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year ago? no, it blocks your account, you have nothing to say, no phone number, no manager, nothing, SCAM !
We won’t speak about the incredible huge fees!
With Bitpanda you cannot, for example invest your savings, it is prohibited, you can just invest the money you have just earned and justify the precise document that proves that you have just won this money. You will need about 4 or 5 official documents with translation to be able to invest for example 800 usd, transfer which was blocked, and which sounded the beginning of my nightmare with this company.
So if you have 3,000 euros of savings, there are 1, 2 or 3 or even more, especially not to put them in bitpanda, they will block you everything, your entire account, without any recourse for you, nothing.
I’ve started adding my ticket updates on the main LinkedIn page for bitpanda and will do so until I have the full access to my funds again.
Hi have you taken legal advice on the matter. Bitpanda do come under Austrian financial regulators so I’m sure getting a legal team involved should be able to resolve the issue.
I was scammed by an internet cybercryminal called Primeholdings. They opened an account on Bitpanda using my name. Bitpanda refused me quite some time to have access to my own account before freezing it. There are internet fraudsters using this platform. The helpline refused to deal with my request for quite some time. Quick answers but not adequate help provided, considering the fact that I pointed out that they are the platform for internet fraudsters this is not really customer friendly support, I am afraid to say.