How to Buy Bitcoin (BTC) in South Africa?

If you’re looking for information about how to buy Bitcoin in South Africa, you are definitely not alone. It is reported that 16% of people in South Africa already own or use cryptocurrency.

And the same report ranks South Africa as having one of the world’s highest rates of personal Bitcoin ownership too, with over 10% of the population reporting to have owned Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.

As a result, it’s understandable enough if more and more South Africans are seeking for help, guidance, or the best way for them to buy Bitcoin, legally, in the country.

Because while the number of its users are rising, there’s still a lot of confusion around it. Now, in response to those confusions, we will tell you how to buy Bitcoin in South Africa, and everything else about it.

New to Bitcoin? Learn the basics.

Where to buy Bitcoin in South Africa

Buying Bitcoin (BTC) in South Africa is easier than you think. Cryptocurrencies can be purchased in mainly one of two ways:

1. Custodial exchanges: these are centralised crypto exchanges where they hold your crypto assets in their wallets – similar like how a banks stores your ZAR.
2. Non-custodial exchanges: a non-custodial service does not store your crypto assets, but acts like a retail where they offer buying and selling of crypto assets, and have them sent directly to the customers’ wallets.

Easy Crypto ZA offers non-custodial services for those who want to purchase crypto in South Africa with ZAR.

We have over 160+ crypto assets that range from Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Tether (USDT), and many other altcoins.

We also deposit your buy & sell orders directly to your crypto wallets, where you hold the true ownership of your crypto.

How to buy Bitcoin in South Africa

We make it easy for South Africans to buy Bitcoin with ZAR. Before you get started, you will first need 2 things to buy Bitcoin in South Africa:

1. Sign-up and have a verified account at Easy Crypto South Africa.
2. Have a crypto wallet to store your cryptocurrencies.

Don’t have a crypto wallet yet?

No worries, follow our simple guides to set up a crypto wallet Trust Wallet, Exodus Crypto Wallet, and Edge Crypto Wallet.

And that’s it! You’ve just bought yourself some BTC, congrats!

Be sure to check the email address attached to your Easy Crypto account for the confirmation of your purchase and also check your crypto wallet for your purchase.

Need a visual guide? Check out our YouTube guide below on how to buy crypto with Easy Crypto ZA.

Is Bitcoin legal in South AFrica?

Bitcoin has stood firm in the media spotlight for the past few years. Just like other innovative ideas, even when Bitcoin loses relevance, cryptocurrency has shown: there are viable alternatives to institutionally supported internet transactions.

Daily Bitcoin transactions exceed 300,000. The number of transactions has increased while the price of BTC has remained relatively stable in the short term, indicating a steady growth trend.

More and more of the top global companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, BP, Citigroup, Coinbase, Facebook, Fidelity, Google, IBM are using blockchain in their businesses.

Top technology companies like Amazon are accepting bitcoin as a payment mechanism and others such as Facebook are creating their own cryptocurrencies.

Criminal activity and the use of Bitcoin on the black market on the “Deep Web” remains a serious concern for federal law enforcement agencies. The popularity of BTC makes it an attractive alternative for criminals who previously relied entirely on cash and unruly banks.

In this case, technological innovation, when made with a political agenda, tends to be libertarian; the newest application and software development has strengthened the capability of anonymizing Bitcoin (Dark Wallet is a prime example).

Innovations in technology will continue to have an impact on the ability of governments to regulate Bitcoin and other virtual currencies and ultimately influence their policy decisions in the future.

Although many are looking for Bitcoin to avoid government regulation fees, the high level of criminal activity through BTC makes regulation unavoidable.

In the past two years, the US government has recognized BTC as property and began to regulate it as a property that is vulnerable to exploitation. By registering companies that use Bitcoin, the government hopes to make criminal activities more difficult.

Things to consider before buying Bitcoin in South Africa

Choosing the right platform

As mentioned briefly above, there are many ways of buying Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies out there.

Choosing the right platform is key to ensure your asset’s safety and that you get exactly the amount of bitcoins you ordered.

Be sure to look into whether or not the exchange is legally compliant, check for any hidden fees, and most importantly a customer support team that will assist you with any inquiries.

Related: Learn how to do your own crypto research.

Storing your Bitcoin

As prefaced above, Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are stored in crypto wallets.

Crypto wallets are primarily categorised into two different types based on their storage method:

• Hot wallets: the most common and popular wallet; stores your crypto assets in a secure online digital wallet. This type of wallet prioritises accessibility and cross-platform support.
• Cold wallets: store your wallets in an offline environment, hence the name. This type of wallet is designed for long-term storage with maximum protection.

Learn more: Crypto hot wallet vs cold wallets.

What can you do with Bitcoin in South Africa?

Now that you have some bitcoins, what can you do with them in South Africa?

Well, for one Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies have a fundamental utility as a medium of exchange. That means you can make payments, send and receive bitcoins, and more.

Other things you can do with Bitcoin:

• Day trade Bitcoin by buying BTC when its price is low and selling it when BTC’s price is high.
• Send Bitcoin to your friends, family or overseas.
• Pay for goods and services with Bitcoin.
• Buy Bitcoin and donate to local charities.
• Research Bitcoin and learn more about how this technology will change the world.
• Research other cryptocurrencies that you may also want to buy.
• Entrepreneurs are using Bitcoin in Africa, to buy goods from overseas, without asset prices being affected by the falling value of local currencies like the South African Rand (ZAR).
• Many South Africans use Bitcoin to protect retirement savings from falling in value as a result of inflation.
• Bitcoin is deflationary, it doesn’t fall in value over time – making this an ideal alternative asset for diversifying your investment portfolio.

Further reading: Explore more topics on all things crypto in our learning hub.