Banking and Bitcoin in the UK - Friend or Foe?

Hello everyone, 

Going to talk today about the joyous institutions that we use every day whether we like it or not, talking of course about banks. Some of you may disagree and have been with the same provider for years with no problem, fair one if so. For me though, I believe the bank should work for me and not vice versa. So, if I have an issue with a bank – I move. 

After speaking with several of you and getting some mixed opinions (some of you use one account and have had no issues with crypto transactions, etc) I don’t like to mix my main bank account with anything other than wages and bills – says a lot I’m this paranoid about my account being suddenly frozen because of the things I choose to spend MY money on but it is what it is.

Been doing some research over the last few months and tried a number of different bank accounts, both traditional such as NatWest, TSB, Santander as well as challenger banks like Starling and Revolut and one building society, Nationwide. One new addition to my collection of accounts is Chase Bank – Owned by JP Morgan (famously the first American Bank to offer clients access to Bitcoin)

Whilst I have asked and found other banks cryptocurrency policies which I will include below I have not evaluated them. All others I hold active accounts with and have tried a variety of transactions – debit card purchase/withdrawal and faster payments. Exchanges I have evaluated are Binance, CDC, COINBASE and Kraken. So, without further ado,

•  – NatWest were one of the first banks I had heard of in recent years who were dead against allowing clients to use crypto exchanges, BINANCE mainly (can’t blame them really given CZ’s shady practices). I tried to make purchase on CDC with my NatWest Mastercard, and it was declined. Their official line now is that all payments (both debit card and faster payments) to exchanges including, but not limited to Binance, Coinbase and Kraken are banned. Transfers to Swissborg are unaffected. 

https://supportcentre.natwest.com/Searchable/1693188682/Payments-Cryptocurrency.html

•  – TSB are another one who have taken a hard line against cryptocurrency purchases. After seeing ‘payment has been blocked please refer to issuer’ messages I contacted them, to discover my card had been frozen due to ‘suspicious activity’. After speaking with them via live chat they informed me they block every single transaction type to exchanges. 

https://www.tsb.co.uk/fraud-prevention-centre/

• Nationwide – The only building society I have assessed so far, they allow both bank transfers and debit card payments to all exchanges (except for Binance & Coinbase) Not really much else to say here, they are what they are. Fun fact though – if you have ethical concerns about where your bank invest money, Nationwide are as clean cut as you will get in the UK!

• Santander – I firstly tried depositing via faster payments from Santander into Coinbase and it was declined. However, using my debit card I was successful in adding fiat to my coinbase account. Santander live chat also claimed it was not possible to buy with a debit card from Binance, however I successfully bought $20 of RSR over the xmas period from this account and it went through without a hitch so it appears as though it can slip through the cracks.

https://www.santander.co.uk/personal/support/fraud-and-security/cryptocurrency

• Starling – A challenger bank that I really like, so much so that I use it as my main account now. The app is solid, and the card can be used worldwide with zero fees, ideal if you regularly travel and don’t deal well with cash and going to the bureau de change!

In a first on this list, Starling are VERY crypto friendly now after succumbing to FUD in yesteryear. I have used this account from the start of my crypto journey, to purchase and withdraw directly to my card and have not had a single issue. I top up my CRO card with my Starling account and the money lands within seconds. Faster payments to exchanges work solidly and consistently. If you’re looking for a modern bank and can deal without a branch this account is perfect. Also comes with the ability to directly deposit either GBP or Euros into your account and it even pays 0.5% interest on funds you have in your current account.

• Revolut – Everyone’s heard of Revolut and I know it can be a bit marmite, however in the past year they have undergone some massive changes and its now a solid account and for me, only pipped to the post by Starling. Ability to use GBP, Euro & USD currencies you can also buy and sell cryptocurrency (not that I would recommend it). The days of Revolut allowing you to ‘own’ Bitcoin but realistically you were never given the private keys or had the ability to send to a wallet of your choosing are long gone. Revolut also comes with the ability to buy stocks and commodities such as gold and silver. I have used it for buying and selling Tesla and whilst the purchase was commission free there was a very small fee when I sold (0.01c for selling $100 of tesla) 

When it comes to buying from exchanges direct from your revolut debit card, it’s a breeze. They have no limits on any exchanges so you can buy without worry of rejecting or a letter through the door of your bank ‘worrying about your safety’ (happened to me with NatWest)

You also get some Curve/Plu style cashback rewards at different retailers, 3% at Amazon, etc and different subscriber tiers ranging from free up to 13.99 a month which gives you unlimited commission free stocks trades, a grand of crypto withdrawal per month gas fee free as well as ticket and purchase protection up to 10k. Not too shabby.

 It is worth pointing out the Revolut do not as of yet have a full banking license and are an 'e-money institution' but funds are kept seperately by a custodian and are therefore SAFU.

• Chase Bank – This is a new one for us in the UK, owned by JP Morgan and a big player in the US for personal bank accounts they have finally dropped onto UK shores. Ive got limited use of it so far, but from what I have seen so far, I really like. 1% cashback on purchases, solid app and most importantly – VERY crypto friendly. They have no qualms about you using this account in anyway to either transfer directly or purchase with your debit card for all things crypto. There is a waitlist for it at present (I got early doors access because I am sad and as the picture above shows I collect banks)

Below are some of the accounts I do not personally have but I have got their official line on cryptocurrency to aid you should you either be a customer already or be looking for a new account in the future. Information below sourced from https://cryptobuyersclub.co.uk/faqs/which-uk-banks-will-let-me-buy-cryptocurrencies

HSBC is another large bank that is quite vocal about its distrust of cryptocurrencies. As cryptocurrencies enjoyed a rally in January 2021, HSBC explicitly banned all crypto-related transactions. Surprisingly, HSBC also blocks incoming transfers from cryptocurrency exchanges.Debit and credit card purchases: Banned

Transactions to/from exchanges: Banned

HSBC Coinbase: BannedLloyds - We have also received a number of messages detailing situations where the bank has blocked deposits to, and withdrawals from, cryptocurrency exchanges. Lloyds bank has also gone to the extent of locking accounts and interrogating their existing customers for buying cryptocurrencies.Credit card purchases: Banned

Debit card purchases:

Transactions to/from exchanges: Mixed

Lloyds Bank Coinbase: BannedBarclays - They were crypto-friendly in the early days of crypto and were also the official banking partner for Coinbase. However, Barclays ended their banking partnership with Coinbase in August 2019. Brits are still able to purchase cryptocurrencies with their debit and credit cards in most cases. In terms of exchanges, we have heard of Barclays refusing deposits/withdrawals to and from some exchanges, and in a number of cases closing and/or freezing accountsUpdate (28 July, 2021): Barclays has placed a ban on all transactions to Binance.Debit and credit card purchases: Allowed

Transactions to/from exchanges: Mixed

Barclays Coinbase: MixedTo Summarise, in my opinion the way to go for a bank you can use and be treated fairly with, with adequate FSFC protection, my choice and recommendation will be Starling. However, if you want a secondary account instead of using your main bank account I would opt for Revolut. There’s some referrals below for both Starling and Revolut – definitely worth having one and not needing it than suddenly finding yourself in a jam because your bank has changed it mind on crypto withdrawals like we saw last year with Binance in the UK.

It is also worth noting that should we ever face withdrawal blockages we can send crypto to Coinbase (the FCA’s best mate in the crypto space), convert to fiat and withdraw directly to PayPal (fees are gash though so only use if desperate).

A lot of you already use Swissborg as an on/off ramp and to be honest, it works great with ANY bank. If you don’t have a swissborg account already I would strongly advise getting yourself one or even Nexo accounts –I have referrals for both available for which you get some free CHSB or BTC just for the click and sign up)

Apologies for the length of the post, hope some of you find it insightful and hopefully it will help you realise we do have a choice of who we bank with and there are so many options out there available to us :D

 Referrals for free BTC/CHSB/Dollars in linktree :)