South Africa is one of the largest cryptocurrency markets in Africa. Due to this, there are several options to consider when buying bitcoin in South Africa.

The most popular way to buy bitcoin in South Africa is via the Luno exchange, but Valr, ICE3X, OVEX, and Altcointrader are great platforms that come with their advantage.

Further, South Africa is home to the most Bitcoin ATMs on the African continent. This allows you also to buy bitcoin in South Africa using ATMs.

This guide covers all the options for purchasing Bitcoin in South Africa through various payment options.

Luno

As we have already mentioned, Luno is a popular South African cryptocurrency exchange. Luno’s exchange platform has an easy to use interface, which makes it an excellent choice for new users.

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Further, its brokerage service allows you to buy bitcoin instantly without having to use the long method of finding buyers on a P2P platform or making an order on an exchange.

The SA owned exchange allows you to buy bitcoin through bank transfer, credit cards, and debit cards. Luno takes 0 percent transaction fees from market makers while takers pay up to 1 percent in transaction fees.

The Luno exchange has a BTC/ZAR trading pair for users who want to buy bitcoin in South Africa. Other trading pairs on the platform include ETH/ZAR and BCH/ZAR.

Know-Your-Customer (KYC) procedures are mandatory on Luno, which means that you have to verify your identity before you buy bitcoin.

Also Read: Luno Exchange Review

Valr

Valr is a relatively new cryptocurrency exchange that launched in 2019. It has quickly risen to prominence and is backed by Montegray Capital and international cryptocurrency platform, Bittrex.

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Valr is another platform with a great interface that does not confuse new users or first-time buyers. The exchange also has a brokerage service that allows you to buy bitcoin in South Africa without using the exchange interface.

You can only make deposits via bank transfers on Valr. Buying bitcoin instantly on Valr will come with the cost of 0.75 percent in transaction fees. On the other hand, using the exchange comes with a 0.2 percent transaction fee.

Besides the BTC/ZAR trading pair, Valr also offers an ETH/ZAR trading pair alongside several altcoin trading pairs with bitcoin.

Valr also requires you to complete a KYC process before you bitcoin.

Also Read: Valr Exchange Review

iCE3X

iCE3X (also known as iceCUBED exchange) is one of the oldest cryptocurrency exchanges in South Africa. You can choose between the trading exchange or the quick buy platform to purchase bitcoin.

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The quick buy platform presents you with predetermined amounts in ZAR; you can select or enter a value on your own. Trading on iCE3X comes in two interfaces: the classic mode or trade mode.

iCE3X has a flat trading fee of 0.5 percent. Further, if your monthly trading volume exceeds 1 BTC, your trading fees will be 0.35 percent.

You can make deposits via bank transfers only on the iCE3X platform. What’s more, iCE3X also requires that you verify your identity before buying bitcoin.

OVEX

OVEX is based in Cape Town, South Africa, and was established in 2017. Last year, the platform received an undisclosed amount of money from Newtown Partners to expand its services.

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OVEX also has simple buy and advanced exchange options with a 0.5 percent trading fee cost for both options. You can deposit your funds via bank transfer.

Identity verification is required on OVEX. However, the exchange has partnered with Civic, a blockchain identity platform to use AI in verifying new users to make the process fast.

The exchange also organizes a weekly lottery for new users starting from 0.5 BTC to 1 BTC.

Altcointrader

The final exchange on this list is Altcointrader. It is in Johannesburg and was founded in 2012. The trading platform charges a trading fee of 0.375 percent of the trade value on all trades.

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Altcointrader is the only exchange on this list without a simple buy option for new users who don’t want to use an exchange. You can deposit money through bank transfer and credit card.

Altcointrader requires identity verification for Rand (ZAR) trades.

Bitcoin ATMs

South Africa has over 5 Bitcoin ATMs in 5 cities. Cape Town has 3 ATMs, Pretoria has 2 ATMs, Johannesburg and Nelspruit have a single Bitcoin ATM each.

AnkerPay is a local ATM manufacturer with several Bitcoin ATMs in urban areas. Similarly, KriptoLink, another SA based startup builds point-of-sale devices that have ATM functionalities built in them and are also available in South Africa.

Bitcoin ATMs allow you to buy bitcoin in South Africa in an anonymous manner without the need for ID verification.

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