Cryptocurrencies, also known as digital currencies or virtual currencies, are a form of digital money.
Bitcoin, which launched in 2008, was the first cryptocurrency, and it remains the best-known.
There are now several other cryptocurrencies in existence.
A recent survey on behalf of the BPFI (Banking and Payments Federation Ireland) found that 8% of the population aged 18+ owned some sort of cryptocurrency. (May 2023).
For 18 to 34-year-olds – the percentage owning cryptocurrencies in Ireland was 16%.
This article gives some information about where to buy Cryptocurrencies in Ireland such as Shiba , Dogecoin Ethereum, Solana, Cardano , Bitcoin , Ripple and others.
There are now hundreds of different crypto-currencies and the numbers are growing all the time. In early November 2021, the total value of all crypto reached a high of $2.96 trillion USD. It fell to around $0.9 trillion USD in Sept 2022 but had risen to 2.27 Trillion USD by May 11th 2024. ( according to CoinMarketCap) .
Some of the more popular coins (after Bitcoin) include Ethereum, Tether , Solana, Cardano Ripple, Stellar ,Dogecoin and Shiba INU.
Dogecoin is one of the cryptocurrencies that grew in value significantly in 2021 – helped by support from Tesla’s Elon Musk and other celebrities. Dogecoin started as a joke , but by May 2021 it had risen in value by more than 13,000 % since the start of 2021 .
It eventaually dropped from that high of $0.7376 to around $0.1483 (Early May 2024).
Since the election of Donald Trump – Dogecoin has surged in value . On 11th Nov Dogecoin gained 51% in the last 24 hours to trade at $0.43, with a market capitalization of $63.5 billion.
Analysts say Dogecoin proponent Elon Musk’s involvement in the upcoming Trump administration is adding fuel to the memecoin’s surge.
How to Buy Cryptocurrency in Ireland
There are plenty of brokers and exchanges that offer the ability to trade cryptocurrencies in Ireland. However – the cryptocurrency industry has been full of stories about fraudulent coins and dubious exchanges. Because of this, we think it is better to choose a crypto broker or exchange that has been around for a while, is registered with a financial regulator and has links to other established companies.
Below – we have listed a few places where people living in Ireland can trade cryptocurrencies.
- It is important to note that bank guarantees do not cover any cryptocurrency investments.
- Cryptoasset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
Etoro
eToro provides an online trading platform where you can buy and sell over 100 Cryptocurrencies in Ireland.
eToro (Europe) Ltd. is authorised and regulated by the Cyprus Securities Exchange Commission (CySEC).
Some of the Cryptocurrencies available to trade on Etoro include :
Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash ,Shiba INU ,Ripple (XRP), Dash ,Bitcoin ,Uniswap ,MANALUNA ,TerraCompound ,Cronos Fetch.ai (FET) ,Dogecoin ,Litecoin, Cardano ,Stellar ,Binance ,Chainlink, Yearn ,Kyber Network ,AAVE ,Ethereum ,Name Service, REN Protocol, (REN) , Synthetix (SNX),
Etoro is one of the few exchanges where it is possible to trade Dogecoin in Ireland.
Shiba INU is also available to buy in Ireland on eToro. It is represented on eToro as “Shiba (in millions)”, which is a “lot” of one million Shiba Inu units. The price of one Shiba INU coin is very small – so by providing Shiba Inu as “Shiba (in millions)”, eToro say they offer users a clearer understanding of the pricing in a regular, two-decimal-point format.
Cryptoasset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
Etoro also allows traders who want to speculate on the price of a cryptocurrency to use CFDs. These instruments allow traders to speculate on crypto price movements rather than owning the cryptocurrency itself.
More on CFDs here.
Note: CFDs are complex instruments with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. {etoroCFDrisk}% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Etoro Fees
Etoro charges a 1% fee on all crypto trades .
Of course, like all the other platforms , they also make some money from the spreads. The market spread is the difference between the bid and ask prices, and can vary depending on market conditions.
All exchanges and brokers have a spread – it’s one of the ways they make money. For example , a spread of 0.75% means that if you bought Bitcoin and sold it instantly – you would lose 0.75% of the value.
Etoro only trades crypto in US dollars and they charge a 0.5% fee for conversion from Euro to dollars on deposits by bank transfer and 1.5% on card or PayPal deposits . There is also a 0.5% conversion fee if you withdraw in Euros.
However – you won’t pay any conversion fees if you use the Etoro Money App to deposit or withdraw Euros.
You can also avoid the Etoro currency conversion fees by depositing US Dollars using a debit card from N26 or Revolut.
If you have a standard Revolut account (a free one) – you will be charged 1% by Revolut once your currency exchange exceeds €1000 in a month. N26 have no such limits.
Withdrawal Fee: There is a flat-rate fee of $5 on each withdrawal from Etoro.
Cryptoasset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
Read more about using Etoro in Ireland
Uphold
Uphold is a multi-asset digital money platform offering financial services to a global market. It offers clients the ability to invest in over 36 different crypto assets, quickly and easily.
In the UK and Europe Uphold offers over 36 cryptocurrencies to trade using its user friendly platform, and the possibility to fund their account using bank transfer, debit cards and crypto wallets.
In Europe, the fees at Uphold can vary but they are typically:
- Most Stablecoins : 0.25%
- BTC, ETH: 1.4% – 1.6%
- Altcoins: 1.9% – 2.95%
A $0.99 fee will also be applied if the value of your trade is below $500
Deposits (By bank transfer or debit card) are free.
Withdrawals (Fiat) via bank transfer are free but when using a debit card there is a 1.75% fee.
Crypto withdrawals will incur some fees – check the Uphold website for details.
Like virtually all trading platforms, trading charts display the mid-market prices. When you trade, you’ll receive the current Ask or Bid price depending on whether you’re selling or buying.
Find out More at Uphold
Uphold Disclaimer: All investments and trading are risky and may result in the loss of capital. Cryptoassets are largely unregulated and are therefore not subject to protection”
Uphold offers Cryptoasset investing within the EU/UK (by Uphold Europe Limited) USA (by Uphold HQ Inc). Capital at risk. As with any asset, the value of cryptoassets can go up or down and there can be a substantial risk that you lose all your money buying, selling, holding or investing in cryptoassets. Your cryptoassets are not subject to protection. You should carefully consider whether trading or holding cryptoassets is suitable for you in light of your financial condition. Uphold makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our partner utilizing publicly available non-entity specific information about Uphold
Revolut
Revolut customers in Ireland can buy, hold and sell several different cryptocurrencies.
EU customers can buy Bitcoin, Ethereum, Shiba Inu, Stellar, Ripple and Bitcoin Cash , Cardano, Uniswap, Synthetix, Yearn Finance, UMA, Bancor, Filecoin, Numeraire, Loopring, Orchid, and The Graph.
Revolut Metal members are allowed to transfer Bitcoin out of Revolut. However – standard account holders cannot move crypto out of their Revolut account.
The exchange rate on Revolut for cryptocurrencies is 2.5% for Standard users and 1.5% for Premium and Metal users.
So – a $500 Ethereum purchase would cost Premium or Metal users $7.50 in fees. Standard users would be charged $12.50. This is significantly more than Etoro.
But – if Standard users exchange more than €1000 in a month they will also be charged an extra 0.5% (so a total of 3%)
Revolut keeps any cryptocurrency they buy for you in a ‘virtual account’ which also holds cryptocurrencies for other Revolut customers. You will not have a separate cryptocurrency account.
In the EU , Revolut Payments UAB, is licensed and regulated by the Bank of Lithuania as an e-money institution . Bank guarantees do not cover crypto assests.
Crypto Trackers
Another way of investing in crypto is to buy crypto trackers.
Instead of directly buying cryptocurrencies, you can invest indirectly through trackers, such as Exchange-Traded Notes (ETNs).
You can buy crypto trackers on DEGIRO
Please note that Investing involves risk of loss.
DEGIRO offers a few crypto trackers, the majority of which are ETNs. They also offer crypto ETFs; however, they track blockchain-related indices but not cryptocurrencies directly.
Some examples include:
CoinShares Physical Bitcoin
WisdomTree Bitcoin
21Shares Bitcoin ETP
The fees when trading these crypto trackers on Degiro are the same as buying any other ETF.
The fee is €2 per trade plus a €1 handling fee. (As of Nov 2024)
Read more here about DEGIRO Fees in Ireland
Using crypto trackers means you don’t actually own any cryptocurrency – but it also means you don’t have to worry about wallets or security etc.
Please note: Investing in crypto trackers comes with high risk and we advise you to only invest in financial products that match your knowledge and experience.
Investing in Cryptocurrencies involves a high risk of loss of capital.
Cryptoasset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
More about other Investment Options in Ireland
You may also be interested in our page about the Taxation of Cryptocurrency in Ireland