How to buy Bitcoin in Canada

In short, to buy Bitcoin you'll need to sign up to a crypto trading platform, fund your account and start trading. Transactions using cryptocurrencies are highly secure and can’t easily be shut down by governments.

Many people invest in Bitcoin on the volatile market with the hopes of winning big. There’s a chance to make—or lose—a lot of money by trading Bitcoin. The value of cryptocurrencies is almost entirely dependent on market speculation. If you still want in knowing this, here's how to buy Bitcoin.

1. Figure out how much Bitcoin to buy

The first step is to actually figure out how much you want to bet on Bitcoin. The quick answer is probably: buy as much as you’re willing to lose. Many people have lost a fortune to Bitcoin, and some have become overnight millionaires.

Bitcoin used to cost just fractions of pennies,in 2017, the price skyrocketed to around $20,000,and at the start of 2021, it was worth over $50,000. Nobody knows if it will rise or fall in the future.

2. Decide where to buy Bitcoin

Once you've decided you want to buy Bitcoin and you realised how much you want to invest, you can use a crypto trading platform to buy and sell cryptocurrency easily and often cheaply.

These providers often bring together multiple exchanges to get their clients the best Bitcoin prices. Crypto trading platforms normally don't allow you to transfer your Bitcoin to someone else. You generally have to sell your Bitcoin to withdraw the money you invested. Wealthsimple Crypto is an example of a crypto trading platform in Canada that allows you to buy and sell Bitcoin. There is no account minimum and no fees to deposit or withdraw money. Coins are held by Gemini Trust Company LLC™, a regulated crypto custodian with $200M in cold storage insurance coverage. Wealthsimple Crypto is the first way to buy and sell cryptocurrency in Canada that’s regulated by the government. 

Wealthsimple Crypto is not an exchange itself. Instead, they bring together multiple exchanges to get their clients the best Bitcoin prices. A limitation is that you can't send the Bitcoin you buy on Wealthsimple Crypto to somebody else or hold it in a wallet of your own.

Wealthsimple Crypto charges low fees for buying Bitcoin. The only cost is an operational fee added to the bid and ask prices when buy orders and sell orders execute. This fee is presented in the Wealthsimple Trade app. It covers custodial expenses charged by the company's third-party custodian, Gemini, and Wealthsimple business costs. Wealthsimple does not earn any other revenue from trading crypto-assets.

3. Decide how to pay for Bitcoin

There are endless currencies and payment methods you can use to buy crypto, from PayPal to Spotify subscription gift cards. Most common payment methods include wire or bank transfer, other cryptocurrencies, and credit or debit cards.

4. Purchase Your Bitcoin

Remember to exercise caution: always remember to invest only in the amount of Bitcoin that you feel comfortable with losing money on, and start slowly. Accept that you’re unlikely to become an overnight success, and set time aside to learn the market before making any large investment decisions.

If all this talk of Bitcoin has made you want some of your own—sign up to Wealthsimple Crypto in a matter of minutes. Millions of Wealthsimple clients trust us with over $8.4 billion—start investing now.