Slovenia based Bitstamp is one of the world’s top Bitcoin exchanges ranking 3rd in volume as of this writing after Chinese exchange BTC China, the Japanese Mt.Gox, and above Russian exchange BTC-e.
Individuals and institutions can open accounts to buy and sell Bitcoins on Bitstamp provided they verify their identity according to company and European compliance standards.
Bitstamp in general has a very good and responsive customer service and the deposit and withdrawal times are generally within normal parameters of between 2 and 5 business days for dollars, euros, British pounds, and Swiss francs.
Bitcoin vs US Dollar Trading
For now the service only provides trading of bitcoins against US dollars.
How does it work?
Open Account
The first step is to go to https://www.bitstamp.net and register as a user so you can start the process.
Verify Account
To use the account in any way it needs to be verified. The process is very simple and consists of entering additional identity information including full name, address, date of birth, and scanned copies of your government issued ID and proof of residence.
Send Money
Once your account is verified you can send Bitcoins, euros, dollars, Swiss francs, or British pounds. The Bitstamp account supports dollars and Bitcoins so if you send any of the other currencies they will be exchanged into dollars at no extra charge.
The methods to deposit are:
- Bitcoin: Transfer to the Bitcoin address they provide for your account. No fees charged.
- Euros: Transfer through the SEPA system to the account number they provide. No fees charged and they are credited in 1 to 3 business days.
- US dollars, British pounds, and Swiss francs: Wire transfer to their account and then they convert to US dollars if applicable and deposit to your Bitstamp account. They charge in all cases a 0.1% deposit fee on their side with a minimum of $15 and funds are credited within 2 to 5 business days.
Buy and Sell
Once your money is credited you can start trading bitcoins immediately. The exchange operates 24 hours a day 7 days a week. You can buy and sell to the limit of your account value.
Instant Orders
If you want to buy or sell bitcoins at the current market price you can enter what they call instant orders. They will execute your order at the best price on the exchange.
Limit Orders
If you want to buy or sell bitcoins at a specific price then you can enter the order at that level and they will publish it on the order book and execute it when someone else wants to buy or sell at that price.
Commissions
They charge between 0.50% and 0.20% per trade depending on your monthly volume.
Order Book
The order book is a great feature because it’s where the exchange shows all the open orders it has from its clients.
The first part of the order book is a chart that represents all the orders organized by type (bid or offer), price, and volume. This is a very efficient way of looking at the market depth and also analyzing the open interest so you can decide how to set and manage your orders.
Also, below the chart is their list of all the open orders organized in two columns (bids and offers) with the same data of the chart with respect to volume and price for each order.
Withdrawals
To withdraw money is as easy as to deposit. You can draw your money in Bitcoins, euros, dollars, Swiss francs, or British pounds:
- Bitcoin: You can enter your private Bitcoin wallet address and withdraw your bitcoins from your Bitstamp account at no charge.
- Euros: To withdraw euros your dollars will be exchanged into euros and then they will charge 0.90 euros for your SEPA transfer. It takes from 1 to 3 business days and the minimum is $10.
- US dollars, British pounds, and Swiss francs: They will exchange your dollars to the destination currency if applicable and charge a 0.09% transfer fee with a minimum of $15. It takes from 2 to 5 business days and the minimum is $50.
Conclusion
Bitstamp is a well known and reputable Bitcoin exchange. Its efficiency and excellent customer service has won the business not only of individual and institutional traders and investors, but also of many Bitcoin startups and companies that use it as their default exchange partner. This has helped the company grow in volume and share within the market.
If you are looking for an easy to use and professional service to start buying and selling Bitcoins then Bitstamp is an excellent option.
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