There was a point when the cryptocurrency market was ready to do away with the time-consuming KYC verification process. However, for the vast majority of people, KYC is now an inevitable aspect of the cryptocurrency landscape.
If you open an account with one of the big cryptocurrency exchanges or brokers, you probably need to finish the Know Your Customer (KYC) procedure before you can conduct any transactions.
Even though the goal of KYC is to monitor unauthorized transactions, going through the sometimes lengthy KYC process can be a drag. But, you don’t have to. In fact, there are some highly rated crypto exchanges that don’t require KYC at all. With that in mind, we’re going to take a look at the top 5 crypto sites without KYC, so you can make transactions and stay totally anonymous.
Go directly to
- 1 Crypto sites without KYC
- 2 Binance – Start Easily, With No KYC
- 3 Local Cryptos – Peer to Peer
- 4 KuCoin – Only Email is Required
- 5 Poloniex – One of the Oldest Sites Without KYC
- 6 Stormgain – Up to 100x
- 7 What does KYC stand for?
- 8 How to buy Bitcoin without KYC?
- 9 Purchase Bitcoin via wire transfer at peer-to-peer exchanges
- 10 Drawbacks of avoiding KYC verification
- 11 General crypto KYC process
- 12 Choose a valid crypto platform
- 13 FAQs
Crypto sites without KYC
To get you started, we’ve carefully curated this top 5 list just for you. These crypto exchanges with no KYC requirements are all trustworthy and secure.
Binance – Start Easily, With No KYC
With over 6 million users, Binance is often regarded as the top crypto exchange with no KYC. Getting started is easy too, all you need is an email address to kickstart your trading. And, just after this basic signup, you can trade 2 BTC worth of crypto per day. There’s also no need for KYC when spot trading either. You can also make daily withdrawals without KYC of 0.06 BTC. However, to withdraw more than that — there’s a limit up to 100 BTC per day — you will need to authenticate your account. Despite that, it’s still one of the best exchanges to buy ETH or Bitcoin if you want to avoid KYC. Not a customer yet? Register with Binance now!
Supply: 166,800,992 / 166,800,992
Release date: July 29, 2017
Description: What is your knowledge about BNB? See how to own the BNB coins without sending in any KYC documentation.
Risk warning: Trading, buying or selling crypto currencies is extremely risky and not for everyone. Do not risk money that you could not afford to loose.
Local Cryptos – Peer to Peer
This is a cutting-edge KYC-free crypto exchange with a growing community that allows for private peer to peer bitcoin trading. Local Cryptos exchange is powered by smart contracts and involves direct exchanges with other users rather than the exchange itself. It’s one of the few peer to peer sites that doesn’t have KYC registration, so it’s possible to remain trade anonymously which has its pros and cons. To counter the cons, each trader has a reputation rank, requested trades are held in escrow, and you will need to confirm any logins via 2FA email verification. Pretty simple, right? Sign-up for Local Crypto to learn more!
KuCoin – Only Email is Required
Commonly compared to Binance, KuCoin, like its counterpart, actually has a great selection of altcoins available. With 370 coins, it’s actually one of the most diverse exchanges and generally comes top in this category. To get started you just need an email address as the verification process is optional. The only time you’ll need to go through verification is if KuCoin notices suspicious behaviour or if you want to trade over 2 BTC per day. Where this exchange excels is in those no KYC withdrawal limits — you can withdraw an impressive 5 BTC per day. So what are you waiting for? Give Kucoin a try today!
Poloniex – One of the Oldest Sites Without KYC
One of the oldest exchanges listed here, Poloniex is also one of the most experienced. It’s got a range of different features including staking, futures and spot trading all of which are accessible via desktop or mobile platforms. There’s no need for KYC verification either and has an impressive withdrawal cap of $10,000 per day even so. This can increase with 2FA, but for many, particularly those who are newcomers to trading, the KYC cap is more than enough.
Stormgain – Up to 100x
Offering a novel, thrilling, and unique trading experience, Stormgain is the new kid on the block. This crypto site with no KYC has combined the strengths of the cryptocurrency and investing markets to create a cutting-edge platform for trading crypto futures contracts. You only need an email to sign up and get started with the very popular multiplier trading it offers — other than BitMEX is the only legitimate exchange with a multiplier up to 100x.
What does KYC stand for?
KYC stands for “Know Your Customer” or “Know Your Client”. It is a process of identifying and verifying your identity when you open an account. Essentially, exchanges have to make sure that the people using them are who they claim to be. Identity verification calls for the use of personal documents that can be used to confirm identities, such as an ID card, passport, or utility bill.
Additionally, the KYC procedure exists to protect banks and cryptocurrency exchanges from being mistakenly, or purposely, used by malicious people to engage in illicit financial activities such as money laundering.
However, keeping track of KYC cryptocurrency laws and regulations can be hard. And this is because they’re different around the world. In some regions of the world, there’s no need to go through KYC verification, but in others, it’s a strict requirement, and you can’t trade without it. For instance, the US is cracking down on this hard, and recently the European Parliament passed a bill that mandates that European cryptocurrency companies use KYC processes for non-custodial wallets while transacting.
How to buy Bitcoin without KYC?
One of the main questions that comes up when we discuss no KYC is ‘how to buy crypto without KYC’? Without going through KYC, you can purchase crypto in a number of different ways:
Purchase Bitcoin via wire transfer at peer-to-peer exchanges
Use cash to purchase removing traceability though this can be riskier and elicit larger fees
Mine, earn or obtain Bitcoin without KYC indirectly
Benefits of avoiding KYC verification
Despite any operational adjustments and difficulties brought on by no KYC at crypto sites, there are still several benefits to regulatory compliance. Nowadays, the majority of those who opt to purchase cryptocurrency anonymously do so as a clever way to avoid paying taxes. Similarly, many affluent individuals and major corporations do not prefer to publish their net worth to their creditors. To protect their anonymity, they opt to conceal their wealth in cryptocurrencies by using no KYC platforms thus keeping their credentials hidden from the authorities.
But there are also more reasonable reasons too. For instance, the process of trading crypto is way quicker and easier when there is no requirement to complete a lengthy KYC verification process. If you have issues entrusting your private data to someone, no KYC is a great way to stay anonymous too.
Drawbacks of avoiding KYC verification
However, while a crypto exchange without KYC sounds great, there are some drawbacks to purchasing cryptocurrency anonymously. First, most exchanges limit the amount of cryptocurrency that can be purchased anonymously without identity verification in order to keep safe, secure platforms. Additionally, buying and selling cryptocurrencies anonymously carry significant risk for both parties, especially when they do so simultaneously. Thus, in situations involving a breach of contract, it is impossible to identify the culprit. Crypto exchanges without KYC protocols often don’t have a licence either, which can mean the site isn’t quite as safe and trustworthy as it should be. Finally, decentralized financing appears to be opposed by the government in large part because it encourages money laundering. Through the use of decentralised financial systems like cryptocurrency, people frequently conceal the origins of their money.
General crypto KYC process
The KYC verification procedure for customer identification typically includes the steps below:
Choose a valid crypto platform
Provide your personally identifiable information (PII) to register an account.
Upload crystal-clear scanned copies of their identification documents, such as an ID card, passport, debit or credit card, or a driver’s licence.
Platform technology automatically extracts the data needed for further processing from ID documents.
To confirm the accuracy of your personal information, the manually inserted data is compared with the extracted data. Additionally, a validation process takes place for the document images by comparing them with the standard document format. Proof of verification is submitted to your back office along with the final verification findings. If the verification is successful, you have been successfully onboarded and are now ready to trade cryptocurrency.
FAQs
Below are some of the most frequently asked questions about Know Your Client (KYC) documentation, verification, limits, countries and much more.
What are no KYC withdrawal limits?
If you choose to opt for a no KYC exchange, you will find yourself limited when it comes to withdrawing crypto. However, if you can keep yourself below these limits, you won’t need to verify your account.
Is crypto KYC safe?
As long as the exchange you are at has security and privacy measures in place to safeguard your information, the KYC process is safe. However, con artists could try to use KYC verification as a cover to steal your personal data. Therefore, always make sure that the company you are seeking to verify with only receives information directly from you.
What are Crypto KYC providers?
All the high-rated crypto platforms are KYC providers. Because laws and regulations require crypto firms to provide KYC services to their users.
Which are the standard documents for Know Your Client in crypto?
You must provide full PII in order to complete KYC exchange operations. Additionally, you must supply certified supporting documentation such as a passport, driver’s licence or utility bill.
Does the European crypto KYC process differ from American?
In their basic form, no. However, FinCEN in the US requires all crypto exchanges to carry out KYC checks. European countries differ wildly. In Sweden, KYC is instant using BankID, other countries don’t require KYC at all. But, all European exchanges have to implement KYC if you’re using fiat currencies thanks to the Anti Money Laundering Directive 2020.