Buy Bitcoin in Poland
Bitpanda
Bitpanda
Bitpanda is a Bitcoin broker based in Europe.
They have high payment limits and low fees across their wide range of payment methods.
Bitpanda offers customers the option to buy bitcoins with credit card, debit card, SOFORT, Skrill, NETELLER, giropay, eps, SEPA, and Online Bank Transfer.
Recently added margin trading and combined order book, for a more efficient trading experience.
- Some of the lowest fees for buying bitcoins with credit/debit card
- Reliable and trusted broker
- Fees aren't shown openly on the site but instead included in the buying price
Kraken
Kraken
Founded mid-2011, Kraken is the one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges, and the largest in Europe based on daily average trading volume. It is available in almost all countries.
Deposits can be made via bank wire, SEPA, ACH and SWIFT. Users can buy bitcoin, ethereum, dogecoin and dozens of other coins.
- Very low 0.25% taker fee, falling to 0.1% with sufficient trading volume
- Very low maker fee, falling to 0% with sufficient trading volume
- Highly-rated for security and data protection
- Requires ID verification, so not private
Coinbase
Coinbase
Coinbase is the world's largest Bitcoin (BTC) broker. They represent an easy and fast way for new users to purchase bitcoins. Coinbase supports customers in over 30 countries, including the United States, Europe, UK, Singapore, and Canada.
Customers in the above-mentioned countries can purchase bitcoins by debit card, bank transfer, SEPA transfer, and more.
Get $5 in free bitcoin after you sign up on Coinbase and make your first trade.
- Trusted exchange with 100 million+ users
- Based in the USA; with a free wallet included
- App available on Apple App Store & Play Store
- Easy to use but fees can be high
- Coinbase may track how and where you spend your bitcoins
Coinbase Advanced
Coinbase Advanced
Coinbase Advanced Trader is one of the largest Bitcoin exchanges in the world.
Users can acquire crypto for much lower fees than the normal Coinbase exchange.
- Some of the lowest fees available for US and EU customers
- Possible to buy bitcoins for 0% fees
- The user interface is confusing for first-time buyers
Bity
Bity
Bity is a Bitcoin exchange and ATM operator, based in Switzerland. Their 5 ATMs allow for a quick first purchase and only require phone verification for an initial buy limit of 1,000 EUR or CHF. Their online service accepts wire transfers, SOFORT and online bank transfers.
- Easy to start buying bitcoins after mobile phone verification
- Payment limit of up to €100,000 annually after intensive verification
- ID verification is required for most purchases, so not a private way to buy
- Low annual limit of only €4,000 without intensive verification
Bitcoin ATMs
Bitcoin ATMs
You can use our Bitcoin ATM map to buy bitcoins with cash. Bitcoin ATMs can be a quick and easy way to buy bitcoins and they're also private. That convenience and privacy, however, comes with a price; most ATMs have fees of 5-10%.
View Bitcoin ATM Map- Our map makes it super easy to find a Bitcoin ATM near you
- Bitcoin ATMs often have 5-10% fees per purchase
Bitfinex
Bitfinex
Hong Kong-based Bitfinex has long been one of the largest USD Bitcoin exchanges in the world. Bitfinex accounts may be funded by bank wire only, their fee on accepting such transfers is low at only 0.1%.
In August 2016, however, it was hacked and lost around 30% of its users funds. While Bitfinex can be helpful for buying large amounts of bitcoins, it is probably best to not use the exchange until it fully compensates affected users.
- Very low fees even for low volume buyers; 0.1% for market makers and 0.2% for market takers
- One of the best ways to buy large amounts of bitcoins
- Allows lending of fiat or bitcoin to margin traders at interest (but this is risky in light of the hack)
- Very deep liquidity promotes a price close to fair market rate
- Supports several altcoins
- Was recently hacked and has yet to fully compensate all users for their loss
- Geared towards traders; possibly quite confusing for first time buyers
- Single payment option
Bitstamp
Bitstamp
Bitstamp is one of the world's largest and most well-known Bitcoin & crypto exchanges. Deposits can be made through bank transfer, SEPA transfer, international bank wire, and now even credit cards.
- One of the longest-running Bitcoin exchanges
- Very low 0.25% fee, falling to 0.1% with sufficient trading volume
- Offers wide range of altcoins
- High 8% fee on small credit card purchases, falling to 5% with sufficient trading volume
BitMarket
BitMarket
BitMarket is a Bitcoin exchange based in Poland. Users can deposit EUR or PLN via local bank transfer, SEPA, or bank wire.
Visit BitMarket's Website- One of the few Poland based Bitcoin exchanges
- The lowest trading fees for Poland, 0.15% for market markers, falling to 0% for sufficient volume and 0.45% for market takers, falling to 0.3% for sufficient volume
- Free PLN deposits
- Slightly confusing for first time buyers
- Requires ID verification; not private
Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency Trading in Poland
Bitcoin and cryptocurrency is a popular activity in Poland, and the country is well-served by crypto exchanges and facilities. There are over 200 Bitcoin ATMs throughout the country and all the major exchanges allow Polish users.
The cryptocurrency markets are currently not officially regulated in Poland, although the government regulator has announced its plans to begin looking into it.
In this article, we'll take a look at the specific options available for crypto enthusiasts in Poland, the history of some local exchanges, and one uniquely home-grown idea for an improvement to the Bitcoin protocol.
Read on to find out more about Bitcoin in Poland.
Top Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency Exchanges in Poland
Coinbase is one of the world's most popular cryptocurrency exchanges. Its full suite of services - buying, selling, converting, as well as a range of payment methods - are available to Polish users.
Kraken is the choice of many European Bitcoiners. Poland is a supported country, though the exchange doesn't offer deposits of fiat PLN or any PLN trading pairs.
Exchange Hacks and Crypto Scams in Poland
One scam that made it to Polish news targeted those new to crypto, who still make up a large majority of people. The scammers would cold-call people and explain that they represent a cryptocurrency investment fund. Starting off with a friendly, businesslike tone that became relentlessly persistent, they would try to persuade their unwitting mark to purchase Bitcoin. The scammers would walk the "client" through the process of purchasing crypto, with the transaction done on the client's end, adding to the legitimacy of the operation.
Once the crypto was purchased, the scammers would explain that it would need to be transferred to a wallet belonging to Poland's financial supervision authority - the Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego (KNF)- where it would be cleared by the Warsaw regulator as a legal and legitimate purchase. Once approved, the crypto would be sent to the "investment fund's" wallet and they could then begin actively managing it.
Sounds like a fair deal, a small inconvenience that's to be expected when dealing with such a new asset class. But not so. The wallet purportedly belonging to the KNF belonged in actual fact to the scammers themselves. No funds deposited there would ever see reinvestment for anyone but the scammers' benefit. The investors left were with nothing.
We would like to remind you that the cryptocurrency market in Poland is not a regulated or supervised market. KNF does not license, supervise or exercise any other powers with regard to cryptocurrency trading activities.
In January 2018, Polish exchange Bidextreme.pl was hacked, with customers losing all of their Bitcoin and Litecoin.
Bitcoin Price in Poland
We've got a chart here at Buy Bitcoin Worldwide that tracks the up to the minute price of Bitcoin and provides historical data in USD.
You can check out the Bitcoin Volatility Index or see how many days it's been since the last all time high (ATH).
For price data in a range of foreign currencies such as PLN, Luno has a page where you can check the price of Bitcoin in any of their supported fiat pairs, which include EUR, GBP, IDR, MYR, NGN, PLN, SGD, UGX, USD, ZAR, and ZMW.
Bitcoin Mining in Poland
Polish Police Mining Site
In July 2021, Polish Police uncovered a bitcoin mining site in the Warsaw Police headquarters. Police spokesman Mariusz Ciarka said the employee was not a police officer and that the discovery was made quickly. The employee was fired and charges are being considered. It is unknown how much bitcoin the employee may have mined.
Don't steal electricity from your employer to mine bitcoin, especially so close to jail.
Mining is not profitable for most people, and the easiest way to own bitcoin is by purchasing it through an exchange.
FAQ
Does Coinbase work in Poland?
As you can see, Polish Coinbase users have the full suite of services available to them. Buying, selling, and converting cryptocurrencies are supported, as are wire transfers, debit and credit cards, and Paypal for payment.
Where Can I Find a Bitcoin ATM in Poland?
What happened to Coinroom?
The only contact from the operators of Coinroom came in the form of an email. This email notified users that the exchange would be closing the next day, and anyone who didn't claim their funds before then would lose them. To claim, users had to get in touch directly with the administrators. This was all framed as being a standard part of the agreement that all users had accepted on signup.
The next day, the exchange did indeed shutdown, and any users who hadn't gone through the process outlined in the email lost their funds.
What happened to BitMarket?
Visitors to BitMarket's site found the following message:
"Dear Users, We regret to inform you that due to the loss of liquidity, since 08/07/2019, Bitmarket.pl/net was forced to cease its operations. We will inform you about further steps."
Over 400 users of BitMarkets lost nearly 2300 BTC, worth about $23 million at the time.
The operators of BitMarket at the time - Tobiasz Niemiro and Marcin Aszkiełowicz - had taken it over in 2015, when the exchange had an outstanding deficit of over 600 BTC. Earlier that year, it had been temporarily shutdown by a Polish bank for its apparent insolvency. This is disputed by BitMarket's original founder, Michał Pleban.
Whatever the facts surrounding the transfer of ownership in 2015, the story of BitMarket came to a sad end in July 2019. Three weeks after the exchange's closure, Tobiasz Niemiro was found dead in a forest.
BuyBitcoinWorldWide writers are subject-matter experts and base their articles on firsthand information, like interviews with experts, white papers or original studies and experience. We also use trusted research and studies from other well-known sources. You can learn more about our editorial guidelines.
- Wikipedia - Poland, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poland
- Polish Financial Supervision Authority - Warning about fraudsters claiming to hold KNF authorization to engage in cryptocurrency exchange, https://www.knf.gov.pl/en/news?articleId=71711&p_id=19
- Quartz - As bitcoin booms, so does bitcoin bank robbery, https://qz.com/150946/as-bitcoin-booms-so-does-bitcoin-bank-robbery
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation - Bitcoin crypto-mining operation uncovered at Polish police headquarters, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-31/crypto-mining-operation-uncovered-polish-police-hq/100339522
- CoinDesk - Polish Cryptocurrency Exchange Shuts Down Overnight, Taking Funds With It, https://www.coindesk.com/polish-cryptocurrency-exchange-shuts-down-overnight-taking-funds-with-it