LOCALBITCOINS REVIEW

LocalBitcoins is a cryptocurrency broker and wallet service that provides you the convenient capability to purchase Bitcoin and dozens of other cryptocurrencies with your credit, debit card, or other means for instant purchase.

The company has been around since 2017 and is based in the Isle of Man, a popular location for cryptocurrency exchanges to have their head office between the UK and Ireland. The service is open to traders from many countries around the world and offers a simple gateway to get started in buying Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.

Pros


  • Wide selection of cryptocurrencies to choose from
  • Very transparent fee structure
  • Intuitive and well explained trading platform

Cons


  • Mixed opinions from other traders
  • Difficult to verify trusted reputation

Trust


★★★★★

★★★★★

2.1/5

Trust is a huge factor with any financial services business whether it is a top forex broker or cryptocurrency exchange. In the case of LocalBitcoins they are a mixed bag in this department.

The company has been operating since 2017 and since then they have received some mixed feedback from users in the sector, it is therefore not who we would recommend.

It should be noted they are based in a less regulated but still very trustworthy jurisdiction in the Isle of Man which is home to many reputable cryptocurrency operations. Further, LocalBitcoins appears very transparent in their online offering with a very well-presented website and sign-up process. All fees and charges are clearly displayed, and the company appears to follow all of the required KYC and AML standards while doing their best to keep your account and information fully protected through the use of 2-factor authentication which is provided.

Investment Products


★★★★★

★★★★★

3.1/5

When compared with similar services, LocalBitcoins offers a very strong selection of cryptocurrencies that you can purchase. This includes the major offerings that you would expect such as Bitcoin, Litcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple while they also make other lesser-known alt-coins available for purchase.

The LocalBitcois website promotes a total of 40 cryptos available to but through the website. Some of these will be available through your debit or credit card, while others may need to be purchased with Bitcoin through crypto to crypto trade that LocalBitcoins can also facilitate.

LocalBitcoins support a number of major and minor fiat currencies also when it comes to making your crypto purchase. The supported currencies include USD, EUR, GBP, NGN, AUD, and ZAR.

Purchases on the platform can be made from other local P2P vendors in almost any country of the world, with LocalBitcoins facilitating the transaction. This also means that as well as just buying crypto, you could become a seller within the LocalBitcoins marketplace. This is only possible once your account has been verified.

The service also promotes the availability of credit to larger private clients trading $50,000 of currency or more, and the ability to quickly execute trades of up to $1 million on value through their platform.

Commission & Fees


★★★★★

★★★★★

3.5/5

As commissions and fees go for this type of service, LocalBitcoins ranks as good value when compared with others offering credit or debit card direct purchases. They charge a flat fee of 2.99% on credit cards if used for transactions. They also facilitate the use of other payment methods such as PayPal, and SEPA bank transfers, though no fees for these methods are mentioned.

When it comes to making your purchase through their marketplace, they promote a fee-free environment for buyers. This means there are no additional commissions or fees on your purchases as a customer. If you do become a seller in the marketplace, a 0.5% fee will be applied by LocalBitcoins.

In other fees, a 5 Euro inactivity fee is charged if your account has been dormant for at least 90-days. This fee is applied monthly on the 1st of each month after 3 months of inactivity until you become active again.

There are daily trading limits based on the country you are trading from, and the level of verification your account has passed. These range widely from 250 Euro per 90-days to 200,000 daily in transactions based on several factors. The LocalBitcoins fees section provides a comprehensive overview of the daily purchase limits available in each country.

Trading Platform


★★★★★

★★★★★

3.7/5

You can purchase and trade on the LocalBitcoins marketplace trading platform in two ways, either through their web-based platform, or downloading their mobile trading app which is available for both iOS and Android.

Much like their website, the trading interface provides for a very user-friendly, and visually appealing experience. They are extremely accessible in the fact the trading functions are easy to navigate and laid out in a manner very easy for even the newest of traders to follow.

The opportunity to trade is available around the clock and with volume seemingly no issue since LocalBitcoins promote they have access to some of the deepest liquidity pols in the industry.

The overall trading experience at LocalBitcoins is simple, efficient, and transparent throughout.

Customer Support


★★★★★

★★★★★

2.1/5

Customer support is readily available when you are trading with LocalBitcoins. This support comes not only through email contact that is accessible 24/7 but also through a very strongly supported FAQ section that is easily searchable and contains not only the answer to many of your most common crypto questions, but also some very insightful educational content and guides at every step of the process.

Where the company lack direct phone or live chat contact, they do attempt to make up for this with this depth of available information you can access. That said, LocalBitcoins still comes up a little short if you are looking for the fastest and most direct customer support service.

There are multiple instances of customers reporting negative customer service experience, and this explains our low score in this department.

Summary


★★★★★

★★★★★

2.3/5

Overall, LocalBitcoins provides a service that meets the needs of many traders in each category. While they do provide great accessibility with the number of cryptocurrencies you can trade alongside deposit methods, and a clear, up-front environment when fees and charges are considered, we are reluctant to recommend them due to the negative reviews that are found online.

With these factors in mind, LocalBitcoins may be a decent option if you are interested in getting a quick start to purchasing Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies with your credit or debit card in particular or would like access to a wider range of locally available alt-coins in a good value, and easy to navigate environment. That being stated, we do believe there are better and safer options out there, as recommended below.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

P2P Bitcoin Exchange Paxful Introduces PaxBot for “Doing the Heavy Lifting” for Crypto Traders, As Trading Volumes Surge Globally

How to register xm forex

Xcoins Review