Buy bitcoin in Switzerland

Bitcoin is the easiest cryptocurrency to get hold of in Switzerland. Every bank with a crypto offer sells it, as do specialised Swiss apps, international exchanges, ATMs and even SBB ticket machines. The differences lie in cost, in how you pay, and in a question many people skip: who holds your bitcoin once you have bought it?

This page is about bitcoin only. For the other coins available from Swiss providers, see our overview of top cryptocurrencies.

Where to buy bitcoin in Switzerland

The table sums up the main routes with francs or euros. Fees come from each provider's published price list; most add a spreadThe gap between the buying and selling price. Providers earn on it even when they show no separate fee. on top.

A few notes. CEX.IO has operated since 2013; group entities are registered in the US (FinCEN) and the UK (FCA), but Swiss residents contract with CEX OVRS LLC in Nevis. It offers no Swiss francs, and its website quotes card fees inconsistently (ranges up to 4.99% plus a service charge); only the amount shown at checkout counts. Kraken is the most direct international exchange for Swiss residents: francs arrive by SIC via Bank Frick from CHF 1, free and same day. At SwissBorg, a franc deposit can only be sent by SWIFT to its French entity BlockNodes; your bank may charge for that.

What a purchase costs – and can you avoid fees?

For a CHF 1,000 purchase: PostFinance charges CHF 9.50 plus a portfolio fee of CHF 1.50 a year (excluding VAT); Relai CHF 10 plus the spread; Pocket CHF 15; Kraken Pro CHF 4 to 8 depending on order type. Cards cost more: Relai adds 3%, SwissBorg 4.5% for Swiss residents.

You cannot buy bitcoin entirely without fees; a spread always applies. Two offers come close. Mt Pelerin charges no commission on the first CHF 500 of annual volume by bank transfer (1.3% after that), and Relai's savings plan includes one CHF 100 purchase per calendar month without a service fee. For larger amounts, a limit order on an exchange or Swissquote's volume discounts usually work out cheaper.

Step by step: buying bitcoin with Swiss francs

1. 1

   Choose your route

   Bank (PostFinance, Swissquote, ZKB), bitcoin app (Relai, Pocket) or exchange (Kraken). The key question: do you want to hold the bitcoin yourself?

2. 2

   Open and verify an account

   Identity checks (KYC) run in the app with a passport or ID and a selfie. In Switzerland they are mandatory from CHF 1,000 within 30 days.

3. 3

   Deposit francs

   A bank transfer (SIC) is free almost everywhere. Cross-border commuters paid in euros can fund Kraken by SEPA. Cards cost 3 to 4.5%.

4. 4

   Buy

   Enter the amount and confirm. Minimums: Relai CHF 50, PostFinance USD 50, Pocket none. On an exchange, a limit order cuts the fee.

5. 5

   Move it to your own wallet

   Optional, but sensible for larger amounts. Relai and Pocket send the bitcoin straight to your own wallet.

Bitcoin-only providers: Relai, Pocket and DFX

Three Swiss providers sell only or mainly bitcoin and deliver it straight to a wallet that only you control. This is called self-custodyYou hold the private keys yourself instead of leaving them with a bank or exchange. Nobody can freeze your coins – but nobody can help if you lose access..

Zurich-based Relai, a VQF member, charges a 1.0% service fee (0.9% with a referral code) and covers the network fee when you buy; Swiss customers can buy and sell up to CHF 100,000 over a rolling 365 days. Pocket, run by Pocket App AG in Lupfig (Aargau) and also a VQF member, charges 1.5% with no minimum fee at the Kraken price and has no minimum amount. Pocket works by bank transfer or standing order only and can pay out over Lightning. Zug-based DFX, another VQF member, sells more than 80 cryptocurrencies including bitcoin straight to your own wallet, at a standard 1.49% on purchases.

Bitcoin at your bank: UBS, Raiffeisen, ZKB and others

Many people check their own bank first. The picture is mixed:

• ZKB: since 4 September 2024, bitcoin and ether around the clock in e-banking and the app. ZKB holds the keys; orders are executed by Crypto Finance AG. Thurgauer Kantonalbank uses the same service.
• UBS: according to media reports, selected private-banking clients have had access to bitcoin and ether since January 2026. UBS has not confirmed this.
• Raiffeisen: we found no direct bitcoin trading. Whether bitcoin ETPs can be traded in your Raiffeisen securities account is best checked in e-banking or with your adviser.
• PostFinance and LUKB: PostFinance offers 22 coins, Luzerner Kantonalbank nine; LUKB charges 1.80% per purchase up to CHF 10,000.

The full picture is in our comparison of crypto banks in Switzerland, and everything about the yellow bank in PostFinance crypto.

Bitcoin savings plans: small amounts, regularly

Rather than guessing the right moment, you can buy the same amount at fixed intervals. This DCADollar-cost averaging: investing a fixed amount regularly regardless of price. It smooths your entry price but guarantees no profit. approach is available as a savings plan from several providers:

• Relai: monthly plan, one CHF 100 purchase per calendar month without a service fee, minimum CHF 50.
• Pocket: a standing order from your bank; each payment is converted into bitcoin and sent to your wallet.
• PostFinance: savings plan from USD 50, weekly, monthly, every two months or quarterly.
• Kraken: recurring buys in the app for 1%.

The calculator shows what a savings plan would have produced over the past twelve months. Past prices say nothing about future ones.

Cash, ATMs and SBB ticket machines

Without an account there are three routes. Every SBB ticket machine sells bitcoin as a paper wallet for CHF 20 to 500, paid by PostFinance Card, Maestro or cash; you need a Swiss mobile number. The operator is SweePay AG in Zug, which does not publish its fee (how the SBB machine works). Värdex says it runs more than 80 bitcoin ATMs in Switzerland, with purchases from CHF 50 and no ID up to CHF 1,000 in cash per 30 days; the fee is built into the rate (bitcoin ATMs in Switzerland). And at a Swiss Post counter you can pay a Mt Pelerin QR bill in cash.

None of the exchanges we checked accepts TWINT. The only route is buying from individuals on the peer-to-peer marketplace Peach Bitcoin, based in Neuchâtel, for a 2% fee (bitcoin and TWINT).

Bitcoin without a wallet: ETPs on SIX

In 2018 SIX became the world's first stock exchange to list a crypto ETPExchange Traded Product: a listed security that tracks the bitcoin price and sits in an ordinary securities account.. Bitcoin products account for the largest share of crypto-ETP turnover there. Well-known products include 21Shares ABTC (since 2019, 1.49% annual fee, tradable in CHF), 21Shares CBTC, WisdomTree BTCW and iShares IB1T with a franc line.

Bitcoin has even reached pillar 3a: finpension offers an iShares bitcoin ETP and VIAC an iShares Bitcoin Trust, each capped at 5% of the portfolio. How ETPs compare with buying the coin: crypto ETPs in Switzerland.

Keeping your bitcoin safe

At PostFinance, ZKB or Swissquote, the bank holds your bitcoin. That is convenient, but not every bank lets you withdraw it, and where it does, it costs: USD 10 per withdrawal at Swissquote, CHF 80 at LUKB.

With self-custody you get a seed phrase12 or 24 words that restore all the keys of your wallet. Whoever knows them owns your coins.. For larger amounts a hardware wallet makes sense: the BitBox02 Nova from Shift Crypto AG in Adliswil comes in a bitcoin-only edition, and Trezor sells its Safe 3, Safe 5 and Safe 7 for CHF 49, 119 and 229. Buy Ledger devices only from the manufacturer or authorised resellers; in 2026 tampered devices sold by a Malaysian reseller came to light. More in our wallet comparison.

Mind the Swiss travel rule: before a Swiss provider sends bitcoin to an external address, you will usually have to prove the wallet is yours.

Lightning: bitcoin for everyday payments

For small payments there is the Lightning NetworkA second layer on top of bitcoin for fast payments with very low fees, for example at a shop till.. In Lugano, more than 360 businesses accept bitcoin under Plan ₿, including via Lightning (bitcoin in Lugano). In April 2025, Spar in Zug became the first Spar shop in Switzerland to take Lightning payments. Pocket and Mt Pelerin can pay out the bitcoin you buy directly over Lightning.

What makes bitcoin different, and what the halving means

Bitcoin started on 3 January 2009. There will never be more than 21 million bitcoin; new coins are created only as a reward for miners. That reward halves every 210,000 blocks, roughly every four years. At the last halving, in April 2024, it fell from 6.25 to 3.125 BTC per block; at the current pace the next one is expected around 2028. In January 2024 the US Securities and Exchange Commission also approved eleven spot bitcoin ETFs.

Swiss authorities have been dealing with bitcoin for years: the city of Zug has accepted it for fees since 2016, and the canton of Zug for taxes since February 2021, up to CHF 1.5 million per bill (paying taxes in bitcoin).

Tax on bitcoin

For private individuals, bitcoin is subject to wealth tax, valued at the 31 December rate in the Federal Tax Administration's price list. Capital gains are tax-free and losses are not deductible. But very frequent trading, short holding periods or buying with borrowed money can get you classed as a professional trader, and then gains become taxable income. Details in our guide to crypto tax in Switzerland.

Risks to know about