Eastern Switzerland features in no ranking of crypto hotspots, yet more happens here than you might expect. Two cantonal banks – St. Gallen and Thurgau – offer bitcoin. Kreuzlingen has hosted a bitcoin-only conference every spring for several years, and regular meetups run in St. Gallen, Thurgau and the Toggenburg valley. Where the region is weak is where you notice it day to day: ATMs and merchants. Whether you are studying or working here, perhaps at the University of St. Gallen, or just visiting for the conference, this page sets out what St. Gallen, Thurgau and Appenzell actually offer.
Bitcoin through your cantonal bank: SGKB and TKB
St.Galler Kantonalbank (SGKB) launched bitcoin and ether trading and custody in November 2023. It is handled by SEBA Bank in Zug, which renamed itself AMINA shortly afterwards. After a test phase, the service was initially open to selected clients; reports said wealth-management clients would come first and retail clients later, with more coins depending on demand. We could not confirm whether every retail client can now buy bitcoin in e-banking or what the fees are – we found no public price list.
Things are clearer at Thurgauer Kantonalbank (TKB). Since 4 September 2024 – the same day Zürcher Kantonalbank launched its own service – TKB clients have been able to trade bitcoin and ether in e-banking and mobile banking. You need a TKB custody account, and trades settle in US dollars. Zürcher Kantonalbank handles settlement and custody.
| St.Galler KB | Thurgauer KB | |
|---|---|---|
| Launched | November 2023 | 4 September 2024 |
| Coins | bitcoin, ether | bitcoin, ether |
| Handled by | SEBA Bank, now AMINA | Zürcher Kantonalbank |
| Access | initially selected clients | clients with a TKB custody account |
| Public fees | not found | not in the press release |
Both banks hold the coins for you. That is convenient, but it means you do not hold your own The secret key that lets you spend bitcoin. Whoever knows it controls the coins.. Neither announcement says whether, or at what cost, you can move coins to a wallet of your own – ask before buying if that matters to you. For comparison, see crypto banks in Switzerland; Luzerner Kantonalbank, for instance, charges CHF 80 per outgoing transfer, as covered in crypto in Lucerne.
Without a cantonal bank: the alternatives
If you do not bank with SGKB or TKB, you can buy nationwide at PostFinance (22 coins, 0.95% trading fee) or online:
- CEX.IO – operating since 2013, with group entities registered in the US (FinCEN) and the UK (FCA). Swiss residents contract with CEX OVRS LLC in Nevis, which names no regulator. You pay by card or in euros, not Swiss francs; spot trading costs 0.15% or 0.25%. More in our CEX.IO review.
- Kraken – free Swiss franc deposits via SIC through Bank Frick, with Kraken Pro from 0.40% (maker) and 0.80% (taker).
- Relai – a bitcoin-only app from Zurich and VQF member, charging 1% plus spread, with one fee-free CHF 100 savings-plan purchase a month; the bitcoin go to your own wallet (Relai review).
Your bank does not offer crypto? An online account can be opened quickly with your ID.
Operating since 2013Group registered with FinCEN (US) and the FCA (UK)
ATMs, SBB and Swiss Post
BTC Map lists three crypto ATMs in the city of St. Gallen, all Värdex. Two are in the centre but have no address on the map. The third is at Zürcher Strasse 464 in the west of the city; right next door, at number 462, Kafi Schatz accepts bitcoin. Zug-based Värdex is active and affiliated with the VQF. According to its website, its machines sell bitcoin and ether from CHF 50, with cash purchases of up to CHF 1,000 per 30 days possible without registration. The fee is built into the rate rather than shown separately.
Outside the city, BTC Map shows a Värdex ATM in Rapperswil (canton of St. Gallen) and a machine labelled “TiBc” at Hotel SiX, Hauptstrasse 6, in Kreuzlingen; who operates the latter is unclear. Reliable everywhere are the SBB ticket machines – including at St. Gallen station – which sell bitcoin and ether as A sheet of paper holding the public address and private key. Whoever has the paper has the coins. for CHF 20 to 500, provided by SweePay AG of Zug and only with a Swiss mobile number (details). At a post office counter you pay a QR slip from Mt Pelerin’s Bridge Wallet in cash, without ID up to CHF 999 per 30 days. Limits and mark-ups: bitcoin ATMs in Switzerland.
Paying with bitcoin: city, Appenzell, Lake Constance
The BTC Map numbers tell the story: Eastern Switzerland is thin, but not empty. In St. Gallen, listings include Old Town Shop at Burggraben 16, Zuba-Tech at Schützengasse 7, the Maxi grocery at St.Georgen-Strasse 82, the Spar at Wolfganghof 2 and Kafi Schatz at Zürcher Strasse 462, plus a physiotherapy practice at Rosenbergstrasse 42b and an architecture office. Nearly all of them take A payment network built on top of bitcoin. Payments settle in seconds and usually cost a fraction of a cent..
In Appenzell and around Lake Constance, it is mostly Spar shops that fill the map: in Herisau (Kasernenstrasse 2), Speicher, Trogen and Gais, in Goldach, Arbon and Abtwil. Spar introduced bitcoin payments in Zug in April 2025 and later extended them to around a hundred shops. In Rorschach a hair salon at Löwenstrasse 24 is listed, in Frauenfeld a florist at Murgstrasse 9. Ask before paying: volunteers maintain the listings.
Kreuzlingen: bitcoin on the lake
Kreuzlingen is Eastern Switzerland’s most surprising crypto spot. The Dreispitz cultural centre hosts the Swiss Bitcoin Conference, a bitcoin-only event with talks, workshops and panels; it has taken place there in late April every year since 2024. The main stage is in German, with simultaneous translation into English and French – useful if your German is still a work in progress. Bitcoin Association Switzerland used the 2026 edition for a members’ meetup. Attendance figures vary by source, from 500 to more than 600.
Research: HSG without a crypto institute
The University of St. Gallen (HSG) has no dedicated crypto or blockchain institute. The topic is spread across several units: the Center for Financial Services Innovation (FSI-HSG) works on fintech; at the Institute of Economic Research and Policy (ERP-HSG), according to a job posting, a project studies front-running and information leakage on decentralised exchanges using Ethereum transaction data; and the university’s project list includes work on adaptor signatures for blockchains and on algorithmic A cryptocurrency meant to track a reference such as the US dollar. Algorithmic versions hold the peg through rules rather than reserves.. For specialist continuing education in blockchain, look instead to the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Rotkreuz or the University of Zurich.
Meetups and community
The grassroots scene is broader than the merchant list. Einundzwanzig St.Gallen organises meetups via Telegram and Meetup.com. Einundzwanzig Ostschweiz meets on the first Friday of every month at changing venues across the region – beginners are explicitly welcome, and the group shows newcomers how to set up a wallet and receive their first satoshis. There is also Einundzwanzig Thurgau and a group in Eschenbach SG. Conversation is in German or Swiss German. For the basics of Holding your coins in a wallet whose private key only you know, with no exchange or bank in between., see our wallet guide.
Tax: St. Gallen, Thurgau, Appenzell
We found no crypto information sheet from the St. Gallen tax administration. The ESTV principles that apply across Switzerland hold: coins are subject to A cantonal tax on your net assets at 31 December. Crypto counts, just like shares or bank balances. at the official year-end rate, private capital gains are tax-free, and income from staking, lending or mining is taxable. For professional traders, ESTV Circular No. 36 applies by analogy nationwide.
Thurgau is more specific. In its tax practice notes (StP 43 No. 1, section 4, “Kryptowährungen wie beispielsweise Bitcoin”), the canton states that bitcoin holdings are subject to wealth tax and are listed as “other assets” on the asset schedule. A wallet printout at year-end is sufficient proof. If there is no ESTV rate, use the year-end rate of the platform you traded on, and failing that, the original purchase price in francs. For the two Appenzell cantons we found no specific crypto guidance. The national rules: crypto tax in Switzerland; the walkthrough: declaring crypto on your tax return. If you are taxed at source, ask the tax office whether you need to file an ordinary return listing your crypto.
Further afield
More ATMs, merchants and meetups await in Zurich, just over an hour away. Crypto Valley, where you can pay taxes in bitcoin, is in Zug.
Zurich
Bitcoin in Zurich for residents and expats: ZKB crypto in e-banking, ATMs and the bitcoin shop near the main station, where to pay, meetups and tax rules.
Zug (Crypto Valley)
Zug, Switzerland's Crypto Valley, beyond the hype: a cantonal bank with crypto, taxes payable in bitcoin up to CHF 1.5m, Lightning at Spar and the real numbers.
Lucerne
Buying bitcoin in Lucerne: what crypto costs at LUKB, where the ATM is, where visitors can pay in bitcoin, local meetups and tax in the canton of Lucerne.
All regions
Buying bitcoin where you live: crypto-friendly banks, ATMs, tax practice and meetups in Zurich, Zug, Geneva, Lugano, Basel, Bern and other Swiss regions.
