CEX.IO reviewed: what Swiss residents should know

CEX.IO is one of the older names in crypto: the platform has been operating since 2013, says it has sold crypto by card since then, and today lists between 200 and more than 300 assets, depending on which page you read. For people living in Switzerland it is most interesting in three situations: you want coins that PostFinance or Swissquote don’t offer, you want to buy quickly by card or Apple Pay, or you trade actively and want spot fees of 0.15% or 0.25%.

It is a weaker fit if you want to pay in francs, want your coins under Swiss supervision, or plan to invest large sums straight away. There is no CHF account, your contract is with a company in Nevis, and new accounts are limited to USD 3,000 a month for their first three months. This review explains what that means in practice, what a purchase costs and who the platform still suits.

Regulation: who you are actually contracting with

CEX.IO is a group of several companies, and which one serves you depends on where you live. US customers deal with CEX.IO Corp., registered with FinCEN as a money services business (NMLS 1804170) and holding licences in a number of US states. UK customers are served by CEX.IO Markets UK Ltd, registered with the Financial Conduct Authority as a cryptoasset business under the money-laundering regulations (FRN 1007192). For the EEA there is CEX.IO Europe S.L. in Madrid.

Switzerland fits none of these. For “all other countries”, CEX.IO names CEX OVRS LLC, based in Charlestown on the island of Nevis (No. L 22275). Its legal page names no regulator. Put simply: the US and UK registrations show that the group passes checks in two major markets, but they do not protect you as a customer living in Zurich, Geneva or Zug – whatever your passport says.

The EU picture is open too. CEX.IO Europe has applied to Spain’s CNMV for authorisation under MiCA; according to CEX.IO, the application is still under review. We found no CEX.IO entry in ESMA’s interim register. For Swiss residents MiCA has no direct role anyway, as Switzerland is outside the EEA.

In Switzerland itself, CEX.IO has neither a FINMA licence nor membership of an SROSelf-regulatory organisation: a FINMA-recognised body that supervises financial intermediaries’ anti-money-laundering duties, such as VQF or PolyReg.. Swiss bankruptcy law, which lets clients reclaim crypto held for them by a Swiss provider, does not automatically apply to a Nevis company. What the different licences mean is covered in our guide to FINMA and crypto regulation.

Money in and out: euros instead of francs

CEX.IO supports US dollars, euros and pounds sterling. Swiss francs are not offered. The website lists Visa and Mastercard, Apple Pay, Google Pay, SEPA, SWIFT and several e-wallets such as Skrill and Neteller, adding that availability varies by country and payment provider. You will only see which methods your account can use after verification. There is no TWINT, no PostFinance Pay and no SIC transfer.

In practice, Swiss residents use one of two routes:

• Euros via SEPA: you send euros from your Swiss bank account. Your bank converts the francs and adds an exchange-rate margin that varies from bank to bank. We could not find a SEPA deposit fee on CEX.IO’s public pages; check the deposit screen. How transfers to crypto platforms work in general is explained in buying crypto by bank transfer.
• Card, Apple Pay or Google Pay: you buy directly with your debit or credit card. It takes minutes but costs more. Your card is charged in euros or dollars, your issuer converts into francs and may add a foreign-currency fee. More in buying crypto with a credit card.

For new accounts, CEX.IO applies a cap of USD 1,000 a day and USD 3,000 a month for the first three months after identity verification. After that, the normal payment-method limits apply.

For withdrawals the fee table lists SEPA at EUR 2.99, SWIFT at 0.3% plus USD 25 (minimum USD 50), and withdrawals to Visa or Mastercard at “0.49%–4.99% + service charge”. If you bring euros back to a Swiss account, add your bank’s exchange rate. Swiss banks often ask questions about larger credits from crypto platforms, so keep your purchase records. More in cashing out crypto in Switzerland.

Worked example: CHF 1,000 of bitcoin

Assumption: you want to buy CHF 1,000 worth of bitcoin. CEX.IO’s fees are as published; your bank’s exchange margin is an assumption – replace it with the figure from your own bank’s price list.

Route 1 – euros via SEPA, spot order: your bank converts CHF 1,000 into euros. With an assumed 1% margin, that costs CHF 10. You then buy on the order book. As a takerA taker buys immediately at the best available price, removing liquidity from the order book; a maker places a limit order and adds liquidity. you pay 0.25%, or CHF 2.50; with a limit order as a maker, 0.15% or CHF 1.50. Total: roughly CHF 11.50 to CHF 12.50.

Route 2 – card or Apple Pay: CEX.IO’s card fee information is not consistent. Some product pages cite 2.99% for Visa and Mastercard, which would be CHF 29.90. Add any foreign-currency fee your card charges. The binding figure is the one shown at checkout before you confirm.

So in this example the card route costs about two and a half times as much, but saves the one or two banking days a SEPA transfer usually takes.

Fees and spread explained

CEX.IO’s spot fees are among the lower ones on the market: 0.15% for makers and 0.25% for takers, falling with higher trading volume. By comparison, Kraken Pro charges 0.40% and 0.80% at its entry tier, and Swissquote 1.00%. Besides the fee, the spreadThe gap between the best buying and selling price. You pay it indirectly on every trade, even when no fee is shown. matters. On the order book you see it directly; with an instant buy it is built into the price shown. To keep costs down, use limit orders on the spot market rather than instant buy.

Coins, Earn and extras

Depending on the page, CEX.IO claims “over 200” or “over 300” assets, including bitcoin, ether, USDT, Solana, XRP and Dogecoin, the last tradable against bitcoin, euro, dollar and USDC. We did not find Pi Network on CEX.IO; for Swiss residents, Kraken is the route – see Pi coin in Switzerland.

A plus for Swiss users: Switzerland is on the list of countries eligible for CEX.IO Savings and Staking published by support. CEX.IO’s pages are not fully consistent on this, so check coins, yields and lock-up periods in your account. What to know about stakingLocking coins into a proof-of-stake network as collateral, in return for rewards paid in the same cryptocurrency. is covered in our guide to crypto staking in Switzerland. We found no CEX.IO debit or credit card for Switzerland.

Taxes

As far as we could find, CEX.IO does not issue a Swiss tax statement. For your tax return you need your balance on 31 December, valued at the tax value in the ESTV price list. Staking and Savings income is taxable as income when received; private capital gains remain tax-free. Keep a record of purchases, sales and income, and check which exports your account offers. The steps on the form are in declaring crypto on your tax return.

Who CEX.IO makes sense for in Switzerland

CEX.IO is a good fit if at least one of these applies:

• You want altcoins Swiss banks don’t offer. PostFinance has 22 coins, Swissquote 55; CEX.IO’s range is several times larger.
• You want to buy on the spot by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, say a smaller amount, without waiting for a bank transfer.
• You already hold euros – many expats keep a euro account from a previous job or for travel. Then the exchange margin on the SEPA route disappears.
• You trade actively with limit orders and benefit from the 0.15% maker fee.

When a Swiss provider is the better fit

• You want to pay in and cash out in francs: Kraken accepts CHF via SIC free of charge – see our Kraken review.
• You want your coins at a FINMA-supervised bank, with a tax statement and a custody account next to your shares: Swissquote review or our overview of crypto banks in Switzerland.
• You only want a bitcoin savings plan: Swiss apps such as Relai specialise in exactly that.
• You plan five-figure amounts from day one: the first three months’ limits get in the way. For large tickets, Swiss OTC desks are the usual route.

Opening an account from Switzerland

Like any reputable platform, CEX.IO requires identity verification (KYCKnow Your Customer: the legally required identity check before a provider moves money or crypto for you.). Have a valid passport or ID card ready; foreign nationals living in Switzerland usually use their passport, and your Swiss address is what counts as residence. Depending on the payment method, CEX.IO may also ask for proof of address, such as a recent utility bill or bank statement. For larger amounts, proof of source of funds may follow, for example a salary statement or a sale contract.

1. 1

   Sign up and secure the account

   Create the account with an email address and a strong password, choose Switzerland as your country of residence and switch on two-factor authentication straight away.

2. 2

   Verify your identity

   Photograph your ID document and complete the selfie check. Your name and address must match your bank account and card.

3. 3

   Choose how to fund

   For low costs, send euros by SEPA from an account in your own name. For a quick purchase, pick card, Apple Pay or Google Pay and check the fee at checkout.

4. 4

   Buy

   On the spot market, place a limit order (maker 0.15%) or buy at market (taker 0.25%). Start small and keep the first three months’ limits in mind.

5. 5

   Store and document

   Move larger holdings to your own wallet and keep purchase records for your tax return and your bank.

Alternatives

If you want to deposit francs directly, Kraken offers the clearest CHF route among international exchanges; if you prefer a Swiss bank, look at Swissquote. The SwissBorg app offers around 400 coins with a contracting party authorised under MiCA in France. All the ways to buy are brought together in buying bitcoin in Switzerland.