Buy Cryptocurrencies
Currency exchange services
A currency exchange service is a low-threshold way to buy cryptocurrencies. Here you can buy cryptocurrencies for euros. Standard payment services like iDeal, Paypal or credit card are used. There are several online service providers and sometimes you will find an ATM where you can convert your euros into crypto.
The advantage of these services is that they are easy to use. Disadvantages are that you pay a premium, and that a limited number of coins are offered. Furthermore, there is often a limit to the amount of money that can be exchanged.
Crypto trading platforms
There are many trading platforms where you can trade cryptocurrencies against each other at competitive prices. On some platforms you can also trade against fiduciary money, such as the Dollar and the Euro.
Over The Counter services (OTC)
The OTC services provide a crypto trading service in which they search for counterparties for your order and handle them for you, starting from certain order sizes.
Advantages of OTC services are that the work is taken out of your hands and that large orders can be handled without them being visible in the books on the stock exchange. Visibility on the stock exchanges means that one can respond to a large order in the book and that can have a negative effect on the price you pay.
Disadvantages of OTC trading are the extra costs you have to pay for the service (usually a percentage of the order size) and that the number of coins for which this service is available is quite small. Furthermore, these services are only available from certain order sizes, because otherwise it will not be profitable for the exporter.
Funds
Cryptocurrency funds come in various forms. For example, there are tokenised funds (with their own crypto token) and funds that are traditionally structured. There are also funds with an active strategy and funds with an index strategy. The Crypto Index Fund has opted for a traditional structure and an passive investment strategy. Read more about it here.
The advantage of a fund is that it is easily accessible. With a traditionally set up fund, you get in with Euro’s or Dollars and it suffices to deposit them into an account. The fund uses its expertise to convert that money into a diverse portfolio of cryptocurrencies, which is composed according to the fund’s strategy. A fund is therefore ideally suited for the long-term investor who wants to diversify.