Buy bitcoin with Wire transfer

What is Wire transfer?

A wire transfer is a bank to bank push payment sent over a high value settlement system, Fedwire in the United States and its equivalents elsewhere, routed through correspondent banks when it crosses a border. There is no chargeback: once the sending bank releases it the payment is effectively final, which is why exchanges accept wires for large deposits. A cross border wire can pass through one or more intermediary banks, each able to deduct its own charge before the money arrives.

Speed

A domestic wire clears the same business day, with Fedwire open from 9pm eastern the previous calendar day until 7pm eastern and closed on weekends and Federal Reserve holidays, while a cross border wire can take several business days.

Cost

The sending bank charges a flat fee, the receiving bank often charges a second one, and intermediary banks can take more out of a cross border payment, which is why US providers must disclose the total cost and exchange rate before you send.

Limits

Wires carry the highest ceilings of any rail here, and in the United States a consumer can cancel an international transfer within 30 minutes of sending unless the money has already been picked up or deposited into the recipient's account.

Speed and cost describe the rail itself. What an exchange adds on top varies by platform and is shown per exchange below.

Caveats by country

Where Wire transfer exists but comes with strings attached, straight from the country research.

Albania

euros or dollars by SWIFT, for a platform without a SEPA route

Bosnia and Herzegovina

SWIFT in euros; the country is outside SEPA

Fiji

overseas investment requires RBF approval

North Macedonia

euros or dollars by SWIFT, for a platform without a SEPA route

Montenegro

euros by SWIFT, for a platform without a SEPA route

Serbia

euros or dollars by SWIFT, for a platform without a SEPA route