How to Buy Bitcoin in Saudi Arabia
We found 6 trusted online cryptocurrency exchanges operating in Saudi Arabia including Rain, Binance, and Kraken.
Rain is the most popular Bitcoin exchange in Saudi Arabia with 10,000 users
Binance allows buying and selling Bitcoin with 4 forms of payment
Kraken accepts users and payments from 188 countries
Ease of Use
Easy
Fees
Average
Verification
1-2 Days
Reputation
Trusted
Rain is the first cryptocurrency exchange to earn a regulatory license in the Middle East and joins an elite group of exchanges internationally.
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Rain is the first cryptocurrency exchange to earn a regulatory license in the Middle East and joins an elite group of exchanges internationally. Rain’s platform allows customers to buy, sell, and store crypto in a secure environment on its website and mobile apps. The company founded in 2017, launched publicly in 2019 with their license from the Central Bank of Bahrain and is now serving customers. Since then, they have exceeded 10,000 customers and are growing quickly.
The majority of cryptocurrency funds held by Rain are stored offline in a proprietary Cold Storage system. Rain uses bank-grade security, encryption, and meets all CCSS requirements. Rain is licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) as a Crypto-Asset Brokerage and is subject to rigorous cybersecurity, capital reserve, and banking compliance standards.
Ease of Use
Medium
Fees
Low
Verification
1 Day
Reputation
Trusted
Within 8 months of launching in July 2017, Binance quickly skyrocketed into the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, processing more than $1 billion on a daily basis.
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Within 8 months of launching in July 2017, Binance quickly skyrocketed into the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, processing more than $1 billion on a daily basis. It’s rise to popularity can be attributed to the impressive number of cryptocurrencies they offer, professional attitude, friendly and transparent CEO, and low trading fees.
Binance is considered a safe cryptocurrency exchange. Binance provides 2-factor authentication and offers both multi signature wallets and cold storage options.
Ease of Use
Easy
Fees
Average
Verification
2-3 Days
Reputation
Trusted
With millions of active users, an international market, and strategic investors on board, Kraken, joins Coinbase and Binance to become the big three cryptocurrency exchanges in the global market.
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With millions of active users, an international market, and strategic investors on board, Kraken, joins Coinbase and Binance to become the big three cryptocurrency exchanges in the global market. Kraken provides cryptocurrency to fiat trading and provides price information to Bloomberg Terminal. In February 2019, Kraken announced that it had raised $100 million in a direct offering to its largest customers at a $4 billion valuation.
Kraken is considered one of the safest bitcoin exchanges around. The platform provides cryptography-verified proof of reserve audits. These audits verify the total amount of cryptocurrency held by Kraken. The company appears to be well-capitalized and very safe to use.
After buying bitcoin from an exchange, it's important to withdraw to your own non-custodial wallet for security, privacy, and to have full control over your bitcoin.
Zengo is an easy iOS & Android crypto and NFT wallet. Buy, sell, and self-custody directly from the app.
Ledger Nano S Plus is a secure hardware wallet that connects to your computer via USB-C
BlueWallet is a popular desktop Bitcoin wallet which is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux
Ease of Use
Easy
Fees
High
Verification
1 Day
Reputation
Trusted
Coinmama is a leading cryptocurrency exchange that allows you to buy and sell bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with a credit card and/or bank transfers.
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Coinmama is a leading cryptocurrency exchange that allows you to buy and sell bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with a credit card and/or bank transfers. Since its foundation in 2013, it has grown to serve over 2 million customers across 188 countries and today has over 40 employees. Coinmama is a really simple exchange, which makes a perfect platform for safe, secure and quick transactions.
Coinmama is considered a reputable platform for bitcoin purchases.
Ease of Use
Medium
Fees
Average
Verification
1-2 Days
Reputation
Trusted
BitOasis is the Middle East & North Africa’s (MENA) largest digital asset trading exchange, platform, and wallet service.
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BitOasis is the Middle East & North Africa’s (MENA) largest digital asset trading exchange, platform, and wallet service. The BitOasis platform allows you to buy, sell and trade your digital assets easily and securely. Sadly, BitOasis is not transparent with their withdrawal fees, deposit fees, and BTC/fiat conversion rate.
BitOasis claims customer funds are kept in multi-signature wallets.
Ease of Use
Easy
Fees
Average
Verification
1 Day
Reputation
Trusted
Changelly allows one to exchange one cryptocurrency for another and also buy using a bank card.
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Changelly allows one to exchange one cryptocurrency for another and also buy using a bank card. All this is done through a convenient and clean user-interface and a quick registration via email or social media account. Changelly’s conversion mechanism is integrated into some of the biggest cryptocurrency platforms such as Poloniex, Bittrex, and Binance. There are no geographical restrictions to the service that Changelly provides, so it can be accessed from anywhere in the world.
Changelly offers two-factor authentication and an HTTPS security protocol. No user funds are stored by Changelly as all coins sent are processed to be exchanged and transferred to user wallets.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's (المملكة العربية السعودية) stance on Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, stated through its monetary authority, the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA), is that cryptocurrencies are not supported within the Kingdom, and dealing with it is risky.
In October of 2017, Saudi billionaire investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, a member of the extended Saudi Arabian royal family, stated that he agreed with JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who famously called bitcoin a “fraud” that is “worth nothing”. Expressing further skepticism, Prince Alwaleed argued that the lack of regulation governing Bitcoin will lead it to inevitably implode.
Recently, Saudi Arabia has had a more welcoming stance on cryptocurrencies unveiling in January of 2019 a landmark agreement between UAE and Saudi Arabia that will see the two countries co-operate in the development of a joint cryptocurrency.
Buying bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in Saudi Arabia is a simple process and usually takes less than 10 minutes to get fully setup.
The first step is to register with a platform, app or exchange and complete a Know Your Customer (KYC) process.
The exchange you choose will be interoperable with most devices, desktop and mobile, and will allow you to withdraw to your own personal hardware wallet.
There are also several options available for buying and selling without verification on P2P exchanges, although they are much less user-friendly and are recommended for more advanced users.
Before purchasing, there are a couple of important things you'll need to prepare:
1. Create an account with an exchange
Saudi Arabia has 6 trusted exchanges available for you to sign up for, with the most popular being Rain and Binance, which account for a combined 170,010,000 active users.
Both exchanges are considered to be beginner-friendly and offer multiple deposit methods and a variety of cryptocurrencies.
Exchanges will differ by fees, security, payment methods, and other features, so explore the "info" tab on the exchanges listed above to find which one is the right fit for you.
The platform you end up choosing will depend on your preferences and the cryptocurrencies and payment methods they support.
Also it's important to note that you can always sign up to other exchanges later.
2. Complete the KYC verification process
After signing up to an exchange you will need to verify your identity and address, which is part of the Know Your Customer (KYC) process. This is an unavoidable legal requirement for almost all exchanges in Saudi Arabia.
To complete this step you will need your photo ID readily available to take pictures of both the front and back sides of the document.
In most cases your verification will be approved instantly and at most can take 1-2 days.
3. Make a fiat deposit
To begin buying bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies you will need to link a bank account or credit card to the exchange.
Some of the payment methods provided by Rain and Binance are: SWIFT, FAWRI, FAWRI+, Debit Card, Credit Card, MADA, KNET, BENEFIT.
Depending on the payment method, it could take anywhere from a couple of minutes to days for the funds to arrive at the exchange.
4. Buy cryptocurrency
Once your account has been funded, you are ready to buy your first bitcoin. It's important to note that you do not need to buy a full bitcoin.
Most exchanges will let you buy as little as a few dollars worth of bitcoin, or any other cryptocurrency.
5. Send your bitcoin to a personal wallet
Once you've purchased bitcoin or your cryptocurrency of choice it's important to withdraw it to your own secure personal wallet.
Leaving your coins on an exchange poses a security risk as many exchanges are targets for hackers to steal user funds. Storing your own coins on your personal hardware wallet mitigates that risk.
Saudi Arabia
Consumers can legally trade Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in Saudi Arabia but with no financial protections for any losses relating to the use of such cryptocurrencies.
Financial institutions, like banks, are not permitted to deal with cryptocurrency, unless permitted by SAMA.
🌎 View bitcoin and cryptocurrency legality around the world
There are 6 trusted exchanges operating in Saudi Arabia with the most popular being Rain , Binance , and Kraken.
You can review each of these exchanges and find best exchange that works for you. Bitrawr ranks exchanges in Saudi Arabia based on fees, users, and security while giving placement preference to exchanges located in Saudi Arabia or specifically catering to users in Saudi Arabia.
Most of the exchanges operating in Saudi Arabia have debit/credit card payment options available. Remember that this requires completing KYC.
No! For complete custody of your Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies it is recommended to store them in a hardware wallet as it keeps private keys safe and entirely offline.
Bitcoin ATMs are an excellent way to buy bitcoin using cash and offer little to no requirements for KYC. ATMs are commonly located inside of convenience stores, shops, restaurants, malls or airports. Find one near you using our ATM map.
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