How to buy Bitcoin anonymously in Europe
It is becoming increasingly difficult to buy Bitcoin anonymously in Europe. This is due to the fact that new regulations are being imposed on financial institutions. Back in the days, it was possible to buy all kinds of prepaid cards and Bitcoin through bank transfer without having to submit an ID before hitting a specific limit. Today, you can almost not buy Bitcoin anywhere without submitting an ID. In this article, we will look into how to buy Bitcoin in Europe without having to provide an ID.
Bitcoin ATMs
A Bitcoin ATM allows you to deposit cash into it and withdraw Bitcoins by scanning your wallet address (QR code). However, some of these ATMs have been disappearing because of regulation and other unknown causes.
Take for example the Scandinavian country Denmark. It used to be possible to buy Bitcoins with cash through an ATM in Copenhagen, but the ATM has disappeared. This leaves Danes with very few options when it comes to anonymous Bitcoins. Luckily, the Danish website MyCrypto.dk has written an in-depth guide about buying Bitcoin anonymously in Denmark. If you are visiting from Denmark, we recommend that you read that article as they cover most options available in Denmark.
According to the website Coin ATM Radar, there are over 1200 Bitcoin ATMs in Europe at the moment. The majority of these are located in Austria (155), United Kingdom (155), Switzerland (122), Spain (93), Romania (74), Czech Republic (67), Greece (67), and Germany (61). If you are located in one of those countries, you should be able to find an ATM relatively close to you by visiting Coin ATM Radar.
A big problem with Bitcoin ATMs is the fact that you have to provide a phone number to be able to buy or sell Bitcoin. Most of the abovementioned countries do not allow anonymous phone number registrations. Denmark has 0 Bitcoin ATMs at the moment, but they are one of the few European countries that still allow people to buy and activate SIM cards without providing an ID. These SIM cards can be bought at almost all corner shops in Denmark. Getting a Danish SIM card to buy crypto currency anonymously in Switzerland might not be viable, unless you get the SIM card on websites like eBay.
Gift cards
As mentioned in the beginning of this article, it was possible to buy prepaid debit cards and purchase Bitcoin with them back in the days. Today, most people have shifted towards physical or digital gift cards. So, how does it work? You go to a shop selling physical gift cards and buy one for cash. You take a picture of the card or write the code down and sell it to someone for Bitcoin.
It is very difficult to track this transaction, as you are purchasing a code for cash and exchanging that code for crypto currency. A major drawback of this method is the fact that you tend to lose 10 to 20 percent of the gift card value, because no one is willing to purchase gift cards with crypto at full price.
If you have crypto and want to buy something, you should consider buying gift cards with a discount and then spend those. A popular option is Amazon. You can buy and sell gift cards for crypto currency on Paxful.
