10 ways to on-ramp to crypto without a CEX
Centralised exchanges (CEX) are struggling a lot lately. The downfall of FTX, increasing regulations, and new lawsuits against stable-coins (e.g., BUSD), expose users of CEXs to greater risks. In the case of FTX, many lost a relevant percentage of their net-worth.
People used these kind of exchanges due to their user-friendly fiat-to-crypto and crypto-to-crypto trading. Such ease-of-use comes with the high cost of a custodial partnership. If the exchange mistreats your funds, all of it can be lost.
Fortunately, there are several ways to on-ramp to crypto without using a centralised exchange.
1. Banxa
Offering on-and-off ramping services which are used by a lot of market leaders, including MetaMask, Ledger, dydx, argent.
They strongly focus on regulatory compliance and meeting international regulatory standards.
You can use Banxa for fiat-to-crypto, crypto-to-fiat, payment, as well as, transaction services.
2. Moonpay
Moonpay aims to simplify the process of buying cryptocurrencies via their platform. They strongly highlight their user-friendly and intuitive interface.
They are compliant with KYC and AML regulations which requires users to verify their identities before interacting with the platform.
3. Mt. Pelerin
Based out of Switzerland Mt. Pelerin doesn't require KYC for their on ramping services, up to a specific daily/ weekly/ yearly buy limit.
Besides on-ramping services, they also offer saving plans and DCA strategies which you can easily setup via wire transfers or credit card transactions.
4. Ramp
Ramp offers services for dApps or wallet providers to offer on-and-off ramping services to their customers.
They strongly focus on a seamless onboarding process for the enduser and try to make crypto accessible, also for non-coiners.
5. ShapeShift
An onramp aggregator which supports several service companies like, Mt. Pelerin, Banxa and JunoPay.
They have a strong focus on privacy and don't require to create an account for its users or to share any personal information.
6. Transak
The on-ramp platform is available in +125 countries and allows its users to convert fiat into crypto without the need of complicated processes or technical knowledge.
Their simple interface is used by many DEXs and they offer a great variety of cryptocurrencies to choose from, due to their partnerships.
7. P2P - Networks
Peer-to-peer trading platforms (e.g., Bisq, HodlHodl) allow users buy and sell cryptocurrencies without the need for an intermediary.
Terms and conditions can be negotiated on an individual level and such platforms allow for greater privacy and autonomy and allow users to be in custody of their funds.
8. Mining of Coins
Maybe not the easiest and practical way to be on-ramped to crypto, but mining can be quite interesting and offer many learnings.
The initial investment can be relatively high, depending on which coin to mine but there are several cheaper alternatives available that get you started for just a few hundert bucks (e.g., Helium, MXC, Hivemapper).
9. Stripe
Stripe launched their fiat-to-crypto widget end of last year and enables users to buy cryptocurrencies via their credit cards.
Currently it can be exclusively used by US customers and is integrated into e.g, Audius, MagicEden and Argent.
10. PayPal
PayPal launched their fiat-to-crypto widget just recently, in cooperation with MetaMask. Initially it will only be available for US customers.
MetaMask is one of the biggest players in the crypto industry and such partnerships show the increasing demand from users and need of alternatives to CEX on-ramping services.
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