# What is the easiest way to buy Monero with FIAT but no KYC? | NEWBIE **URL:** https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/what-is-the-easiest-way-to-buy-monero-with-fiat-but-no-kyc-newbie/25691 **Category:** Questions **Created:** 2025-03-11T14:37:36Z **Posts:** 36 ## Post 1 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-11T14:37:36Z **KEY POINTS:** **1) I have never bought cryptocurrencies in my life and am a total newbie.** **2) I want to buy Monero with FIAT from a place that doesn’t require KYC.** I don’t mind using my credit card or even PayPal, but I am absolutely not comfortable sending pictures of my ID to anyone. My bank offers virtual credit cards, so my name won’t be on the card, but obviously, my bank will know about the transaction. It’s my understanding that P2P markets are the best place for that. **Is [RetoSwap](https://retoswap.com) a good place?** It came up when I searched on Mullvad. If not, what do you recommend? **3) I want to buy $10 to $20 USD worth of Monero max.** I vaguely remember visiting various P2P markets years ago, and I had noticed that often the minimum purchase amount was often over **$100 USD**. Since this is my first time, I don’t want to spend that much, also I can’t afford to spend that much, and one of the services I want to buy from ( **SMSPool** ) costs _less than $1 USD_. **4) The place I buy from can’t be geo-locked.** Meaning that it shouldn’t require that I be physically in a specific country, have ties to a specific country (e.g.: have a US bank account) or be on a platform that’s exclusive to certain countries (e.g.: Venmo). --- ## Post 2 by @jerm — 2025-03-11T14:49:33Z **Is [RetoSwap](https://retoswap.com/) a good place?** Yes. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > **3) I want to buy $10 to $20 USD worth of Monero max.** Doubt you can find such low amount on RetoSwap? You can buy other coins, for example LTC then swap to Monero. [https://trocador.app/](https://trocador.app/) --- ## Post 3 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-11T15:23:33Z Thanks for taking the time to respond and for the references that you shared. Why LTC? Why not BitCoin? My interested in cryptocurrencies limited to privacy, hence my interest in Monero. Why is it not possible to buy Monero with FIAT on trocador? I noticed --- ## Post 4 by @Regime6045 — 2025-03-11T15:57:49Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > Why LTC? Why not BitCoin? Bitcoin has higher network fees. I don’t know in which country you are, but [Monero.com](http://Monero.com) or Cake Wallet may be other non-KYC options to buy Monero directly. --- ## Post 5 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-11T16:40:48Z Are you sure they don’t require KYC and accept FIAT? [According to Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/Monero/comments/z9yrbq/buying_xmr_with_creditdebit_card_is_now_live_in/), it requires KYC, so that’s not an option. --- ## Post 6 by @Regime6045 — 2025-03-11T17:10:20Z Don’t know. [Monero.com](http://Monero.com) is not available in my country but through Cake Wallet I could buy it with a bank transfer without any KYC. To be honest, with Monero (unlike Bitcoin) it’s not really important to avoid KYC because the counterparty only know that you bought some Monero from them but not what you did with it or how much you have in total. --- ## Post 7 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-11T17:37:10Z > [@Regime6045](#): > > Don’t know. [Monero.com](http://Monero.com) is not available in my country but through Cake Wallet I could buy it with a bank transfer without any KYC. I am open to doing a bank transfer, but that would obviously taker longer if it’s international. Also, I suspenct that doing an international bank transfer for $10 would probably cost just as much or almost. > [@Regime6045](#): > > To be honest, with Monero (unlike Bitcoin) it’s not really important to avoid KYC because the counterparty only know that you bought some Monero from them but not what you did with it or how much you have in total. That may be so, but to me there is a huge difference between sharing my credit card info vs sending a picture or my passport or driver’s license. I’m not comfortable with the latter. I just don’t trust what they can do with it. --- ## Post 8 by @brokep — 2025-03-12T06:40:35Z I second trocador.app check out [https://kycnot.me/](https://kycnot.me/) for a large compilation of nonKYC platforms to purchase XMR --- ## Post 9 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-15T12:02:00Z Thanks for this. Buying Monero without KYC seems very complicated. Robosats was one of the sites recommended on the link you provided, but it doesn’t support Cake Wallet or [Monero.com](http://Monero.com). Moreover, it requires that you have bitcoins (sats?) to serve as deposit. I was looking forward to buying Monero with an Amazon gift card, but that is clearly not going to happen. --- ## Post 10 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-18T16:27:19Z Just as an update. So far, I haven’t been able to find a solution. All this makes me wonder how Henry & Jonah did it? Also, this makes me wonder, why are people in the privacy community comfortable providing KYC in the form of photo ID to buy Monero or use [Privacy.com](http://Privacy.com) for that matter? --- ## Post 11 by @Boyfriend56 — 2025-03-18T21:38:14Z Because they already shifting trust from the original providers in name of Security in addition to most governments making buying Monero More Tedious to prevent Anti Crypto Laundering --- ## Post 12 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-19T06:45:05Z > [@Boyfriend56](#): > > Because they already shifting trust from the original providers in name of Security Can you elaborate on this? I don’t understand. They are shifting trust from who exactly? AFAIK, there’s no number to call if you ever run into issues with CakeWallet or [Privacy.com](http://Privacy.com). Moreover, you have no idea what they do with your data. In addition, if I’m not American, I feel even less comforable having a foreign company collect that kind of data on me. > [@Boyfriend56](#): > > most governments making buying Monero More Tedious to prevent Anti Crypto Laundering I know that Monero is considered to be a higher risk for governments, but it’s not like it’s easier to by Bitcoin without KYC. --- ## Post 13 by @anon91547797 — 2025-03-19T07:13:04Z FYI I tried to use [Privacy.com](http://Privacy.com) to buy crypto recently and they locked my account. They unlocked it when I requested, but seems like they may prevent you from making purchases on known crypto trading platforms. Looks like the one they blocked for me was Ramp and I recall the notification saying that vendor was specifically blocked on Privacy. --- ## Post 14 by @jonah — 2025-03-19T07:41:38Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > All this makes me wonder how Henry & Jonah did it? Obviously can only speak for myself, but I have never obtained Monero online for this reason, only via in-person swaps (and very occasionally people just send me some lol) --- ## Post 15 by @Regime6045 — 2025-03-19T17:09:19Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > AFAIK, there’s no number to call if you ever run into issues with CakeWallet or [Privacy.com](http://Privacy.com). Moreover, you have no idea what they do with your data. In addition, if I’m not American, I feel even less comforable having a foreign company collect that kind of data on me. Why don’t you just buy a mainstream crypto like Litecoin (or Bitcoin, but it has higher network fees) on any KYC exchange that you trust and then you withdraw it to your own (self-custody) wallet and then you swap it to Monero without KYC on an app like Cake Wallet or a website like Trocador.app? You can just swap whatever amount you need at the time and keep the rest in (e.g.) Litecoin. The only thing anyone would know is that you bought some Litecoin and then sent it to a swapping service. The CEX (with KYC) knows who you are but not that you swapped to Monero specifically, and the non-KYC swapping service knows your Litecoin wallet address but not your identity. Again, Litecoin is just an example. You could also buy a stablecoin like USDC in a larger amount and swap it to Monero when needed. --- ## Post 16 by @Boyfriend56 — 2025-03-19T23:04:09Z I was specifically referring to using [Privacy.com](http://Privacy.com) and their requirements to link your own bank details to use their masking service --- ## Post 17 by @Anvil — 2025-03-19T23:32:40Z I ended up just going with a KYC provider because, while I have to give them personal information to them to verify my identity, they still don’t know what actual XMR transactions I’m making because Monero does such a good job at hiding that. So for me it’s a tradeoff that makes sense especially since P2P crypto trading can be so tedious. --- ## Post 18 by @jonah — 2025-03-20T02:16:43Z This is indeed actually [how we recommend acquiring Monero on the site](https://www.privacyguides.org/en/advanced/payments/#acquisition),[[1]](#footnote-85590-1) but we also include this warning which I would make sure you note before doing so: > If you go this route, make sure to purchase Monero at different times and in different amounts than where you will spend it. If you purchase $5000 of Monero at an exchange and make a $5000 purchase in Monero an hour later, those actions could potentially be correlated by an outside observer regardless of which path the Monero took. Staggering purchases and purchasing larger amounts of Monero in advance to later spend on multiple smaller transactions can avoid this pitfall. TL;DR buy a decent amount up front in one lump transaction, and spend from that stash later. Don’t buy exact amounts of cryptocurrency as you need to spend them. * * * 1. > Acquiring [cryptocurrencies](https://www.privacyguides.org/en/cryptocurrency/) like Monero privately can be difficult. P2P marketplaces (platforms which facilitate trades between people) are one option, though the user experience typically suffers. If using an exchange which requires KYC is acceptable for you as long as subsequent transactions can’t be traced, it’s much easier to purchase Monero on a centralized exchange or purchase Bitcoin/Litecoin from a KYC exchange which can then be swapped for Monero. Then, you can withdraw the purchased Monero to your own self-custody wallet to use privately from that point forward. [↩︎](#footnote-ref-85590-1) --- ## Post 19 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T08:21:19Z That makes sense. If you personally know people who have already bought Monero, it’s easier to ask them if you can buy directly from them, rather than go through an online marketplace. --- ## Post 20 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T08:26:28Z That’s not necessarily a bad idea. But like I said, I’m a complete newbie to cryptocurrencies, so I don’t really know which exchange or crypto market to trust. I personally appreciate that PG & TechLore are so strict with their recommendations when it comes to cryptocurrencies, wallets, and exchanges. Also, from the little that I know, and my limited experience, buying any kind of cryptocurrencies without KYC, is quite a challenge. Especially when one is a newbie and only looking to buy a very small amount for their first timem ($10-$20). --- ## Post 21 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T08:27:47Z I’m not eligible to sign up for [Privacy.com](http://Privacy.com), as I’m not American, but that is good to know. Thank you. --- ## Post 22 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T08:31:07Z Them not knowing what you do with your Monero is a very valid argument. But despite that, I just don’t like the idea of a faceless online company having a copy of my government ID. --- ## Post 23 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T08:35:47Z That is good advice. Right now, the service I want to buy with Monero costs less than a dollar. This is one of the reasons why I don’t want to purchase more than $20 in Monero. **Question for everyone:** **If I only want to buy $10 to $20 worth of Monero (either directly or by purchasing another cryptocurrency first), how much do you think it will cost me without KYC?** --- ## Post 24 by @Regime6045 — 2025-03-20T11:45:26Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > If I only want to buy $10 to $20 worth of Monero (either directly or by purchasing another cryptocurrency first), how much do you think it will cost me without KYC? If you have a bank account in the [SEPA area](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_Euro_Payments_Area) (i.e. most of Europe including UK) then you can buy Monero through Cake Wallet with no KYC, **3.5% fees** for the purchase. So buying for $20 would cost you $0.70 in fees. (If you want to open a Euro bank account from anywhere else in the world, have a look at free international bank accounts like Wise or Revolut.) That’s surely not the best in terms of fees, but just an **example** for what kind of fees you might be paying for a non-KYC service (that I’ve used myself). --- ## Post 25 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T16:14:04Z That’s a lot very interesting information. **1. SEPA** I had never heard of SEPA before. **a) You’re absolutely sure that anyone with an EU bank account can buy Monero via CakeWallet, without having to send their ID?** **b) If yes, does verification require providing your bank details or does a bank card suffice?** I ask this because I know that some banks in Europe provide virtual credit cards. From the bank’s side, using a virtual credit card does not hide the fact that one made a purchase from CakeWallet. But from CakeWallet’s POV, they won’t know your real name, but they will know your bank and hence, the country of the bank. **2. Wise & Revolut** I have heard of both of these companies. From my understanding, Wise is not a bank. They can hold money for you, but they are not legally a bank. Revolut is indeed a bank, and there are a few non-EU countries they support [according to their website](https://help.revolut.com/help/profile-and-plan/profile-plan/verifying-identity/what-countries-are-supported/), one example being the US. That said, I am confident that if an American in New York creates an account with Revolut, it won’t be considered a European account, just because Revolut is a European company. It will be an American account, because that’s how it works for international traditional banks, such as HSBC. HSBC is a British bank that was originally founded in British Hong Kong. It’s headquarters are in London. They have many branches across the world. If you have an HSBC bank account in Australia, you don’t have a British bank account. You have an Australian bank account. Wise is also a British company headquartered in London, and is available in many countries inside and outside the EU. I don’t think an American with a Wise account is considered to have a British accounts, even if they hold funds in Euros or Pounds. **3. Question about Wise** **Have you our anyone here ever used it? If yes, did you feel comfortable sending them a copy of your ID? How would you rate their customer service?** I remember trying to contact them years ago, when they were still called TransferWise. I don’t believe they had an email contact. I don’t remember if they had a number either. What I do remember is that it was impossible to speak to someone unless you already had an account with a case number concerning your issue. I didn’t like that I couldn’t inquire about their services unless I already had an account. Meaning that I would need to provide my ID even though I may never use their service, just because I want to ask a question. --- ## Post 26 by @anon29374801 — 2025-03-20T16:41:20Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > this makes me wonder, why are people in the privacy community comfortable providing KYC in the form of photo ID to buy Monero or use [Privacy.com](http://Privacy.com) for that matter? I am sure this is unique to each user and their threat model but, for me, its the service I am paying the Monero to that I want to keep my identity / association private from and not necessarily the exchange itself. I also follow this advice and typically buy the same set amount each time regardless of the amount I actually need. > [@jonah](#): > > TL;DR buy a decent amount up front in one lump transaction, and spend from that stash later. Don’t buy exact amounts of cryptocurrency as you need to spend them. --- ## Post 27 by @Regime6045 — 2025-03-20T16:54:50Z I have bought Monero through Cake Wallet before, in my case via their partner DFX.swiss, which only accepts SEPA bank transfers to their Swiss account). I didn’t have to give them any IDs. I don’t think DFX accept cards, just bank transfer. So most likely they (DFX) are able to see your bank account and name when they get the money, but not your passport or anything. Do note that there’s another provider Cake Wallet uses (Guardarian) which maybe accepts other payment methods but it’s not available in my country (UK). In any case, Cake Wallet won’t get any info on you because the app just opens a website for DFX or Guardarian with your Monero wallet addressed filled in but isn’t involved in the actual payment. In the case of DFX you say how much Monero you want to buy and then it tells you how much you need to pay (in €) and then you have to make a bank transfer with that amount to a bank account belonging to DFX with a unique reference number (so they know where to sent the Monero). All these information will be shown to you in the Cake Wallet app but you do the actual transfer through your bank, so Cake Wallet does not know who you are. You can also reuse the recipient bank account and the unique reference number if you want to do another transfer in the future. I’ve used both Wise (for cheap currency exchange) and Revolut (for paying abroad) in the past. It’s possible to open bank accounts in multiple countries within minutes. USD, EUR, CHF, GBP account and many more. You can be American and still open a Euro bank account. They are required to do KYC though. --- ## Post 28 by @ihateKYC — 2025-03-20T17:14:35Z > I don’t mind using my credit card or even PayPal I know a p2p marketplace in which exchangers have all sorts of fiat options. The most kyc they’d ask for is something like a screen recording of you sending a payment from paypal balance as friends & family (to avoid chargeback risk). Not all of them ask you for this though. Still better than sending a ID. DM’s open. > **Is [RetoSwap](https://retoswap.com/) a good place?** Looks sketchy. Silly requirements and exchange minimums. Wouldn’t be surprised if chanalysis is offering exchanges on that platform lol. To skip the bs you could just do kyc with kraken and send LTC to a **real** no-kyc exchange like [https://exch.cx/](https://exch.cx/) for monero. No one is tracing that. --- ## Post 29 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T18:10:37Z > [@anon29374801](#): > > I am sure this is unique to each user and their threat model but, for me, its the service I am paying the Monero to that I want to keep my identity / association private from and not necessarily the exchange itself. I completely here you on that. But the fact often these online services are faceless, and quite new companies, makes be question not just what they do with their users photo ID, but what they can do. Also, a lot of online service can terminate or suspend your account without any explanation, and without a a way for you to conatact them to get one. This happen to me very recently with a populat wesbites. There is no way to contact them via email or phone. Only via forms. I have done that multiple times, and they never replied. IMO, a company that requires my photo ID needs to be easily reachable via email and/or phone. And not just if you have an account. Because many services will only open customer support if you have an account, but if your account gets suspended or terminated, you can’t do that. --- ## Post 30 by @anon29374801 — 2025-03-20T18:21:17Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > But the fact often these online services are faceless, and quite new companies, makes be question not just what they do with their users photo ID, but what they can do. I stick to using exchanges listed on PG but I think you make a valid point. > **[Private Cryptocurrency Blockchains - Privacy Guides](https://www.privacyguides.org/en/cryptocurrency/#buying-monero)** > > Unlike most cryptocurrencies, these ones provide transaction privacy by default. Monero is our top choice for obfuscating transaction information. --- ## Post 31 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T18:37:00Z **1. CakeWallet & DFX** Thanks, this is valuable information to know. I assume that when you make a bank transfer with CakeWallet via DFX, you are making the transfer to a business, not an individual? My point is, that’s what your bank sees. **2. Wise** _a) What do you mean that you’ve used TransferWise for currency exchange? Isn’t it for sending money abroad and receiving money from abroad?_ _b) Did Wise’s photo ID KYC not bother you?_ **3. Revolut** _If you need to send money abroad, why would you use Revolut instead of Wise?_ The latter is designed for that specific use. **4. SEPA** _a) Doesn’t SEPA remove the need for any special service like Wise or Revolut if your aim is an international bank transfer within the Euro zone?_ _b) If you’re using any bank in that zone, including Revolut, aren’t you going through SEPA?_ I thought that SEPA meant that someone in Switzerland sending money to someone in Germany would have the lowest fees and the fastest delivery guaranteed by law, making the specificity of the banks irrelevant as long as they’re within that Euro zone. --- ## Post 32 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T18:42:46Z Thank you. This is valuable info. Yeah, I’m not comfortable trusting with my photo ID any company that is faceless, and hasn’t been around for a while. If they don’t have contacts for customer support that makes it even worse. Just recently, a friend of mine has an issue with their PayPal account. PayPal is not a great company, but at least they were able to contact customer support over the phone. --- ## Post 33 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-20T19:00:40Z Thanks for this. I really appreciate it. I just had a quick browse and I have some questions. **1. Kraken** _a) What kind of KYC do they require? Is it just my bank account or the actual photo of my ID?_ I also see on the sign-up page that they ask for my country of residence. _b) Do I need to provide my real country residence?_ Suppose I am Swiss and live in the US. They ask for photo ID, and I show my Swiss passport. _c) Can / will they ask me for proof of my legal status in the US? If yes, what kind? Will a US bank account suffice, or would they ask for a visa / green card?_ **2. Cake Wallet:** The guide says the following: KYC is usually not required, but it depends on your country and the amount you are purchasing. _I assume they are referring to KYC via photo ID, and the potential requirement depends mostly on whether I am in the SEPA eurozone or not, as discussed in previous comments?_ --- ## Post 34 by @anon29374801 — 2025-03-20T19:17:29Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > a) What kind of KYC do they require? Is it just my bank account or the actual photo of my ID? You need to provide your ID to actually buy crypto. [https://support.kraken.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000672203-Document-requirements-for-verification](https://support.kraken.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000672203-Document-requirements-for-verification) [https://support.kraken.com/hc/en-us/articles/360001395743-Verification-levels-explained](https://support.kraken.com/hc/en-us/articles/360001395743-Verification-levels-explained) > [@PurpleDime](#): > > b) Do I need to provide my real country residence? Yes. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > Suppose I am Swiss and live in the US. They ask for photo ID, and I show my Swiss passport. This would still work as valid ID. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > Can / will they ask me for proof of my legal status in the US? If yes, what kind? Will a US bank account suffice, or would they ask for a visa / green card? My understanding is that they would require some sort of proof of residence. I am not sure what the exact details would be. * * * I have limited experience with cake wallet. I have only used it to pay in LTC I have not purchased crypto through it. This did not require any KYC. --- ## Post 35 by @Regime6045 — 2025-03-21T11:44:56Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > **1. CakeWallet & DFX** > > Thanks, this is valuable information to know. I assume that when you make a bank transfer with CakeWallet via DFX, you are making the transfer to a business, not an individual? My point is, that’s what your bank sees. That’s right, your bank sees DFX (the company) as the recipient. > [@](#): > > **2. Wise** > > _a) What do you mean that you’ve used TransferWise for currency exchange? Isn’t it for sending money abroad and receiving money from abroad?_ > > _b) Did Wise’s photo ID KYC not bother you?_ I have in the past used them for exchanging between GBP£ and EUR€ bank accounts. They used to have better rates than normal banks (though some newer banks like Starling, N26 or Revolut now also promise the “real” exchange rate) so for larger amounts it was worth going through them. Haven’t used them in years though, not sure what KYC they got back then. > [@](#): > > **3. Revolut** > > _If you need to send money abroad, why would you use Revolut instead of Wise?_ The latter is designed for that specific use. They give you a debit card for physically buying in a shop when you’re on holiday abroad. And they don’t rip you off on the exchange rates. But again, some other banks have now caught up and offer you the same exchange rates. A big appeal of Revolut and Wise (“Borderless Account”) is that they allow you to create actual real bank accounts with your name on it and a proper account number and IBAN/BIC for many different currencies and countries, even if you’ve never been to that country. > [@](#): > > **4. SEPA** > > _a) Doesn’t SEPA remove the need for any special service like Wise or Revolut if your aim is an international bank transfer within the Euro zone?_ Yes, if you have a European bank account then bank transfers (inside SEPA countries) are free. There is an edge case for non-Euro SEPA countries (like the UK or Switzerland) where the transaction itself is free but you might still get ripped off by exchange rates. It depends on your bank. > [@](#): > > _b) If you’re using any bank in that zone, including Revolut, aren’t you going through SEPA?_ > > I thought that SEPA meant that someone in Switzerland sending money to someone in Germany would have the lowest fees and the fastest delivery guaranteed by law, making the specificity of the banks irrelevant as long as they’re within that Euro zone. Correct. I don’t know where you live, hence I mentioned Revolut and Wise e.g. if you’re in America or Australia then you can’t just do a free bank transfer to Europe from your normal account, you have to open a Euro account first and they allow you to open one from wherever you are. --- ## Post 36 by @PurpleDime — 2025-03-21T16:44:47Z Thank you for taking the time to respond. Your answers have been very helpful to my education!