FAQ's about buying instantly

Below are the answers to common questions about the Buy Crypto widget and our Kraken app.

Do I need a verified account?

To buy, sell and convert with cash (EUR, USD etc) you’ll need an Express*, Intermediate or Pro level verified account.

*US Only, excluding NY, TX, WA and overseas US Territories.

What is the minimum order size?

The minimum amount for buying and selling each currency is: 1 USD, 1 EUR, 1 GBP, 1 CAD, 1 CHF, 1 AUD, 110 JPY.

Card purchases have a minimum of 10 EUR, 10 USD, 14 AUD, 8 GBP, 12.50 CAD, 10 CHF.

Digital wallet purchases have a minimum of 10 EUR, 10 USD, 14 AUD, 8 GBP, 12.50 CAD, 10 CHF.

ACH online banking purchases have a minimum of 10 USD.

For converting between cryptocurrencies, the minimum is the equivalent value of 1 USD.

What are the fees?

Kraken fees for buying, selling, or converting assets using Instant Buy consists of a displayed fee and, where applicable, a spread which is included in the price. Any spread is calculated before orders are executed and may differ for similar transactions. This is because the spread is determined based on a combination of factors, including but not limited to transaction size, asset, payment method and market conditions.

Why am I unable to add a payment card?

To access the card payment method, your Kraken account must be verified to the Intermediate or Pro level, with residence in one of these supported countries.

If you have added many cards recently, you may have temporarily exceeded your limit of three attempts to save your payment card within a 30 day rolling period.

If you are unsure about why you can not add your card, please contact our support team so we can assist you.

Why is my card purchase failing?

Here are the most common reasons why a card purchase would fail:

Your card issuer does not allow payments to crypto exchanges.
The browser or app was closed or refreshed before the crypto order could complete.
Some banks do not support 3DS, an authentication step currently enforced on every transaction.

If your card payments continue to fail, please contact our support team so we can assist you.

Why am I unable to buy an asset?

If your purchase cannot be completed, it could be due to one these scenarios:

You do not have enough funds in your account balance for the transaction.
Your funds are currently being used for open orders or margin positions.
The transaction value is below the minimum requirement.
The crypto asset you want to buy may not be a supported pair with the currency you want to pay with.

If you continue to have issues completing your purchase, please contact our support team so we can assist you

Why am I unable to sell an asset?

Any error messages seen during the 'sell' process could be linked to one of the following reasons:

Your funds are currently being used for open orders or margin positions.
The transaction value is below the minimum requirement.
The crypto asset you want to sell may not be a supported pair with the currency balance you want to use to deposit the cash.

If you continue to have issues completing your purchase, please contact our support team so we can assist you.

Why was my payment card charged in a different currency?

Currently Kraken supports EUR, USD, CAD, GBP, CHF and AUD for card payments. The default payment currency is pre-determined by your verified country of residence. Once you select your card as the payment method, the cash spending amount automatically changes and the purchases will be charged to your card in the same currency.

Why can't I withdraw my funds?

Withdrawal hold

Certain instant purchases, such as first time ACH Online Banking, debit or credit card or digital wallet purchases, will trigger a withdrawal hold for up to 72 hours. Withdrawal holds may also be triggered by deposits from certain banks as well as security reasons. Additional cash purchases made during this 72 hours will also be locked for the remainder of the 72 hours.

For enhanced security, debit and credit card purchases using USD will experience the 72 hour lock discussed above on all purchases, not just your first purchase.

If your deposit or withdrawal was placed on hold review this article for more information.

Withdrawal issues can also occur if you have funds locked in open orders or margin positions.

How can I deposit and withdraw?

Tap the action icon in the bottom of the navigation bar to open the action menu. You will then be able to select either Deposit or Withdraw and chose your preferred currency.

Which currency pairs are supported?

You can buy, sell and convert any asset to any other asset. Please note the following exceptions:

There are some geographic restrictions which may affect the assets that are available in your verified country of residence.
Cash-to-Cash pairs are not available in the USA.
ETH2.S-ETH is not available.
Newly listed coins may have a delay of a few days before becoming available.
This feature is not available on the Kraken Pro app or the Kraken Terminal, which have limitations to tradable currency pairs.

Why am I seeing the message

When using Instant buy, sell or convert on the Kraken app or the Buy Crypto Widget, you may receive the message “We can’t process quotes for this pair right now. Please try again later”. If you receive this message it is due to the low liquidity of the cryptocurrency you are trying to buy, sell or convert. This means that the order book for the selected cryptocurrency is not sufficiently populated to provide a fair price for your instant transaction.

Solution:

If you receive this message you can follow the steps below for possible solutions:

1
Wait, these periods of low liquidity are typically short.
2
Try a smaller volume for your transaction.
3
You can try to place a market or limit order.