TOP 25 Safest Crypto Friendly Banks by World Ranking

Today we are writing about such a topic that is even more volatile than Bitcoin price. Yes, the crypto-friendly banks are so unstable that today a bank that is known to you as a crypto-friendly bank tomorrow will be the worst one to you. It’s nothing new! So, our core objective of writing this article was to mention some such safest crypto-friendly banks, which are now famed among crypto users as the most crypto-friendly banks. According to crypto experts, these banks keep the ability to remain safest to crypto users in the future. Maybe, you will startle to see in here the names of some such banks that are not recognized as level-1 in your country. That’s why we wrote about those TOP 25 safest banks. Do you know why? It is because we developed this crypto bank article based on the personal experiences of crypto users.

Reality of Crypto Friendly Banks

Before ascending to the main discussion, we want to tell you that during running our research, we talked to different crypto users, who are victims, about the unfair incident that happened to them. 90% of those victims commented, they are saying there is no issue with bank ‘X’. But the fact is that it matters what amounts are being transferred. There must be wariness when transferring 5-6 figures.

Hence don’t be so pleased if you can withdraw 100$, 500$ easily from your so-called crypto-friendly bank. Moreover, verify your bank next time right before transferring six digits crypto amount.

Definition of Crypto-Friendly Bank

The term ‘’friendly’’ adds to those crypto-banks that let their customers withdraw and deposit funds from their accounts to cryptocurrency-related platforms freely. To be more specific, crypto-friendly banks are those that offer crypto users all digital-banking facilities, like using credit cards and debit cards and never threaten users to shut down their accounts and make no hassle.

Top 7 Qualities of Crypto-Friendly Banks

1. Card Facility: Crypto-friendly banks let their users use credit and debit cards freely.
2. Wire Transfer facility: These banks make no hassle in wire transferring to cryptocurrency exchanges and similar entities.
3. Cash-out Facility: Users enjoy easy cash-out of funds with crypto-friendly banks.
4. Faster Settlements: Blockchain technology facilitates faster payments at lower fees.
5. Lower Fees: According to a report from Santander InnoVentures, blockchain technology could reduce the infrastructure costs of banks by between US$15 to US$20 billion a year by 2022.
6. Better Security: Better security exists here because of Smart Contracts and the decentralized nature of blockchain.
7. Immutable and transparent: Settlement of investments, mortgages and other money-lending operations can be done in an easier way once certain conditions are met.

As the name suggests, crypto-friendly banks make no hassle to crypto holders at the time of withdrawing, depositing, and transferring funds.

Crypto friendly banks in USA (TOP 25 Safest Crypto Friendly Banks by Ranking)

1)     USAA bank

• The United Services Automobile Association (USAA) is a members-only bank that requires membership through serving in the military or by having eligible family members who served. The bank is based on San Antonio and is a Fortune 500 diversified financial services group of companies in the United States Armed Forces. It had 12.4 million members by the end of 2017.
• In 1922, USAA was established in San Antonio by a group of 25 Army officers. They established the bank because those Army Officers were then unable to secure auto insurance as they were a high-risk group. On a gradual manner, USAA expanded to offer banking and insurance. The company ranked No. 100 in the 2018.
• The company has a partnership with Coinbase to give Bitcoin usage a timely boost.
• Those with stashes of Bitcoin are going to enjoy a virtual currency wallet as USAA will release a virtual currency wallet for 11,000 members this week in conjunction with Silicon Valley tech startup Coinbase. USAA making an investment in Coinbase in 2015 ran a pilot program with the wallet platform inside its own mobile app and website.
• Users can do nothing but view their bitcoin accounts only. It is because all the transactions here are handled through Coinbase directly.
• Despite being a renowned financial service company for the US military, the Texas-based USAA allows civilians to open bank accounts with them. It offers a large room for bitcoin users to transact as USAA has invested more than 150 million in Coinbase over the past few years.
• Through a USAA account, customers can track their bitcoin wallet on Coinbase. The company is gradually upgrading its banking structure to make it the best US crypto-friendly banks.

How to Track Your Bitcoin Wallet on USAA?  

1. Connect with Coinbase.
2. View Balances.
3. Monitor Transactions.

How does USAA’s Coinbase Connect work for USAA?

• With the help of USAA’s login portal, log in to your bank account first.
• Then navigate to ‘’my accounts summary’’.
• Click on ‘’Add a non-USAA account’’ and click on ‘’Coinbase Bitcoin Wallet’’.
• The system will then redirect you to a Coinbase login portal. Enter your email address and password.
• After all these processes done, click on ‘’Authorize’’ to complete the process and allow USAA to see your wallet balances.

Thus, you can monitor your Coinbase balances and through USAA’s website or mobile app.

2)     Ally Financial

• Ally Financial is a bank holding company that provides financial services including car finance, online banking via direct bank, corporate lending, vehicle insurance, and many more services. The company is organized in Delaware and headquartered in Detroit, Michigan.
• With 2.0 million depositors, Ally, one of the largest finance companies in the US, is on the list of largest banks in the United States by assets. The company provides car financing and lease for 4.5 million customers and originates 1.4 million car loans.  The company has sold more than 5 million vehicles through its SmartAuction online marketplace.
• As a Bitcoin-friendly bank, Ally bank is famed. This online-only bank provides 24/7 support to its clients. You can easily link your bank account to Coinbase and buy desired coins with your debit card. If you want, you can use credit cards too for buying crypto. They have a long crypto-friendly roadmap to execute down the road. Clients are very much satisfied with them.
• Until 2010, Ally was known as GMAC (General Motors Acceptance Corporation). But Ally was rebranded in 2010 and this is what we recognize it today. This virtual bank has no brick-and-mortar locations. They allow customers to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies using Ally debit or credit card.

Ally Bank is completely according to the law of the United States and serves those who run both traditional banking and cryptocurrencies. The bank serves the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase. With no physical branches, the bank is a fully digital platform. The bank only serves US customers.

3)     Simple Bank

• The initial name of Simple Bank was BankSimple, which was founded in 2009 in Brooklyn by CEO Joshua Reich and CFO Shamir Karkal. Jerry Neumann provided the initial capital. The company became able to raise $10 million from investors by August 2011. The company then moves its headquarters to Portland.
• This US-based bank only serves US residents. Simple Bank is cryptocurrency-friendly because they allow their customers to buy and sell cryptocurrencies. Deposits made to Simple Bank accounts are FDIC insured.

Starting as just a modern Fintech startup, Simple bank has become one of the best FDIC-backed insured banks for US citizens. The bank works with many cryptocurrency exchanges. Direct buying and selling of cryptocurrencies are possible through this bank. They support popular cryptos, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, and more. They offer a faster transaction facility with their InstantSend Technology. That they put no limit on the number of crypto transactions is their unique facility.

Features of Simple Bank

• Offers mobile app that are easy-to-use.
• No transaction limit for the number of cryptocurrency transactions.
• Offers a low 1% fee on international debit card transactions.
• Fully FDIC insured desposits.

Crypto friendly banks in Canada (Top 20 Safest Crypto Friendly Banks by Ranking)

Accounts blocking is a common matter in crypto banks just because of the fluctuations and lack of regulation. National Bank of Canada is the only bank that imposes no restrictions on crypto traders. The bank offers services to crypto traders without limits.

1)     Desjardins Bank

• The Desjardins Group, which is Canadian financial Services cooperative and the largest federation in North America, was founded in 1900 in Levis, Quebec by Alphonse Desjardins.
• The reckoning of 2017 shows that Desjardins Group is comprised of 293 local credit unions operating 1,032 points of service. Even though the group’s headquarters remain in Levis, most of its executive management, including the CEO, is based in Montreal.
• In the provinces of Quebec and Ontario, the group serves more than seven million members and clients. Besides retail banking, the Group has more than twenty subsidiaries offering products and services in over 30 developing countries through technical assistance programs and various investments. With an eye to helping women and youth in developing countries, Desjardins launched a social impact fund namely Aequitas in October 2020, and that fund could grow to 115 million dollars.
• Through a bank account at Desjardins, you can send up to $5000 CAD per day making an internal Desjardins transfer via your online bank account.

2)     National Bank of Canada

• With the headquarter in Montreal, the National Bank of Canada is in the sixth position according to its largeness. The bank has 2.4 million personal clients. National Bank’s Institution Number is 006 and its SWIFT code is BNDCCAMMINT.
• Francophone businessmen in Ontario and Quebec persuaded the provincial legislature to pass an act to establish a bank under their local control in 1859. Francophone wanted to maintain a unitary control and so he left no chance to other shareholders to buy this bank’s share. The man held all seats on the board of directors with Ulric-Joseph Tessier, lawyer and Member of the Legislative Assembly serving as chairman of the bank.
• This is the only bank in Canada allowing customers to buy cryptocurrency using credit cards. Here all the crypto transactions are regulated and monitored thoroughly as still, the crypto market has no strict regulations. The bank representative admits that a systematic blocking mechanism can be implemented soon even though there is still no systematic blocking mechanism.

Crypto Friendly Banks in United Kingdom (Top 15 Safest Crypto Friendly Banks by Ranking)

1)     Standard Chartered Bank

• This bank extends its wing all over the world, and that’s it’s a multinational banking and financial services company. With it’s headquarter in London, England, it operates a network of more than 1,200 branches and outlets across more than 70 countries and employs around 87,000 people.
• This UK-based bank earns its 90% profit from Asia, Africa, and Middle East. Its largest shareholder is the Government of Singapore-owned Temasek Holdings. Jose Vinals is the group chairman of Standard Chartered and Bill Winters is the current Group Chief Executive.
• The bank has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It has secondary listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the National Stock Exchange of India, and OTC Markets Group Pink.
• Reportedly, the bank currently does not allow the use of their debit and credit cards on cryptocurrency-related websites. However the bank has recently announced its plans for a cryptocurrency custody and trading desk. So, it is expected that the bank will soon back to the track of cryptocurrency. But there are no complaints about customer’s bank accounts being frozen for withdrawing funds from crypto exchanges.

2)     ClearBank

• 5 people gathered and asking between them if there is a better way for making faster and safer transactions in 2014.
• 2015: To concretize their dream, they grew their team from 5 to 15 and built their platform and prepared banking license application.
• They gained UK banking license for their ClearBank in 2016.
• As per their aim, they enable their partners to offer real-time payment and innovative banking services to their customers through their banking license and robust technology solution.
• ClearBank is a clearing bank for financial institutions. The bank made entry to bank the crypto exchange when Barclays and Coinbase ended their banking relationship. They allow debit and credit purchases. You should engage with ClearWork if you want to trade cryptocurrencies. The bank is authorized by the Financial Conduct Authority and/or by the Prudential Regulation Authority.
• They allow transactions to and from crypto-exchanges.

3)     Wirex

In 2014, this London-based company was founded. Opening a crypto-friendly business account, which is FCA-licensed and is secured with multi-signature cold storage, is possible in this bank. Using the Wirex app through both iOS and Android devices is possible. You can seamlessly buy, store, and exchange digital and traditional currencies anytime within the Wirex app. Using debit and credit cards is allowed here and you can link Wirex to any third-party services if you want.

Crypto Friendly Banks in Germany (Top 10 Safest Crypto Friendly Bank by Ranking)

1)     Fidor Bank

• France’s Groupe BPCE was to acquire Fidor Bank in July 2016. However, Fidor Bank didn’t go under them. But, all of a sudden, Fidor Bank announced to suspend its services in the UK on 15 September 2019 owing to uncertainties about the UK market.
• This German-based virtual crypto-friendly bank was founded in 2009. They allow opening cryptocurrency accounts. The bank also serves customers in Germany, Switzerland, Dubai, and Singapore.
• Fidor Crypto Account: Fidor bank’s bitcoin bank account helps convert cryptocurrencies into fiat money. In addition, its corporate bank account allows investors to run ICOs and Bitcoin exchanges to trade EUR and bitcoin on their platforms. Fidor bank’s partnership with Kraken enables customers to make instant deposits and withdrawals to and from their Fidor Bank account to their Kraken accounts. The bank has also a partnership with the German Bitcoin exchange. Fidor customers can enjoy express trade.
• Types of Crypto Accounts: You can choose the following types of crypto accounts depending on your requirements:

                       –Smart Giro Account: By buying and selling Bitcoin to another smart giro account, a smart giro account holder can easily receive money instantly. Fidor Bank allows Mastercard debit cards. The bank also offers so many standard features in this account.

                        –Fidor ICO Account: This account provides the facilities of pay-as-you-grow pricing model, API access, and many more. Organizers who want to conduct an ICO can use these bank accounts. Using this bank account, a holder can easily convert cryptocurrencies to fiat currency.

                        – Fidor Exchange Account: This account also offers the same facilities aforementioned in the previous point. This is Fidor’s corporate bank accounts for cryptocurrency exchanges.

Top 7 Reasons why Banks are not Crypto Friendly

1. Worldwide regulatory system: In 1989, the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF/GAFI) was established by the G7. This organization originated to combat the financing of terrorist organizations. The organization has now more than 34 members in several regional associates. As banks in Australia, western countries, and developed countries follow their AML/CTF regulation, they can’t be crypto-friendly.
2. Structure of Banking Sector: A senior banking practitioner, who asked not to be named, said in a Bitcoin Professionals meetup in Sydney that the high risk and cost factors make hurdles for banks to accept Bitcoin businesses on their books at this moment. Their existing know-your-customer verification requires them to clearly identify a person. Furthermore, their New Customer Due Diligence rules are averse to accepting Bitcoin.
3. Bitcoin and fiat money: Bitcoin is still a non-national currency, which is a fact. We can recognize Bitcoin as an e-money. The current law was written in 2006 before bitcoin had been released. The running Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act in Australia doesn’t  include bitcoin businesses under its designated services category, which is a great hurdle in the way to accept Bitcoin. Unlike money, bitcoin is limited to an internet-based electronic means of exchange that is backed by bullion or precious metal and is issued by a government body.
4. Work and higher costs: The anonymous banker says due to extra costs, the profit banks generate does not cover the compliance costs. Firstly, bitcoin’s business is not compliant with all the AML/CTF rules, and secondly, lack of oversight increases risk in bitcoin businesses. These factors keep banks abstain from the bitcoin business, as per the banker. Amor Sexton said,’’ Banks always take the simpler option, but few of the banks are taking a rational and fair approach by assessing each business on a case-by-case basis.’’
5. The bitcoin: Banks in smaller countries and non-US banks must comply with US regulations providing that they have customers who are US citizens or formal relationships with US businesses. Being a new phenomenon in the economy, Bitcoin must prove its industry trustworthy.
6. Banks are afraid of the fraudulence and scams of Bitcoins, like blackmail, money laundering, and tax fraud, etc.
7. Accounts blocking is common by banks as banks always think crypto transactions to be suspicious. It’s obvious that banks hide behind AML to make your crypto exposure as difficult a possible.

Being bound to comply with the anti-money laundering and know your customer regulations, the banks need to report any suspicious activity. But reporting and identifying any suspicious activity is hardly possible when transactions are made in crypto. So the banks are taken as responsible if any suspicious occurrence takes place with crypto. Banks block your crypto account when they cannot track down the origin of the funds before allowing your transfer.

Conclusion

To be honest, the crypto industry is not getting as much attention from traditional sectors as it should be. Despite institutional investors earn money from the crypto industry, they are not giving recognition to the crypto industry. But this suppression is temporary. We are making it clear to you with an example; when the sun’s rays first begin to shine for the first time, however, the earth is surrounded by black darkness. But, with time, the sunshine increases and thus dispels all the darkness from the world. In the same way, the crypto industry will one day get over this darkness, and all the 1^st level banks will start to accept Bitcoin and will act like the safest crypto-friendly bank. Crypto users will then remain no longer afraid of crypto accounts blocking. The time will obviously talk in favor of crypto users.