Buying Bitcoin in a banking app costs 4.1% round trip: Israel Discount Bank launches on 11/26—6 rules to know first
Buying BTC in a banking app with a 2% fee—is that expensive? Let’s do the math first.
Israel Discount Bank has published an information page on its website: starting November 26, personal banking customers can buy, hold, and sell BTC and ETH directly in the bank’s app, without opening a separate wallet or an account with an overseas exchange. The bank says this is a first in Israel.
The website lists 6 firm rules:
1. Only two coins: BTC and ETH. Other coins will be “considered in the future.”
2. Trading fee: 2% of the transaction amount per trade; currency-conversion fees are extra (if conversion is needed).
3. Custody fee: waived for six months from the 11/26 launch date; after that, 0.25% per quarter, or about 1% a year.
4. You can’t move coins out: transfers to external institutions or personal wallets aren’t allowed, and incoming transfers from outside aren’t allowed either.
5. Trading hours: Sunday to Friday, 09:00–23:00 (Israel time); no trading on Saturdays. Only market orders are available—no limit orders.
6. Settlement: coins are added to your holdings immediately; funds arrive on T+1. Eligibility: Israeli residents aged 18 or over with a securities account, and the service is available only through the personal banking app. Custody is handled by a third party, identified as Fireblocks in Israeli media reports.
The cost breakdown (based on the website’s rates):
- Buy 10,000 shekels’ worth: 200 is deducted upfront, leaving you with coins worth 9,800; selling incurs another 2% fee.
- With 2% fees on both the buy and sell, the coin price needs to rise by about 4.1% just to break even—and that’s before currency-conversion fees.
- After six months, add an annual custody fee of about 1%.
What it’s really selling isn’t a low price, but two things:
- You don’t have to safeguard your own private keys, and you can’t lose your seed phrase.
- Gains and losses can be combined with those from stocks and other investments for tax offsetting, with tax withheld based on actual profits.
But the trade-offs are clear too: if you can’t withdraw the coins, you don’t hold the keys; and you can’t trade on Saturdays or after 23:00, while coin prices move 24/7.
Here’s a checklist you can use right away: before deciding to buy coins on any platform, check these 4 things—
1. What’s the total fee for buying and selling, and how much does the price need to rise for you to break even?
2. What are the annual custody or management fees?
3. Can you withdraw coins to your own wallet?
4. During what hours can you sell? Can you trade on weekends and late at night?
If a platform doesn’t clearly spell out these 4 points, don’t rush to deposit funds.
Follow me for one practical tip every day to help you avoid pitfalls—no shilling.
#比特币 #银行 #以色列 $BTC $ETH
Buying BTC in a banking app with a 2% fee—is that expensive? Let’s do the math first.
Israel Discount Bank has published an information page on its website: starting November 26, personal banking customers can buy, hold, and sell BTC and ETH directly in the bank’s app, without opening a separate wallet or an account with an overseas exchange. The bank says this is a first in Israel.
The website lists 6 firm rules:
1. Only two coins: BTC and ETH. Other coins will be “considered in the future.”
2. Trading fee: 2% of the transaction amount per trade; currency-conversion fees are extra (if conversion is needed).
3. Custody fee: waived for six months from the 11/26 launch date; after that, 0.25% per quarter, or about 1% a year.
4. You can’t move coins out: transfers to external institutions or personal wallets aren’t allowed, and incoming transfers from outside aren’t allowed either.
5. Trading hours: Sunday to Friday, 09:00–23:00 (Israel time); no trading on Saturdays. Only market orders are available—no limit orders.
6. Settlement: coins are added to your holdings immediately; funds arrive on T+1. Eligibility: Israeli residents aged 18 or over with a securities account, and the service is available only through the personal banking app. Custody is handled by a third party, identified as Fireblocks in Israeli media reports.
The cost breakdown (based on the website’s rates):
- Buy 10,000 shekels’ worth: 200 is deducted upfront, leaving you with coins worth 9,800; selling incurs another 2% fee.
- With 2% fees on both the buy and sell, the coin price needs to rise by about 4.1% just to break even—and that’s before currency-conversion fees.
- After six months, add an annual custody fee of about 1%.
What it’s really selling isn’t a low price, but two things:
- You don’t have to safeguard your own private keys, and you can’t lose your seed phrase.
- Gains and losses can be combined with those from stocks and other investments for tax offsetting, with tax withheld based on actual profits.
But the trade-offs are clear too: if you can’t withdraw the coins, you don’t hold the keys; and you can’t trade on Saturdays or after 23:00, while coin prices move 24/7.
Here’s a checklist you can use right away: before deciding to buy coins on any platform, check these 4 things—
1. What’s the total fee for buying and selling, and how much does the price need to rise for you to break even?
2. What are the annual custody or management fees?
3. Can you withdraw coins to your own wallet?
4. During what hours can you sell? Can you trade on weekends and late at night?
If a platform doesn’t clearly spell out these 4 points, don’t rush to deposit funds.
Follow me for one practical tip every day to help you avoid pitfalls—no shilling.
#比特币 #银行 #以色列 $BTC $ETH
