Depositing AUD Into Binance: What Are Your Options?
What happened to Binance?
Binance was one of the most popular international crypto exchanges for Australians, thanks to its huge range of features and large list of supported cryptocurrencies.
However, in May 2023 the company encountered issues with its Australian payment provider and stopped supporting deposits and withdrawals in AUD.
The Australian bank, Cuscal, abruptly withdrew support for Binance, leaving the crypto exchange without the ability to process AUD transactions.
The resulting illiquidity caused some extremely lopsided AUD trading pairs. For example, within the next 24 hours, BTC/AUD was trading on Binance for 22% cheaper compared to other platforms that supported AUD trading pairs.
Binance patched the leak by disabling most AUD trading pairs, before eventually removing support for most AUD-related activities from the exchange.
Related: Binance Australia review
So, can you deposit AUD onto Binance?
Despite a strong Australian customer base, Binance is yet to re-enable bank transfers using the country’s native currency.
Users technically can still deposit AUD onto Binance, however the methods are far less convenient than in years prior. Investors can consider using a credit/debit card to fund their Binance accounts – however, this incurs significant fees and requires the use of a third-party provider.
The other viable method, Peer-to-Peer (P2P), can be cost-effective but is slow as there are often very few AUD sellers available.
Overall, it is not an ideal experience for users to either deposit or withdraw AUD to and from Binance.
You can still trade on Binance in Australia
Binance is packed with useful features and sports a massive list of tradeable altcoins, meaning it is a valuable exchange to investors even with the restrictions on Australians.
Although depositing and withdrawing AUD from Binance is not viable, Aussies can still access, make an account and trade cryptocurrency on the platform.
However, if you’re not game to use one of the more advanced or expensive methods to deposit AUD to Binance, the best option is to use another exchange that does support Australian currency. Investors can deposit AUD to a native platform, use it to buy cryptocurrency (ideally a stablecoin), and then send that to their Binance wallet to start trading with.
This can sound a little complex, however, this depositing process is cheaper and more reliable than alternatives offered by Binance.
How can I trade crypto on Binance?
For most Australians, using a local exchange will be the most efficient way to deposit AUD onto a trading platform. Several reputable businesses operate within the country and support AUD deposits, such as Swyftx, Coinjar and BTC Markets. This can be a great way to technically still use AUD on the Binance exchange, while not falling for expensive third-party processing fees.
The method to do this is quite simple. For the sake of this guide, we will use Swyftx as an example. Keep in mind that investors who do not need to take advantage of Binance can simply use Swyftx, or a similar local exchange, for their crypto trading needs.
Step 1: Create a Swyftx account
Head to the Swyftx homepage and create an account, if you haven’t already. This will require several things, including email, password and some basic information like residence and date of birth.
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Step 2: Verify your Swyftx account
To begin trading on Swyftx, new users must verify their account in compliance with Australian Know Your Customer (KYC) laws. This will involve taking photos of a government-issued document, so make sure you have an Australian driver’s license or passport handy. Follow the prompts to verify the account.
Step 3: Deposit AUD
Next, you will need to deposit AUD onto your Swyftx account. Swyftx supports Osko bank transfers, which means your account can be funded with AUD for free in a matter of minutes (deposit can take up to 24 hours)You can do so by selecting the “Deposit” on the dashboard, and clicking “Australian dollars” as the asset to deposit.
Step 4: Buy cryptocurrency
Now, we must buy a cryptocurrency to transfer to Binance. It is usually recommended to buy a stablecoin in this instance to ensure your AUD doesn’t drop in value. Tether USD and USDC are good options for this purpose.
To do this, simply head over to the “Quick Buy” tab from the dashboard and enter the cryptocurrency you wish to purchase.
Step 5: Set up Binance account and wallet
Now that the account is loaded up with a cryptocurrency, it’s ready to be sent to Binance. First of all, make sure you have a verified Binance account ready to go. Next, head to your Binance dashboard and navigate to your “Spot wallet”. From here, find the cryptocurrency you purchased in Step 4 and click on it. This will bring up a tab on the right-hand side of your desktop. Now, click “Deposit”.
This will bring up your Binance wallet for that cryptocurrency, providing instructions on how to complete the deposit. Each wallet will have its own unique address – make sure to take note of this as well as the network you choose from the “Select network” menu.
Step 6: Complete transaction
Now, head back to Swyftx. Select the “Withdraw” option from the left-hand dashboard menu, followed by the asset you wish to send to Binance. You will then be prompted to add an address – copy and paste the one from your corresponding Binance wallet.
Finally, enter the amount of crypto you wish to withdraw, review the fees and verify the transaction. Within an hour, the crypto should have been successfully transferred to your Binance account ready for trading.
What if I have funds on Binance? What can I do?
Although you cannot directly withdraw AUD from Binance to an Australian bank account, there are several options for investors with money stuck on the exchange. Click the linkto read our full guide.