Cryptocurrencies
Trade CFDs on 13 popular cryptocurrencies against the US dollar. Spreads start from only US$80 and margins from 10% for Bitcoin.
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Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash
Using the MetaTrader 4 and 5 platforms, you can trade Bitcoin CFDs from your laptop, mobile and tablet devices with spreads from US$80 for Bitcoin and US$2 for Bitcoin Cash.
Ethereum and Litecoin
Trade 2 major altcoins, Ethereum and Litecoin, against the US dollar with spreads from as low as US$5 for Ethereum and US$0.6 for Litecoin.
More cryptos
Now, you can start trading 9 more cryptocurrencies such as Binance Coin, Cardano, Chainlink, Dogecoin, Polkadot, EOS, Stellar, Tezos and Uniswap. We offer them as a CFD against the US dollar.
Cryptocurrencies
What are cryptocurrencies?
Cryptocurrencies are a digital form of currency that can be traded and used to pay for things. Their value is determined by supply and demand – which makes them highly speculative and unpredictable.
The rising popularity of cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrencies were born out of a counter culture – the desire to trade in a currency that was neither regulated by any central bank, nor influenced by national currencies and major economic events.
Cryptos use distributed ledger technology, or blockchain, to maintain a public record of all transactions. Tokens or coins can be bought and sold and are stored in a digital wallet, either online through an exchange like Binance, or offline ‘in cold storage’ on a server.
When Bitcoin was first released in 2009, most financial institutions thought it would be a flash in the pan and amount to nothing. Nine years later Bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies crashed and the sceptics felt vindicated. But crypto has bounced back and, in 2020, Bitcoin soared to more than US$60,000 per coin. It crossed this level again in October 2021. Although there were two major sell-offs in spring and summer of 2021, Bitcoin and other major crypto currencies are showing signs of a swift comeback, and many crypto aficionados, including Fundstrat Global Advisors' Tom Lee, predict a price point of $100,000 for Bitcoin before the start of 2022.
What is cryptocurrency trading?
Whereas coins or tokens involve buying a fraction of, say, Bitcoin and holding that investment in a digital wallet until you want to sell, cryptocurrencies as CFDs are traded against the US dollar, much in the same way as you would trade forex CFDs. We offer 13 popular cryptocurrencies:
- Bitcoin (BTC/USD)
- Bitcoin Cash (BCH/USD)
- Ethereum (ETH/USD)
- Litecoin (LTC/USD)
- Binance Coin (BNB/USD)
- Cardano (ADA/USD)
- Chainlink (LINK/USD)
- Dogecoin (DOGE/USD)
- Polkadot (DOT/USD)
- EOS (EOS/USD)
- Stellar (XLM/USD)
- Tezos (XTZ/USD)
- Uniswap (UNI/USD)
Here are some of the key features of trading cryptocurrencies:
- You can go long and short
- Trade without owning the coin you are trading
- Volatility. Cryptocurrencies often move faster than traditional currencies
- 24/7 trading when the markets are open
- CFDs use leverage, which magnifies profit and loss
Risk management
Because cryptocurrencies are so volatile, it’s vital you protect your profits and manage your risk by adding stop losses to your trades. Keep an eye on your margin and be aware that leverage can also work against you at the same speed as it can work in your favour.
How to trade cryptocurrencies with OANDA
Trade the 13 big names in crypto - Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Litecoin, Binance Coin, Cardano, Chainlink, Dogecoin, Polkadot, EOS, Stellar, Tezos and Uniswap - on MT5. Customisable layouts, trade-through charts, a range of plug-ins, intuitive interface and more. Available on trade on live and demo accounts.
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Frequently asked questions
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Is cryptocurrency trading volatile?
Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile unregulated assets, which means they can move up or down in price at speed. So, if you are on the right side of the trade, it may indeed look easy to make money trading cryptos. What you must remember is that it’s equally easy to lose money on a crypto trade - and at tremendous speed. So, be sure to use a stop loss on all of your crypto trades.
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What is a cryptocurrency pair?
Cryptocurrency pairs are assets that can be traded for each other or against a major currency such as the US dollar on an exchange — for example Bitcoin versus US dollar (BTC/USD) Bitcoin/Litecoin (BTC/LTC) and Ethereum/Bitcoin Cash (ETH/BCH). To trade a pair you need to have some knowledge about both currencies and their strength in the market.
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How do I start trading cryptocurrencies?
We offer CFD trading in 13 cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Litecoin, Binance Coin, Cardano, Chainlink, Dogecoin, Polkadot, EOS, Stellar, Tezos and Uniswap. When you trade these cryptos, you are trading them as pairs with the US dollar. This means you can go long or short. Start by opening small positions to begin with, then scale up as you get to know the volatility of the pair you’ve chosen to trade.
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What is the best way to trade cryptocurrencies?
Trading cryptocurrencies is usually understood to mean you are trading a crypto coin, or token, against the US dollar. As cryptos are highly volatile currencies, we recommend you start with a small trade size, put a stop loss on your trade, and see how you go before scaling up.
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What is the difference between trading crypto coins and spot pairs?
When you invest in a crypto coin, you buy, then hold or sell that coin at a later date, usually some time in the distant future. As with a precious asset like gold, this is more like an investment, not a trade. When you trade cryptos as a spot pair - that’s to say as against the US dollar - you are speculating on the underlying asset as opposed to taking ownership of it. You can also short the pair.
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What is the best cryptocurrency to trade?
This depends entirely on the behaviour of cryptocurrencies in general at the time you look to trade, as well as the crypto pair you are interested in. That said, the 3 most popular cryptocurrency pairs are listed below:
- BTC/USD - Bitcoin (BTC) against the US dollar
- ETH/USD - Ethereum (ETH) is the second biggest cryptocurrency after Bitcoin
- LTC/USD - Litecoin (LTC) is traded against the US dollar
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What moves the cryptocurrency market?
There are lots of theories as to what moves the cryptocurrency market. It could be argued that Bitcoin and other cryptos were seen as a hedge against a depreciating dollar and a slump in the global economy due to the pandemic. The price of cryptos was also pushed to extremes by the media and retail traders piling in on the action.
When Bitcoin crashed twice in 2021, pundits argued that now we had a vaccine, we could reasonably hope to see a speedy recovery - and so Bitcoin and other crypto currencies lost their appeal. It was also argued that the Chinese government’s antipathy towards Bitcoin also contributed to uncertainty in the crypto space. It could also be argued that Bitcoin’s price came down as a result of traders taking profits.
The general consensus is that cryptocurrencies are here to stay and are poised to resume their bull run well into 2022, propelled by the media and banks’ massive purchases of leading crypto currencies.
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