BitPay -- KYC is here!

[Raja_MBZ]

Has someone around tried to use BitPay multiple times with the maximum "continue as a guest" limit? Like three purchases of $2999 each (equivalent to $8997) in a single day using the same IP address? If it works, it can help the users depositing BTC to services like Skrill/Neteller with no KYC requirement.

i dont have option "continue as a guest", have only "continue"
happened in Skrill.
it is not about limits at all.
seems Skrill cant(dont want) vouch for me to their partner Bitpay and prefer to make some pain to me who happens to be their full verified client

Well, I'm still able to use that "continue as a guest" for <$3000 Skrill deposits (through BitPay):

[1714681188]

1714681188

[1714681188]

1714681188

[1714681188]

1714681188

[swirl]

strange i dont have that button "continue as guest", im in EU located
im currently in situtation where can make transaction request (uploading/selling BTC for FIAT) in Skrill but not able to see invoice
and thats why cant complete this process

[TryNinja]

BIG THANKS to HKFP's supporters who donated HK$14,817 in Bitcoin since 2015.

However, cryto donations are temporarily suspended as
@BitPay
 has refused to transfer
@hongkongfp
's donations for 3 weeks without good reason.
@spair
 
@BitPaySupport

https://mobile.twitter.com/tomgrundy/status/1171657974043074562

Another one... Anyone still thinking using BitPay is a good idea?

Hongkongfp = Hong Kong Free Press.

[gentlemand]

Another one... Anyone still thinking using BitPay is a good idea?

Since Bitpay uses banks it's just the same as... using banks.

Anyone who thinks just because they have a slice of Bitcoin in their name means they're permissionless and radical is a tosser. They're just another corporation.

[bitcoin-shark]

unfortunately, is the sad reality, slowly all the centralized exchanges will introduce the verification of the identities (kyc), pushing the majority of users towards decentralized exchanges (dex)...

[malevolent]

hi. Do you think it's worth accepting bitcoin payments for small businesses?

Unless you really must, I'd use a different service, one which doesn't make it harder to pay for the user, one which doesn't block entire countries or dare ask buyers for KYC.

[Marckolind]

KYC seems to be enforced anywhere, where serious money is being moved. Thank God you can use DEX's to trade still without KYC, because sooner or later, you wont be able to trade anywhere without sharing all your personal details. It sucks, but just goes to show that crypto isn't what it used to be anymore.

I've been trading on the Blocknet DEX for a while, and I'm sure more and more people will make use of these DEX's in the future. Which got me thinking, perhaps you could make a decentralized payment gateway as well? We'll see I guess!

[coupable]

Thank God you can use DEX's to trade still without KYC,

Infortunetly, it's not garanteed that a DEX would not ask users for personal information. Many "called" decentralised exchanges forced KYC during 2019.
Crypto-bridge as exemple forced KYC without any notice to both new and old users, there should be many users who had their accounts frozen. Also IDEX forced KYC in a soft way, upon to withdraw limits.
Maybe you still have a good experience with your prefered DEX but your first sentence is absolutely true :

KYC seems to be enforced anywhere.

[nelson4lov]

It's nothing new. Almost all service providers and exchanges in the crypto sphere has added the option for KYC. Some compulsory and others not mandatory. I knew KYC were one of the changes we would see this year and it happened exactly as predicted. If the biggest exchanges can succumb to regulatory policies. The problem with KYC is the fact that it goes against everything bitcoin stands for.

[Jaspion]

The problem with KYC is the fact that it goes against everything bitcoin stands for.

Totally agreed, that's sad.
We have to hope that regulations around KYC in crypto will be changing.
Govs want to know more about crypto traders but services should protect personal data of their users in order to keep users interest in crypto.
So services should use all their power to prevent govs from killing last privacy in crypto.

[AitorMarcos]

I've been trading on the Blocknet DEX for a while, and I'm sure more and more people will make use of these DEX's in the future. Which got me thinking, perhaps you could make a decentralized payment gateway as well? We'll see I guess!

For sure most of the exchange services will force users to share personal data anyway.
However, I think at the end of the day it will lead to illegal activites (e.g. Y person shares his personal data with BitPay, Z person makes a transaction to Y, so Y trades coins to USD and takes 10% - you get the point)

[imstillthebest]

The problem with KYC is the fact that it goes against everything bitcoin stands for.

Totally agreed, that's sad.
We have to hope that regulations around KYC in crypto will be changing.
Govs want to know more about crypto traders but services should protect personal data of their users in order to keep users interest in crypto.
So services should use all their power to prevent govs from killing last privacy in crypto.

of course they would keep your data's and private info safe as long as they are not a shady/scammy company but company like bitpay is pretty popular and already gain reputation from the public so we must afraid to submit our kyc's with them only if we are really willing to use thier service .

govt's dont kill crypto but im aware that there are govt's that banned crypto for some reason however there are still govt's left that also want the best for crypto's  in the way that they support it and promote it  .

[PrimeNumber7]

KYC seems to be enforced anywhere, where serious money is being moved. Thank God you can use DEX's to trade still without KYC, because sooner or later, you wont be able to trade anywhere without sharing all your personal details. It sucks, but just goes to show that crypto isn't what it used to be anymore.

I've been trading on the Blocknet DEX for a while, and I'm sure more and more people will make use of these DEX's in the future. Which got me thinking, perhaps you could make a decentralized payment gateway as well? We'll see I guess!

Anyone can create a DEX and the barriers to entry are low, including the requirements of trust and I don’t think it would be difficult to run a DEX anonymously. For these reasons, I don’t think there will ever be a time there is no DEX that will not allow KYC free trading.

[squatter]

Although BitPay's policy states that the KYC threshold for refunds is ≥ 1000 USD, anecdotal reports are now emerging that suggest the threshold is lower:

Today I had to get a refund from Bitpay for an invoice that they fucked up and they made me go through full KYC procedures in order to get that refund (which still hasn't arrived).

Was the amount over $1,000 or have they lowered the KYC threshold?

No, it was much lower than $1000.

It isn't clear whether this is a US-specific policy or something else. Either way, beware of BitPay if you intend to avoid KYC! You may be forced to give up your ID documents if they screw up and need to refund you.

[o_e_l_e_o]

A quick question for The Pharmacist: Is this the first time you have requested a refund via BitPay? Could it be that this most recent refund would take you over the $1000 limit when combined with previous refunds? I flat out refuse to touch BitPay - as far as I am aware they don't force you to make an account just to pay for things, but we know they perform blockchain analysis and cooperate with companies like Chainalysis to track their users, so perhaps this recent refund was linked to previous refunds and tipped you over the limit?

As ever, this seems like a good idea to post the following link: Why BitPay is anti-bitcoin, why you should avoid them, and a directory of alternate merchants who do not use BitPay - https://debitpay.directory/anti-bitcoin/


Edit: Just found this on Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/kxhxv7/warning_bitpay_is_now_forcing_every_user_to_both/

It appears that KYC is now mandatory for any and every use of BitPay, regardless of value. Man, fuck BitPay.

The community should not roll over and accept this massive invasion of our privacy. The whole point of bitcoin is to not trust third parties in our transactions with each other, not let them stick their noses where they don't belong and charge a fee for the privilege of being spied on. I would suggest everyone email any merchants they know of who use BitPay with something along the lines of the template email given in that Reddit post. And most importantly, stop using merchants who use BitPay.

[dre1982]

I think we will see this more often.

Here in The Netherlands all the crypto companies got way more strict rules last year. Normally I could pay out BTC without any verification. Now everyone have to been verified, otherwise the companies may not pay out. Many companies stopped here due those new regulations.

[figmentofmyass]

Edit: Just found this on Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/kxhxv7/warning_bitpay_is_now_forcing_every_user_to_both/

It appears that KYC is now mandatory for any and every use of BitPay, regardless of value. Man, fuck BitPay.

i just bought a $100 amazon gift card through the bitpay wallet a few moments ago. no KYC required. also bought $500 in gift cards ~12 hours ago on egifter through bitpay---same.

i'm not exactly calling bullshit; i'm sure something is happening. but it doesn't appear to be across the board, yet anyway. it's also possible that the OP of that reddit thread is just triggering the known thresholds (like a $3k purchase) and taking a screenshot. you never know. i haven't seen any reports about this surface on coindesk/cointelegraph or other places like that.

i hate bitpay, but i'll be bummed out if there is truth to this and they're in the process of rolling it out. if i can't get amazon gift cards through the bitpay wallet anymore, the only other consistent option will be bitrefill, and they charge a pretty big markup.

[o_e_l_e_o]

if i can't get amazon gift cards through the bitpay wallet anymore, the only other consistent option will be bitrefill, and they charge a pretty big markup.

What prices are BitPay charging for their cards? I've never found Bitrefill prices to be that expensive. At the moment, a $500 Amazon card works out to around $503 worth of bitcoin, but with the 1% reward that they offer that comes out at $498. You can even get up to 5-6% back on some other retailers, which makes their cards work out pretty cheap indeed.

Another use from the BCash subreddit seems to be reporting the same thing recently. Using BitPay to try to pay for food delivery and being met with KYC demands - https://www.reddit.com/r/btc/comments/ksjbld/bitpay_now_requiring_full_kyc_info_to_pay_for/

[figmentofmyass]

if i can't get amazon gift cards through the bitpay wallet anymore, the only other consistent option will be bitrefill, and they charge a pretty big markup.

What prices are BitPay charging for their cards? I've never found Bitrefill prices to be that expensive. At the moment, a $500 Amazon card works out to around $503 worth of bitcoin, but with the 1% reward that they offer that comes out at $498. You can even get up to 5-6% back on some other retailers, which makes their cards work out pretty cheap indeed.

it's actually been quite a while since i've used bitrefill. i remembered the markup being ~2% many months ago, but it's ~0.8% now. that's not accounting for the 1% bonus either---not bad at all.

bitpay does 1:1 no markups/no bonuses, but they do charge their annoying network/miner fees, which are sorta highway robbery during high congestion times. the silver lining is they honor payment without confirmation, so delivery is instant.

thanks for pointing that out. bitrefill is better than i thought.

[o_e_l_e_o]

the silver lining is they honor payment without confirmation, so delivery is instant.

If you are comfortable trusting Bitrefill to hold some funds on your behalf, then you can always top up your account with some bitcoin when transactions fees are low, which will allow you to purchase cards instantly at a future date. They have also introduced a "Bitrefill Balance Card" denominated in USD which you can buy using bitcoin. This effectively allows you to convert bitcoin to a USD balance when the price is favorable (either by transferring bitcoin at that time or by spending bitcoin in your account), which you can then spend on cards later.