Although it’s possible to buy the Cronos (CRO) via the Crypto.com app (which is where you can actually use it), it suprisingly doesn’t work out to be the cheapest route.
Check out this list for a short rundown of where you can get it cheaper in the UK.
Where Can You Buy Cronos (CRO) in the UK?
Looking to use a UK bank transfer to buy Cronos (CRO)?
Here are the cheapest places I know about available to UK residents:
| Provider | Payment Method | Trading Fees |
|---|---|---|
| Coinbase (Advanced Trade) | UK Bank Transfer | 0.6% or less |
| CoinJar | UK Bank Transfer | 1% |
| Coinbase (Simple) | UK Bank Transfer | 2% (if > £200) |
| Crypto.com App | UK Bank Transfer | Variable Exchange Rate |
| BC Bitcoin | UK Bank Transfer | 5% |
And here are the cheapest places I could find to buy Cronos (CRO) with a debit card in the UK:
| Provider | Payment Method | Trading Fees |
|---|---|---|
| CoinJar | Debit Card | 2% |
| Crypto.com App | Debit Card | 2.99% |
| Coinbase (Simple) | Debit Card | 5.49% (if > £200) |
Scroll down to learn more about my favourite choices.
How to Buy CRO UK
1. Coinbase
Coinbase is one of the most popular cryptocurrency exchanges around.
You’ve been able to deposit GBP into Coinbase with a UK bank transfer for years. And after your initial deposit, anything you send over via Faster Payments tends to be credited within minutes. There aren’t any fees to deposit GBP this way either.
You can buy Cronos (CRO) through Coinbase’s standard interface, but you’ll pay lower fees when you switch to its Advanced Trade interface. But the downside of doing this is that you can’t currently buy Cronos (CRO) directly with GBP.
- If you don’t have one, open up a Coinbase account.
- Deposit GBP into your Coinbase account. Your first deposit might take hours (or more), but thereafter I’ve found that anything I send is credited within minutes.
- Buy USDT on the USDT-GBP market using Coinbase’s Advanced Trade interface.This is what we’re going to exchange the GBP for, which can then be used to buy Cronos (CRO).
- Exchange USDT for CRO on the CRO-USDT market using Coinbase’s Advanced Trade interface.
Fees when using Coinbase’s Advanced Trade interface are up to 0.6%, but you’ll be charged a different rate (up to 0.001%) when buying or selling some stablecoins (e.g., USDT or USDC) with GBP.
But while it’s lower-cost to use Coinbase’s Advanced Trade interface, it’s a lot less beginner friendly. If you’ve never used something like it before, there will be a learning curve.
Coinbase WebsiteCoinbase Review
2. CoinJar
Founded in 2013, CoinJar is a cryptocurrency broker where you can buy an ever-growing number of cryptocurrencies (50+) in the UK.
In contrast to Coinbase’s Advanced Trade interface, CoinJar has a simple and easy-to-use interface which can be accessed via a browser or its mobile app. In short, it’s much more beginner friendly.
And unlike similar alternatives, CoinJar don’t charge an insane premium for that convenience:
- You’ll be charged a fee of 1% if you buy anything using GBP you’ve deposited with a UK bank transfer (via Faster Payments).
- If you want to use a debit card, you’ll instead be charged a fee of 2% to instantly buy any supported cryptocurrency.
I prefer to use a UK bank transfer (via Faster Payments) to deposit GBP into cryptocurrency platforms like CoinJar – as it’s usually quick, cheap (or free), and lets you buy things at lower fees.
- If you don’t already have one, open a CoinJar account. You’ll have to verify your identity, but this is standard practice with regulated brokers and exchanges.
- Deposit GBP using a UK bank transfer (Faster Payments). Your first deposit might take a while to arrive, but thereafter it only takes minutes.
- Head over to ‘Buy/Sell’ and search for CRO in the filter.
- Select ‘Buy CRO’ and follow through the steps. When you’re done, you’ll see it credited in the ‘Accounts’ area.
3. Crypto.com App
The Crypto.com app allows UK residents to buy more than 250 cryptocurrencies – which includes well-known coins like Cardano (ADA) and Ripple (XRP), but also ones that are harder to find in other places like Nano (XNO).
And although it promotes itself as selling cryptocurrencies to users at “true cost”, I’ve found that the exchange rates you’re quoted when buying cryptocurrencies on the Crypto.com app are consistently higher than you can find elsewhere.
It seems to vary all the time (and depend on the coin you’re looking at).
And if you choose to use a debit card to buy CRO instead, you’ll normally pay 2.99% in fees (in addition to the exchange rate markup).
The Crypto.com app is more than just a place to buy and sell cryptocurrencies though. Check out my full review (linked below) to learn more.
What is Cronos (CRO)?
Cronos (CRO) is the native token of the Crypto.org Chain. The Crypto.org Chain is a blockchain that was created by the team at Crypto.com, one of the world’s largest crypto trading platforms. CRO is also used to provide rewards and incentives for users of Crypto.com’s app and exchange.
The team behind Crypto.com launched the CRO token in March of 2019 as part of the exchange’s mission to get “cryptocurrency in every wallet”. CRO has since become an important part of the growing Crypto.org Chain, which is an open-source and permissionless blockchain that hopes to attract new crypto projects with its fast transactions and low fees.
To understand what the Cronos (CRO) does, you need a good working knowledge of the Crypto.com ecosystem.
Crypto.com is best known for the crypto brokerage service that it offers through its mobile app. But the company also offers a range of other features, like a DeFi wallet, crypto-backed loans, and a crypto rewards credit card.
The company behind Crypto.com also created a blockchain protocol called the Crypto.org Chain. This blockchain was built using the Cosmos SDK (software development kit) and its goal is to make transactions as fast and as cheap as possible.
Where does the Cronos (CRO) come into the picture?
CRO is used to pay for transaction fees on the Crypto.org Chain. It’s also used to secure the blockchain through Proof-of-Stake (PoS). It provides governance votes to token holders so that they can have a say in proposed changes to the network. Anyone who stakes CRO on the Crypto.org Chain can also earn rewards on their staked tokens.
On Crypto.com’s app and its web-based exchange, the CRO token takes on more of a rewards token role to encourage people to use the platform.
Any user of the Crypto.com app or exchange that locks up their CRO tokens on the platform can access a wide range of features and crypto rewards, such as:
- Crypto.com Visa Card: Locking up CRO in the Crypto.com app gets you higher cash back rewards for purchases made with the Crypto.com Visa Card.
- Crypto.com Pay: If you lock up your CRO in the app, you can earn more cashback when you buy gift cards or make purchases through Crypto Pay.
- Crypto.com Earn: Anyone who locks up CRO can access higher interest rates on any crypto that they invest through the Crypto.com app’s Crypto Earn feature.
- Crypto.com Credit: You can get lower APR rates on crypto-backed loans with Crypto.com when you lock up CRO on the platform. However, this feature isn’t currently available in the UK.
- The Syndicate: If you lock up more than 5,000 CRO and meet certain trading volume requirements, you can access Crypto.com’s Syndicate, which is a discount marketplace for up-and-coming cryptocurrencies.
Best Cronos (CRO) Wallets
Cronos (CRO) is a tricky cryptocurrency to store and manage. That’s because there are actually two versions of CRO in the cryptosphere: an ERC-20 version and a native Crypto.org Chain version.
If you bought your CRO through a platform that’s not Crypto.com, you need to check which kind of CRO you have.
Many exchanges and brokers other than Crypto.com only support the ERC-20 version of the token. If you send your CRO to the wrong address, you will lose your tokens forever. So again, this is really important to know before moving it.
Holders of ERC-20 CRO can store the private keys to their tokens in most Ethereum Network-compatible wallets, such as Atomic Wallet, MetaMask, and Coinbase Wallet. You can also store the private keys to ERC-20 CRO in Trezor and Ledger hardware wallets, but you need to integrate your wallet with MetaMask to manage your tokens.
But if you bought your CRO through Crypto.com, you have the choice of whether you want to withdraw the ERC-20 or the mainnet version of your tokens.
There are only a few wallets that support native CRO, including:
- Crypto.com DeFi Wallet: The Crypto.com DeFi wallet is a non-custodial wallet that’s available as a mobile app. It supports both the ERC-20 and the native version of CRO. It also supports CRO staking directly on the Crypto.org Chain.
- Crypto.org Chain Desktop Wallet: This open-source wallet is available as a desktop app and it offers full support for the Crypto.com Chain. You can manage your native CRO in the wallet and you can use the wallet to stake your tokens or place governance votes.
- Ledger Nano S & Nano X: Both the Ledger Nano S and Nano X support native CRO. However, you can’t manage your native CRO from the Ledger Live wallet interface. But, you can install the Crypto.org Chain app on your Ledger device and then connect it to the Crypto.org Chain Desktop Wallet to manage your tokens. Check out this guide from Crypto.org to learn more about how this all works.