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I have South African Rands that I would like to purchase bitcoins with. No Websites I know of accept Rands (ZAR). How do I get around this?

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    Have you tried exchanging ZAR for dollars, euros, or pounds?
    – Nick ODell
    Apr 11, 2013 at 16:22
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    Whats the easiest way to convert Rands to USD, GBP or EUR?
    – Jake
    Apr 12, 2013 at 7:26
  • @Jake, I'm South African too, how much profit have you made on your investment thus far?
    – pythonian29033
    Jun 30, 2016 at 11:20

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https://www.luno.com (previously known as BitX) trades BTC for ZAR via EFT to South African banks. They have accounts at FNB and Standard Bank. If you have an account at one of those, it will clear faster.

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If you want to buy bitcoins with ZAR try trading face to face with some SA locals who have bitcoins. Check out the facebook.com/bitcoinzar page to find other locals who are into bitcoins. You can also try localbitcoins.com where locals trade coins. You could also sell something for bitcoins to get bitcoins, use bitpay for that. Check out www.bitcoinzar.co.za too for some SA businesses that accept bitcoins, maybe they will trade some with you.

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    This is actually an excellent answer. Bitcoinzar is a South African site. They actually link to localbitcoins.com, on which I easily found three people willing to sell Bitcoin for ZAR just by searching for "South Africa."
    – Dane
    Jun 14, 2013 at 14:16
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ICE3X is a new and improved site for South Africans.

Buy and Sell: Bitcoin (BTC) / Litecoin (LTC) / Rand (ZAR).

Links directly to your South Africa bank account. Fast and Direct EFT transfers to our Bank Account, currency storage and quick trading.

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  • They are also do Bitcoin Cash.
    – Sydwell
    Jun 9, 2018 at 12:35
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You can find people willing to sell you bitcoins for ZAR online here: all localbitcoins online offers to sell.

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I will list some methods I have used to purchase Bitcoins as a South African resident:

1) Peer to peer exchanges- LocalBitcoins, Paxful.com- Purchase Bitcoins directly from peers using these platforms. Use one of the many payment methods offered by local traders, this includes- EFT, Cash Deposit, eWallet, eBucks, Cash in person, Neteller, Paypal, Skrill and many more. Beware of potential scams and trade with traders with reputable score and only with non reversible payment methods.

2) Centralized exchanges- BitX.co & ice3x- The most popular centralized exchange currently, good liquidity and fast pay-outs. They require full verification of identity and proof of residence to use all features of the exchange.

3) Credit card and Paypal- If you would like to purchase Bitcoins using your credit or debit card, here are some options- Virwox.com, Coinbase.com, Cex.io

For a complete and up to date list of places to purchase bitcoins, check out some local Bitcoin sites- Bitcoin News South Africa and BitcoinZar are both good.

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  • Another note on peer-to-peer exchanges, specifically any that requires in-person meetings: meet in public! Personal safety is important any time you are meeting a stranger, potentially carrying a large amount of cash.
    – Jestin
    Jun 22, 2016 at 19:46
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Have you tried www.altcointrader.co.za? It is an exchange that works with BTC, LTC, and NMC, and it's local. It supports the use of ZAR as well.

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Another option would be www.ice3x.co.za. You can not sell bitcoin there but you are able to buy. Payments via EFT and there is a physical business address and phone number.

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    Tried to trade. Get an error: "trading is not enabled for this account" No info on how to get it enabled. Extremely low prices (120ZAR/1BTC) make me think the transaction volume == zero, and the malformed html does not give me much confidence in the exchange.
    – Gary van der Merwe
    Dec 11, 2013 at 19:16
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You need a wealth translator who would take a fee due to the illiquidity of Rands/Bitcoins transactions. Or do it yourself realizing there is a bid/ask on every translation.

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    There are 178 ISO recognized currencies. If you want to change any currency for any currency, then you need 31,500 separate markets. Sometimes it makes sense to convert into a commonly used currency first, rather than trading directly between two obscure currencies.
    – Nick ODell
    Apr 13, 2013 at 2:13

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