Bitbuy Vs Wealthsimple Crypto: Which Is Better For Canadians In 2026?

How Do Bitbuy And Wealthsimple Crypto Compare, Fact By Fact?

Every row below comes from each company’s own pages and the Canadian registries, checked October 2026. Where a row has no fair winner, it says so.

What Are The Key Differences Between Bitbuy And Wealthsimple Crypto?

How Do You Fund And Cash Out Bitbuy And Wealthsimple Crypto In Canada?

Funding for the live platform is now on Robinhood. Bitbuy-specific limits are Not published. Crypto trades in CAD or USD; USD trades pay a 1.5% FX fee plus a corporate exchange fee unless you have a USD account. The 5 business day deposit hold before crypto withdrawal is the main timing trap.

What Does It Actually Cost To Buy On Wealthsimple Crypto?

Wealthsimple Crypto: Flat 0.5% fee per order. The high end adds the 1.00% spread used in Wealthsimple's own CAD 5,000 example (spread varies with market conditions) from the fee schedule dated 2026-09-24. Active Trader status (50 eligible trades in a calendar month) removes the spread. A CAD 1 surcharge applies to orders under CAD 100 (not counted here). Ranges reflect each platform’s published band, not a single quote. Bank and network fees are not included.

What Do Bitbuy And Wealthsimple Crypto Offer Beyond Buying And Selling?

Bitbuy Only

• Staking: Staking on nine coins including ETH, SOL, ADA and DOT, with a combined 39% cut of rewards (30% Bitbuy plus 9% custodian).
• OTC desk and Private Wealth: Offered for large trades.

Wealthsimple Crypto Only

• Staking: ETH, SOL, ADA and DOT, advertised as up to 5% a year. Wealthsimple keeps 30% of rewards (15% for Generation) and validators take their own commission (ETH about 5%).
• Crypto swaps: Swap one eligible coin for another in one trade with one fee instead of two.
• Recurring buys and price-target orders: Schedule automatic purchases or set a price at which an order executes. Recurring orders do not count toward Active Trader status.
• DEX trading: On-chain token access with CAD 0 network fees, per Wealthsimple, through the Crypto Web3 Wallet.
• Active Trader status: Earned with 50 or more eligible trades in a calendar month, valid for that month and the next. Cuts the crypto fee to 0.5% to 0% with a 0% spread, plus priority phone and email support.

What Happens To Your Money If Bitbuy Or Wealthsimple Crypto Fails?

Bitbuy: Existing Bitbuy users should watch for Robinhood migration emails and read the new terms and fees before accepting. Accounts are held by Coinsquare Capital Markets Ltd., a CIRO-regulated dealer, and the registry says the CSA entry for Bitbuy Technologies Inc. is expired. If you do not want to move, withdraw your crypto to a wallet you control. CIPF covers cash but never crypto.

Wealthsimple Crypto: Wealthsimple Investments Inc. is a CIRO dealer member, so cash in the account is covered by CIPF, but crypto is explicitly not covered by CIPF, CDIC or any investor protection scheme. Wealthsimple says crypto is held in trust and would remain yours in an insolvency, and that custodial partners each carry over CAD 75M of insurance, but that cover is held by the partners and the custodians are not named on the product page. No proof of reserves is published. Hot wallet losses are the part covered by the Coincover recovery arrangement.

How Are Bitbuy And Wealthsimple Crypto Treated For Tax In Canada?

Bitbuy: Selling or swapping crypto on Bitbuy was a disposition for CRA purposes. Export your full transaction history before your account is migrated or closed. Export formats: Not published.

Wealthsimple Crypto: Selling, swapping one coin for another and staking rewards are taxable; withdrawing crypto to your own wallet is not a disposition. Wealthsimple provides a Realized Gains and Losses report as PDF or CSV and a Crypto Transaction Summary CSV, and says there is no official tax slip for crypto.

Selling, swapping or spending crypto is a disposition for the CRA on any platform. This is not tax advice: see my guide to crypto taxes in Canada.

Which Should You Choose, Bitbuy Or Wealthsimple Crypto?

Choose Bitbuy If

• You want a registered platform that serves Canadians today: Coinbase is our number one replacement, with free Interac e-Transfer funding and a Canadian restricted dealer registration.
• You hold a Bitbuy account and want to compare it with what Robinhood is offering before you accept the migration.

Choose Wealthsimple Crypto If

• You already hold stocks or cash at Wealthsimple and want crypto in the same app.
• You value a CIRO-regulated dealer and a simple flat fee over the lowest possible cost.
• You trade 50 or more times a month and can qualify for Active Trader pricing.

What Happened To Bitbuy?

Bitbuy is no longer a separate platform. Its accounts moved to Coinsquare Capital Markets Ltd. in May 2024, and since Robinhood closed its WonderFi purchase on June 1, 2026, the Bitbuy site tells users it is now part of Robinhood and invites customers to move to the Robinhood app.

Coinsquare Capital Markets Ltd. is the entity that operates the platform, and it appears on the CSA list with a decision dated October 11, 2024. Bitbuy Technologies Inc. sits under expired decisions on the CSA site, and its FINTRAC MSB registration shows as ceased on February 20, 2025. Bitbuy's help centre says the 2024 move was required because its CSA relief was time-limited and called for a move under CIRO oversight.

If you still hold coins there, watch for the migration invitation, open it only from the official Bitbuy or Robinhood channels, and read the new terms before you accept. I do not send new readers to Bitbuy, because the business is being folded into Robinhood. On the Robinhood side, a flat 0.5% on CAD trades was advertised for the first few months after launch, and the zero-fee promotion for Canada ended on September 30, 2026. Its fee schedule sets the fee at 0.5% through October 31, 2026 and 0.95% from November 1, 2026.

What Should Bitbuy Users Use Instead?

Wealthsimple Crypto is the available side of this pair. Wealthsimple Crypto is fourth in my ranking at 8.4. It is a CIRO Dealer Member, Interac e-Transfer funding is free, and the site advertises 170+ coins. Market orders cost a flat 0.5% plus a spread (the fee schedule's own example adds up to 1.50%), orders under CAD 100 pay a CAD 1 surcharge, and Wealthsimple keeps 30% of staking rewards on Core and Premium.

Visit Wealthsimple Crypto Read My Wealthsimple Crypto Review

Who Should Choose Wealthsimple Crypto?

People who already invest with Wealthsimple. Wealthsimple Crypto is fourth in my ranking at 8.4.

Bitbuy, in contrast, is a platform in transition. Its coin list, fees and funding now belong to Robinhood, and there is no point comparing a menu that is being replaced. Read the Bitbuy review for the history, and see the ranked list for current picks.