Netcoins Vs Bitvo: Which Is Better For Canadians In 2026?

How Do Netcoins And Bitvo 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 Netcoins And Bitvo?

How Do You Fund And Cash Out Netcoins And Bitvo In Canada?

Not verified All funding now ended. Accounts moved to Bitbuy.

What Does It Actually Cost To Buy On Netcoins?

Netcoins: Netcoins states no separate trading fee and an all-in price; the spread percentage is not published (2026-10-03). The old 0.5% flat fee is gone. Neither publishes a maker and taker schedule because there is no order book: the spread is the fee. If cost matters most, NDAX (flat 0.20%) or Kraken Pro are cheaper places to buy in Canada. Ranges reflect each platform’s published band, not a single quote. Bank and network fees are not included.

What Do Netcoins And Bitvo Offer Beyond Buying And Selling?

Netcoins Only

• Staking: Staking on ETH, SOL and ATOM while the crypto stays held by Netcoins.
• Crypto lending: Borrow CAD against crypto with same-day funding; rates and LTV Not verified.
• OTC desk: Large trades with dedicated account managers and same-day settlement.
• Referral program: Invite a friend and both earn a cash reward after they sign up and trade; the amount is Not verified.

Bitvo Only

• Bitvo Cash Card: A prepaid card product listed among Bitvo's strengths.
• Same Day Guarantee: A funding-speed promise Bitvo marketed.

What Happens To Your Money If Netcoins Or Bitvo Fails?

Netcoins: Netcoins is a CSA restricted dealer under the BCSC, so it must follow custody, disclosure and limit conditions, but CIPF never covers crypto. Customer crypto sits mostly in BitGo cold storage and Fireblocks hot wallets, and Netcoins says it carries insurance without giving the amount or insurer. No proof of reserves was found. If Netcoins failed or was hacked, you would rely on those custodians and any insurer paying out, and you would be an unsecured creditor for the rest. The parent company changed its name to Surge Digital Inc in 2026.

Bitvo: This was a merger, not a collapse: Bitvo's client accounts moved to Bitbuy, which has since moved to Coinsquare Capital Markets Ltd. and now Robinhood, per the registry. Check that you are logged into your account with the current owner and withdraw to a wallet if you prefer. Do not send crypto to an old Bitvo address or trust a site using the Bitvo name.

How Are Netcoins And Bitvo Treated For Tax In Canada?

Netcoins: Buying with CAD is not a disposition. Selling, swapping and spending crypto are dispositions you report to the CRA, and staking rewards are income. Export formats were not verified.

Bitvo: Trades on Bitvo were dispositions for CRA purposes. Ask for or export your Bitvo history from your migrated Bitbuy account. Export formats: Not published.

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, Netcoins Or Bitvo?

Choose Netcoins If

• You want a broker app with 60+ coins, free Interac funding and phone support
• You value a long-registered Canadian dealer owned by a public company
• You can accept an unpublished spread in exchange for simple all-in prices

Choose Bitvo 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.

What Happened To Bitvo?

Bitvo stopped operating on its own in November 2023, when Bitbuy bought all of its client accounts and the Bitvo.com domain. The acquisition closed on November 14 and 15, 2023, and WonderFi's press release put the number of client accounts moved at more than 17,000.

This was a merger, not a withdrawal from Canada. Bitvo Inc. now sits under Expired Decisions on the CSA site, and FINTRAC lists Bitvo Inc. as ceased on October 8, 2024. The bitvo.com domain no longer resolves, so there is nothing to log in to.

The story did not stop there. Bitbuy's accounts moved to Coinsquare Capital Markets Ltd. in May 2024, and Robinhood closed its WonderFi purchase on June 1, 2026. Anyone who came from Bitvo is therefore a customer of Robinhood-owned Bitbuy, not of a standalone Bitvo.

What Is The Timeline For Bitvo?

• Nov 15, 2023: Bitbuy completed its purchase of Bitvo's client accounts and the Bitvo.com domain.
• Oct 8, 2024: FINTRAC listed Bitvo Inc.'s MSB registration as ceased.
• Jun 1, 2026: Robinhood closed its WonderFi acquisition, putting Bitbuy under Robinhood ownership.

Bitvo was an Alberta-origin exchange that sold Canadians crypto in CAD before its client accounts moved to Bitbuy.

What Should Bitvo Users Use Instead?

Former Bitvo users are with Bitbuy, now part of Robinhood. If you want a fresh start, the registry's like-for-like pick for an Alberta-origin exchange is NDAX: an Alberta-based registered platform with CAD funding.

NDAX: The Registry Pick

NDAX, short for National Digital Asset Exchange, is a Calgary-based exchange run by Ndax Canada Inc. It is a CIRO investment dealer member (CIRO membership terms were imposed on December 19, 2024) and it sits on the CSA list of crypto platforms authorized to do business with Canadians. It is also a FINTRAC-registered money services business, and it has been one of the cheaper places in the country to trade for years.

NDAX charges one flat 0.20% fee on every buy and sell. There are no volume tiers and no maker and taker split, so a $100 trade and a $50,000 trade pay the same rate. That simplicity is the main reason I point cost-conscious Canadians at it. The costs to watch are on the way out: an Interac e-Transfer cash-out is $1.50 and a direct bank deposit (EFT) is $4.99. Bitcoin withdrawals to your own wallet come in three lanes, a standard one at 0.00007 BTC, an express one at 0.00014 BTC and a flex lane at 0 BTC that takes up to 12 hours. If you stake, NDAX keeps 20% of the rewards.

Putting CAD in is free. Interac e-Transfer lands in 0 to 30 minutes, wires take up to a business day, and you can also deposit crypto for free once the network confirms it. Taking CAD out costs a little: $1.50 by Interac e-Transfer with a $10,000 cap per transaction, or $4.99 for a direct bank deposit with no minimum or maximum. Neither fee is big, but they are real, so batch your cash-outs instead of sending small amounts often.

NDAX is a CIRO investment dealer member and on the CSA authorized list, which puts it in the top regulatory tier for a Canadian crypto platform. Its own security page describes cold and hot wallet storage, multi-signature authorization, MPC protection and regular security audits. I could not find an insurance dollar figure or a proof-of-reserves page on the pages I checked, so I do not quote one. Crypto is not covered by deposit insurance on any Canadian platform, so only keep on the exchange what you are happy to trade.

Visit NDAX Read My NDAX Review

Netcoins: The Other Side Of This Comparison

Netcoins is a Canadian crypto platform run by Netcoins Inc., with the BC Securities Commission as its principal regulator. It is on the CSA authorized list as a restricted dealer and FINTRAC lists Netcoins Inc. as a registered money services business through October 2027. It pitches itself at beginners who want to buy, sell and hold crypto in CAD without learning an order book.

How Does Netcoins Handle Fees, Funding And Coins?

Fees

Netcoins does not add a separate trading fee. Its fee page says the price you are quoted already includes Netcoins' spread, and it does not publish what that spread is. That makes the real cost hard to compare with a flat-fee platform, because you only see it by comparing the quote against a market price at the moment you trade. My advice is simple: price the same coin and amount on two platforms before you buy. On the cash side, Interac e-Transfer deposits and cash withdrawals are free. Bank wire deposits are free over $3,000, and wire withdrawals under $25,000 carry a $50 processing fee.

Funding

Interac e-Transfer is free both ways, which covers most Canadians. Wires are the expensive route: deposits are free over $3,000 (I could not verify the fee under that amount) and withdrawals under $25,000 cost $50. If you move small amounts, stay on Interac. If you move large amounts, the wire fee is a rounding error and the speed can be worth it.

Coins

Netcoins lists 65 coins on its official fee page, and one of them, Bittensor, is trade-only. That is a mid-sized menu: wider than the Bitcoin-and-Ethereum apps, narrower than the biggest global exchanges. Its restricted dealer terms also apply an investment limit over a rolling 12 months to certain investors in specific jurisdictions, with exceptions for lower-risk assets listed in the decision. The dollar amount is not stated in the decision, so check your own limit in the app.

Is Netcoins Safe And Easy To Use?

Netcoins is on the CSA authorized list as a restricted dealer, with amended decisions dated September 16, 2026, September 29, 2025, October 6, 2023 and March 24, 2022 after its original decision of September 29, 2021. It is not on the banned list. FINTRAC lists Netcoins Inc. as registered with an expiry of October 15, 2027. The September 2026 amendment added Solana to the assets exempt from the investment limit. I did not find a verified custody or insurance dollar figure, so I do not quote one.

Netcoins keeps the experience simple: pick a coin, see a quote, buy. That suits beginners, although it gives you no charts or order book to work with. I have not run a support test on Netcoins that I would stand behind in print, so I will not rank it on support here.

What Limits And Extras Does Netcoins Have?

Netcoins applies a rolling 12-month investment limit on purchases and sales for certain investors in specific jurisdictions, with exceptions for assets listed in the CSA decision. Solana joined the exception list on September 16, 2026. The dollar amount is not stated in the decision, so your own limit is shown in the app. Bank wires under $25,000 cost $50 to withdraw.

Netcoins is a simple buy, sell and hold service. I could not verify staking, cards or bonuses on its official pages, so I do not credit it with any. If a feature matters to you, confirm it in the app first.

On a $1,000 buy at Netcoins, the cost is not calculable, because the spread is built into the quote and is not published.

How Do You Check A Platform Before Moving Money?

Do four things before you send a dollar to any platform. First, look it up on the CSA list of crypto platforms authorized to do business with Canadians and on the banned list. Second, search the FINTRAC money services business registry for the legal entity, and read the status and expiry date. Third, read the terms for any clause that restricts Canadian residents. Fourth, send a small test deposit and a small test withdrawal before you move real money. A platform that fails any one of the four is not worth the risk, however good its fees look.

What Are The Pros And Cons Of Netcoins?

Should You Open An Account With Netcoins?

Choose Netcoins if you want a simple buy-and-hold app with free Interac and CSA registration. It is a CSA-registered restricted dealer, and it is open to new Canadian accounts today.

Visit Netcoins Read My Netcoins Review

Not sure which platform fits you? The exchange quiz takes a minute, and my ranked list of the best crypto exchanges in Canada shows every option I have tested.