Coinbase, which by way of their ETF service (which allows users to link their bank account to Coinbase and make electronic funds transfers) was the cheapest and easiest way to purchase bitcoins in Canada since last summer. Now, it has been announced that the payment processor, Vogogo is shutting down this service. A msg is posted to Coinbase’s website:
As of August 1, Coinbase’s Canadian payments provider, Vogogo, will be shutting down its payment processing business. When this occurs, Coinbase will no longer be able to support Canadian EFT transfers, Interac transfers, or the storage of customer CAD on Coinbase.
All customer CAD stored with Coinbase MUST be withdrawn off site or converted to digital currency by July 29th.
If you hold CAD in your Coinbase account, you must liquidate your CAD holdings before July 29th by either:
- creating a withdrawal to your linked bank account or
- exchanging stored CAD for digital currency.
If you are unable to withdraw or exchange your CAD before July 29th, Coinbase will suspend your account and significant fees will be incurred for CAD withdrawals.
We are disappointed to lose the ability to offer these payment methods for our Canadian customers and hope to provide additional payment methods in the future. We appreciate your support during this change.
If you have any questions regarding this or would like to contact us, please visit our Support Center.
