Monero is a cryptocurrency focused on fungibility, privacy, and decentralization. There are many ways to buy Monero, but unfortunately, not all of those methods are anonymous. Most exchanges today, ask for your government ID or passport before you are allowed to trade. If you want to buy a privacy-focused cryptocurrency like Monero, verifying with your personal details, defeats the whole purpose of anonymity.
In this article, I will show you 5 ways to buy Monero anonymously. It is important to note that these methods can be used to buy other cryptocurrencies anonymously as well. So, here’s how you buy Monero anonymously:
1) LocalMonero
LocalMonero is the easiest way to buy Monero anonymously. This is a peer-to-peer exchange for Monero buyers and sellers. LocalMonero only acts as an escrow service to hold the sellers’ Monero and then releases it once the buyer confirms the payment. Everything else happens between the buyer and seller.
The best thing about this exchange is that you can buy Monero with almost any payment method. But, since we want to buy Monero anonymously, your options are limited. So, to buy Monero anonymously, you must choose cash in person, cash by mail, cash at ATM, cash deposit, or cryptocurrency as the payment method. You can also use gift cards as a payment method if you have obtained any gift cards in an anonymous manner.
LocalMonero can be used by anyone in any country. You can search for country-specific offers or offers in all countries. As for the fees, LocalMonero does not charge any fees from the buyer. Only the seller pays a fee of 1%. No fee does not mean that buying from LocalMonero is cheap. Please be aware of the seller’s markup. But, since we are buying Monero mainly with cash, the markup should be very minimal or no markup at all.
Since you are buying Monero directly from sellers, it can take some time for them to confirm the payment receipt. How quickly you are going to receive Monero is entirely dependant on the seller. But for those payment methods mentioned above, you should receive Monero fairly quickly. It is important that you check the seller’s feedback reviews before you start a trade.
2) Buy Monero with Bitcoin
Another way to buy Monero anonymously is to convert Bitcoin to Monero. So, first, you need to buy bitcoin anonymously. This can be done easily with an exchange like LocalBitcoins. This is a peer-to-peer exchange similar to LocalMonero.
After buying Bitcoin, you can convert it to Monero using Binance. There is no ID verification requirement to trade at Binance. However, if you want to increase your trading limits, you will have to provide your ID.
Alternatively, you can convert Bitcoin to Monero using Changelly. Changelly is a service that is connected to multiple exchanges to get you the best possible deal when you convert a cryptocurrency. For the majority of conversions, Changelly does not ask for your ID. For some fiat to crypto transactions, Changelly requires ID. As of now, Bitcoin to Monero does not ask for ID.
Alternatively, you can use a prepaid card to buy Monero with USD using Changelly. A prepaid card can be bought anonymously with Egifter. Check out the guide here.
3) Buy Monero Using Decentralized Exchanges
You can use decentralized exchanges like WavesExchange to buy Monero anonymously. In a decentralized exchange, trades happen in a peer-to-peer manner. You are buying and selling directly from buyers/sellers. There is no third party to hold customers’ funds.
You can easily convert Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency to Monero. Some decentralized exchanges like Bisq can even be used to buy cryptocurrency with fiat. So, you can buy cryptocurrency anonymously with a prepaid card. Check out our guide on How to Buy a Prepaid Card with Bitcoin.
4) Buy Bitcoin with VirVox and Convert to Monero
Update: VirVox has closed its business.
This method of buying Monero anonymously is not straightforward. First, you need to open an account at VirVox. After you open an account, you have to deposit funds.
To deposit funds, you must use your prepaid card. VirVox uses PayPal as its payment gateway, but do not worry, you do not need a PayPal account to deposit funds to VirVox. If you deposit with PayPal, it wouldn’t make you anonymous. So, go through PayPal gateway in VirVox and select “Pay with a card” option. Now, you can easily connect your prepaid card with PayPal and deposit funds that way.
To buy a prepaid card anonymously, use this guide.
After you deposit funds, there are few things you must do. First, you have to convert your funds to SLL (Second Life Lindens). After that, convert SLL to Bitcoin.
Now, withdraw Bitcoin straight to an exchange like Binance and convert Bitcoin to Monero.
5) Use a Monero ATM
Another way to buy Monero anonymously is to use a Monero ATM. Monero ATMs are very rare but they do exist. You can use CoinATMRadar to find the nearest Monero ATM. You do not want to find just any Monero ATM; you have to find one that does not ask you to verify ID. If you find one, you can easily buy Monero anonymously with cash.
If there is no Monero ATM nearby, you can always use any other cryptocurrency ATM and later convert to Monero. Binance is the cryptocurrency exchange of my choice.
Alternate Ways of Owning Monero Anonymously
If you are unable to use any of the methods mentioned above, you can still own Monero anonymously by selling goods and services in exchange for Monero or mining it. However, you are required to use TOR or a VPN along with an operating system like TAILS to remain anonymous.
It is important to understand that TOR, VPN, and TAILS shouldn’t only be used when mining or selling goods & services; you must also use it when you buy Monero, using the methods mentioned above.
Although the methods of buying Monero, mentioned in this article is anonymous, your IP address could still be tracked by the service you are using. Using TOR along with TAILS can prevent that.
To learn more about TAILS and TOR, check these links.
Conclusion
As you see, buying Monero or any other cryptocurrency anonymously is never straightforward. The closest you could get is using LocalMonero, but still not a perfect solution. Monero is a very popular privacy coin. Giving away your personal details to buy a privacy coin makes no sense. These methods mentioned in this article can be used to buy any other cryptocurrency anonymously, not just Monero.