Can I Buy Bitcoin with AIB?

Yes, AIB customers can buy Bitcoin through a crypto exchange. The bank offers current accounts, savings, mortgages and cards, but none include crypto trading or custody. To buy, open an account with a crypto-asset service provider (CASP) and fund it by euro bank transfer.

Since 1 July 2026, every crypto platform serving Irish customers needs authorisation under the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). This single rulebook allows a firm licensed in any member state to serve Irish customers. The Central Bank of Ireland warns that assets held with an unauthorised provider lack MiCA protections.

Your choice of exchange also affects the AIB payment. Since October 2025, Irish banks have used Verification of Payee to compare the payee name entered with the name on the receiving IBAN. An exchange that clearly displays its beneficiary name makes a Match result more likely. Our guide to the best crypto exchanges in Ireland covers the wider market.

How to Buy Crypto with AIB

We used Kraken for this walkthrough. The same steps apply to Bybit, Gate and Coinbase, though their deposit screens use different labels.

1. Open and verify a Kraken account: Sign up at Kraken and select Ireland as your country of residence. Verify your identity with a passport or Irish driving licence plus proof of address, using your name exactly as it appears on your AIB account.
2. Copy the EUR deposit details: Select Deposit, then EUR, then a SEPA option. Kraken shows the IBAN and beneficiary name. Some providers also require a reference code. Copy each detail exactly as displayed.
3. Check your AIB payment limits: Payments to a new payee in the AIB app are capped at €1,000 per day, rising to €10,000 after Selfie Check. Internet banking allows €10,000 per day within Ireland and SEPA. Split a larger first deposit across several days.
4. Send a SEPA Instant payment: Add Kraken as a payee and select Instant. Before confirming, read the Verification of Payee result. Match means the name and IBAN agree. If you receive Close Match or No Match, recheck the name against Kraken's deposit screen before sending.
5. Buy on Kraken Pro: When the euros arrive, open Kraken Pro and choose a pair such as BTC/EUR. Place a limit order at your chosen price. Orders that rest in the order book pay the lower maker fee.

Fees, Limits and Tax for AIB Customers

AIB adds no fee to a SEPA transfer. The main costs are the exchange's trading charges and Irish tax on any subsequent profit. Kraken's trading fees vary depending on which screen you use.

AIB transfer costs and limits

• SEPA Instant fee: Instant euro payments cost nothing extra at AIB. EU rules also bar Irish banks from charging more for an instant payment than for a standard SEPA transfer.
• Daily transfer limit: Personal online banking permits €10,000 per day in payments to other accounts within Ireland and SEPA.
• New payee in the app: The daily limit is €1,000, or €10,000 after completing Selfie Check.
• Optional instant limits: Set a daily or per-payment SEPA Instant cap in the app under Payments, then Manage, or in internet banking under Settings. This cap applies on top of the standard limits.
• Large branch payments: A Paylink Euro payment form is required for instant payments above €10,000 at a branch kiosk.
• Debit card purchases: An AIB Visa Debit card costs far more to use than a bank transfer. Kraken charges 3.75% plus €0.25 for EUR debit card deposits. Card or PayPal purchases also trigger a 72-hour withdrawal hold.

Kraken fees

• SEPA deposits: All Kraken SEPA providers offer free deposits with a €1 minimum.
• Kraken app Buy button: Instant and recurring trades carry a 1% fee, plus a spread in the quoted price.
• Kraken Pro entry tier: Maker fees start at 0.40% and taker fees at 0.80%. Rates decrease as 30-day volume or assets held on Kraken increase. Every tier is listed in our Kraken fees breakdown.
• Stablecoin pairs: Entry-level maker and taker fees are both 0.20%.
• PayPal deposits: Processing fees appear on Kraken's final confirmation screen before payment.
• Volume counting: Purchases made with the Buy button do not count toward Kraken Pro tiers.

Irish tax on crypto

• Capital gains tax rate: Budget 2027 cuts the standard capital gains tax (CGT) rate from 33% to 31% for disposals on or after 7 October 2026. Gains realised earlier in 2026 remain subject to 33%.
• Annual exemption: Revenue's crypto-asset guidance confirms that the first €1,270 of chargeable gains each year is tax-free.
• Disposals: A sale, transfer or redemption of crypto counts as a disposal. Spending it on goods or services does too.
• Deadlines: Tax on gains made between 1 January and 30 November is due by 15 December, while CGT on December gains is due by 31 January. File the return by 31 October of the following year, even if reliefs or losses leave no tax to pay.
• Exchange reporting: DAC8 requires crypto platforms to report customer transactions. Under this EU directive, exchanges must file 2026 data with Revenue by 31 May 2027.
• Records: Retain records of every transaction for six years.

The new Irish Investment Account opens on 1 July 2027, allowing contributions of up to €12,000 a year with a €50,000 tax-free threshold. Its eligible investments include shares, bonds, ETFs, and funds. Crypto purchased on an exchange remains subject to normal CGT rules.

Best Crypto Exchanges for AIB Customers

We ranked four MiCA-authorised platforms based on SEPA funding for AIB customers and the cost of a first euro purchase. We also considered the regulator supervising each EU entity. Binance is excluded because it withdrew its MiCA application and halted EU sign-ups in mid-2026.

Irish residents access Bybit through Bybit EU, its Vienna-based entity licensed under MiCA by Austria's FMA. Gate's European business operates through Gate Technology Ltd, which received authorisation from Malta’s MFSA in October 2025. In June 2025, Coinbase chose Luxembourg for its EU hub. It holds its MiCA licence with the CSSF.

For more detail, read our reviews of Kraken, Bybit, Gate and Coinbase, or compare platforms in our list of MiCA-licensed crypto exchanges.

AIB Cryptocurrency Policy

AIB has published no policy preventing personal customers from buying crypto. We found no rule blocking SEPA transfers to authorised exchanges either. The bank offers retail customers no crypto trading, custody or crypto-linked products.

Stablecoins, tokens designed to maintain a fixed value against a currency, account for AIB's most visible digital-asset activity. In May 2026, AIB and Bank of Ireland joined Qivalis, an Amsterdam-based group of 37 European banks planning a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin. The group secured an electronic money licence from De Nederlandsche Bank in October 2026. 

AIB described the investment as a practical way to learn and test new payment technology alongside other European banks. The Qivalis token has not yet been issued and is unavailable to AIB customers today. Future access will come through intermediaries such as exchanges.

Banking access was more difficult for Irish crypto firms in 2020. AIB closed the account of Boinnex, a Cork bitcoin ATM operator, because it fell outside the bank's risk appetite. At the time, Ireland had not yet transposed the EU's fifth anti-money laundering directive, though AIB said it had no policy of blocking crypto companies.

About AIB

Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c. trades as AIB within AIB Group plc. The group has about 3.5 million customers and more than 170 branches in Ireland. It holds roughly 40% of personal main current accounts and 30% of new mortgage lending. For the first half of 2026, AIB reported €939 million in profit after tax.

After recapitalising AIB during the financial crisis, the Irish State sold its remaining shares in June 2025. The sale returned the bank to full private ownership. AIB began rolling out a new app in June 2026, introducing passkey sign-in and card freeze, along with payment options including SEPA Instant and Zippay.

Final Thoughts

Take particular care with your first payment from AIB. Check the app's €1,000 new-payee limit before starting, then copy the beneficiary name exactly when sending a SEPA Instant transfer to a MiCA-authorised exchange.

Kraken suits most AIB customers, with free SEPA deposits and an EU entity supervised by the Central Bank of Ireland. Use Kraken Pro to place orders instead of paying the Buy button's 1% fee. Keep a record of every trade for Revenue, particularly as exchanges report under DAC8 and the standard CGT rate falls to 31%.

AIB's own crypto activity remains limited to its Qivalis stablecoin membership. The bank still sells no crypto to retail customers, so your chosen exchange determines the purchase fees, available coins and protections.