How To Withdraw Money From Blockchain

As bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies continue to become more mainstream, the demand for crypto exchanges will continue to grow. There are already a few major cryptocurrency exchanges on the market right now, but the biggest one in the U.S. is Coinbase.

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However, unlike opening a brokerage account, cryptocurrency exchanges operate under their own set of unique rules. Although trading cryptocurrencies happens instantly, problems and delays tend to happen when moving money outside of the crypto marketplace.

For many investors, that means withdrawing money from your Coinbase account can take longer than anticipated. Exactly how long do you need to wait to withdraw money, and are there situations where you can't make withdrawals altogether?

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Can you withdraw money from Coinbase instantly?

While trading cryptocurrencies takes place instantly, having to transfer your money back to your regular bank account is where most people encounter delays. Oftentimes, you will have to wait at least a couple of business days, if not as much as a week, for your money to arrive in your bank account.

Until recently, this was the same with Coinbase. However, the company announced in October 2020 that instant withdrawals would be available to users in 40 countries, including the U.S., U.K., and most of Europe. Users will need to link either their Visa or their Mastercard to their account in order to enjoy this feature.

Otherwise, you will be stuck waiting for 1-2 business days for your withdrawals to process.

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Additionally, every withdrawal you make from Coinbase is going to be subject to a 1.5% fee to convert said crypto into fiat, besides standard network fees. Network fees tend to be relatively small, between $1-5 per withdrawal, depending on the cryptocurrency in question.

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That's more or less in line with most other crypto exchanges out there right now. There's also no minimum nor maximum amount for withdrawals via Coinbase.

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However, there are some reasons why you can't withdraw money from Coinbase.

Most of the time, you won't have any problems withdrawing money out of Coinbase. Like most cryptocurrency exchanges out there, you're able to cash out your entire position and deposit it back into your bank account or PayPal.

However, there are sometimes reasons why you can't withdraw money from Coinbase. Sometimes it's just a technical issue. With so many people signing up for accounts thanks to bitcoins rise in popularity, and each account requiring confirmation via personal ID, it's not surprising that some new accounts might face problems that need customer support to resolve.

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There typically is a short holding period between when you sell your crypto into fiat and when it will be available to be withdrawn into your bank account. You're still able to sell as much of your crypto at the market price you want during this time, but there is a slight delay from when it will be available to be deposited back into your bank.

For the most part, however, there aren't any major restrictions when it comes to making withdrawals, especially if you are in countries like the U.S. or the U.K.