Here at Bity HQ we get a lot of daily questions from our users, so we decided to round up some of the most Frequently Asked Questions by our Bity community lately.
The top three most FAQs are:
- How can I check the status of my transaction?
- What are SEPA and SOFORT payments and how long do they take?
- What is a Beneficial Owner Form and why do I need one?
1. How to check the status of your transaction yourself - without the help of Bity!
One of the most revolutionary components of blockchain-based currencies is that they are 100% transparent, so anyone can check that their transaction has been successfully processed.
If you’d like to check whether your BTC transaction has been confirmed on the blockchain, go to blockchain.info and type in your public address into the search bar featured on the homepage. You will be able to see whether your transaction was processed, to which address the BTC was sent to, and which block contains the record of your transaction.
You can even check the entire history of any address, including its current balance.
For ETH, go to etherscan.io and type your address into the search bar (top right) and a transaction history will appear.
If the status of your transaction is still OPEN on Bity…
In the case of BUY: after two days, it’s likely that we haven’t received your funds. Please contact Bity support with your reference number so we can look into the matter further*.
(*When purchasing crypto from Bity, please make sure that you include the Bity reference number (bity.com XXXX-XXX) in your transaction. Otherwise your transaction will be canceled and your money returned automatically).
In the case of SELL/SWAP: after more than a couple of hours, it’s likely that your transaction has not been accepted by the miners as you added too little fees or gas. Please ask the support to send you back the funds (minus fees), or re-launch your transaction.
2. What are SEPA and SOFORT payments and how long do they take?
SEPA (or the Single Euro Payments Area) is the new format for cross-border Euro bank transfers. SEPA aims to make cross-border Euro transfers within this area equivalent to a domestic transfer within your own country. If you're sending money from a bank based in the SEPA, such as the UK or Switzerland, sending money to us should cost the same as a local transfer, which is usually free of charge anyway.
SOFORT is an online direct payment method, and works via online banking to make instant bank transfers. Customers are directed away during the checkout process and are designed for one-off or single use payments. To support recurring payments, you can make use of a modified SEPA Direct Debit flow that allows you to create further payments.
As soon as you place a buy or sell order using SOFORT or SEPA, we wait for the funds to be transferred to our own bank account. If you live within the EU zone, this usually takes 1 – 2 business days to clear. International transfers (outside the EU) may take longer.
As soon as the payment arrives in our bank account, we execute the order and you should receive your cryptocurrencies immediately.
While it may seem like a longer process, it’s important to understand that Bity is a broker and not a typical exchange platform. As we comply fully with Swiss regulations, our process may seem a little more complicated to use, however we do this entirely on purpose! In order to give our users peace of mind, and to ensure we aren’t facilitating money laundering, we require these regulated payment methods. It also means your funds are protected.
3. What is a beneficial owner form and why do I need one?
The beneficial owner form is a legal declaration of who owns the funds that are being used to buy cryptocurrencies from Bity. This could be you as a sole individual, or perhaps you on behalf of a business or group authorized to use those funds
If you are not the beneficial owner of the assets, meaning you are using somebody else's funds to buy crypto, you must declare that the person(s) listed in the form’s table is/are the beneficial owner(s) of the assets involved in the business relationship.
The beneficial owner form must be completed, dated and signed. The signature must match the one on your provided identity document(s).
If you haven’t already had a chance to check out our FAQs page then you can do so here: https://bity.com/faq