Individuals who are seeking to convert their Canadian dollars to bitcoins should be aware that the currency is far less popular for cryptocurrency exchanges than the United States dollar, the euro, the Chinese yuan, or the Great Britain pound. That being said, bitcoin is rising in popularity in this developed country, especially among intelligent youths in university. As a result, while you may not be able to easily facilitate Canadian dollar to bitcoin exchanges in the present, the Canadian dollar may soon become a more popular currency for bitcoin exchanges.
Primary Exchanges
According to BitcoinCharts.com, only three exchanges offer users the opportunity to exchange their Canadian dollars for bitcoins. This number is far smaller than the number of exchanges available to users who wish to trade United States dollars or euros for bitcoins.
ANXBTC: The second-largest euro to bitcoin exchange is also the largest Canadian dollar exchange for the cryptocurrency. Whereas its two competitors, Canadian Virtual Exchange and LocalBitcoins, accounted for 7,448.23 and 1,327.88 Canadian dollar and bitcoin-related exchanges during a thirty-day span that ended on Oct. 19th, 2014, over 30,000 Canadian dollar and bitcoin exchanges occurred on ANXBTC.
Canadian Virtual Exchange: As the name suggest, CAVIRTEX is a dedicated Canadian dollar to cryptocurrency exchange website. Users can also exchange their Canadian dollars for Litecoins. The exchange was the first of its kind in Canada and operates as a registered money service business.
LocalBitcoins: This website offers users the opportunity to connect with individuals who may be interested in purchasing or selling bitcoins locally, as the name suggests. The website offers services in 230 countries and offers users the ability to view the locations of nearby trading partners through Google Maps.
ATMs
CoinReport claims that there are more bitcoin ATMs in Canada than there are in any other country. The first-ever bitcoin ATM was opened in Vancouver, British Columbia during the month of October. Individuals in cities like London, Ontario; Regina, Saskatchewan; and Calgary, Alberta can make a trade for bitcoins in the country.
Trading Volume
Despite bitcoin’s growing popularity in the country, cryptocurrency exchanges using the Canadian currency are less popular than USD, EUR, CNY, and GBP trades. Whereas the GBP account for 2.24% of all bitcoin exchanges at 10:38PM EST on Oct. 19th, 2014, according to BitcoinAverage.com, the Canadian dollar only held a 1.06% share of the market, just 0.01% higher than the Russian ruble.
Factors Affecting The Relationship Between The Two Currencies
For the most part, the Canadian dollar’s price is most often compared to that of the United States dollar, its neighboring country. While a large gap may have existed between the two currencies in the past, the United States dollar is now only slightly stronger than the Canadian dollar. This price difference is reflected in the trading price for the Canadian dollar when compared to that of the United States dollar. As of 8:41PM EST, the United States dollar to bitcoin conversation rate was $388.48 USD, compared to a Canadian dollar to bitcoin conversation rate of $445.61 CAD.
While the Canadian dollar may currently be far behind the USD, EUR, CNY, and GBP, the currency has the potential to become a larger player in bitcoin exchanges. An underrated element in the adoption of bitcoin in Canada might be the growing cryptocurrency youth movement in the country. Recently, Simon Fraser University announced that it would be accepting bitcoin donations, a move that was heralded by the institution’s Bitcoin Club.
Recently, the Parliament of Canada passed a bill that recognizes businesses that deal in virtual currencies as money services businesses. As a result, record keeping, suspicious transaction reporting and registration requirements will be imposed on bitcoin businesses operating in the North America country.