Buying property with crypto - A brief guide
Crypto has moved from niche to mainstream. Today, people buying property with crypto-derived wealth range from speculative investors who have sold modest holdings, to early adopters, miners, founders, traders and DeFi users who have built significant wealth within crypto.
Since the 2017 crypto bull run, we have seen crypto gains increasingly flowing into the property market, with more buyers using realised returns to acquire real estate. That shift brings crypto into one of the UK’s most tightly regulated arenas: property transactions. As the crypto sector is treated as higher risk, crypto-derived funds often attract enhanced scrutiny and firms are expected to evidence a clear audit trail.
A crucial practical point many crypto investors only discover late in the process is that a solicitor cannot proceed with a property transaction unless they are satisfied as to your source of funds and (where appropriate) source of wealth. In practice, that approval isn’t always withheld because something is “wrong”, rather often it is simply that the firm doesn’t have the experience, technical understanding or tools to interpret on-chain transaction flows, reconcile wallets and exchanges, or explain common crypto wealth creation pathways. When that happens, the buyer can find themselves in a difficult position at exactly the wrong time.
Since 2021, our team has supported clients on over £70m of UK property transactions funded in part or entirely by the proceeds from cryptoassets.
Two ways to buy property using crypto
In broad terms, there are two routes when using crypto in connection with a property purchase. The first, and by far the most common, is to convert crypto into fiat currency (typically GBP) via a reputable exchange, broker or OTC desk, and then fund the purchase in the usual way with funds going through your bank to your solicitor’s client account. This approach tends to be the most straightforward because it mirrors a conventional transaction and the seller receives pounds, not crypto.
The second route is where the seller agrees to accept crypto directly as all or part of the purchase price. The purchase price is still agreed by reference to a fiat value, but it is settled using an agreed amount of a specified cryptoasset rather than cash.
This can work in certain scenarios, but it is less common in practice because it introduces more moving parts. For example, pricing and volatility need to be managed, the parties must agree how exchange rate and timing are fixed, and the transaction mechanics often require specialist structuring.
Using Cryptoassets to purchase property
This is a viable but much less common route to purchase property. The key issues here are commercial as much as legal. The buyer needs a seller who is willing to accept crypto, and both sides must agree a fiat denominated purchase price (for contractual certainty and SDLT calculation), even if settlement is made in a specified cryptoasset.
Assuming the purchase price is agreed at £1m, the parties must then agree which cryptoasset will be used, how it will be valued (including how the exchange rate is fixed and at what point in time), and what protections are needed to manage volatility between exchange and completion. In practice, this often requires bespoke contractual provisions and a specialist payment/escrow mechanism.
For example, if they agree to transact in bitcoin and (as at 22 January 2026) BTC is trading at roughly £66,000, the contract would typically specify: the exact BTC amount payable (e.g. 15.15 BTC based on an agreed conversion rate), the seller’s receiving address, the valuation source and timestamp used to fix the rate, who bears network/miner fees, and the payment mechanics, including the minimum number of on-chain confirmations required for the payment to be treated as received (often measured by block confirmations).
In practice, the approach of purchasing a property directly with crypto requires much more collaboration and involvement from the buyer and seller.
After completion, the usual conveyancing and registration steps still apply, and both parties will want clarity on practicalities such as evidencing valuation for SDLT and the seller’s ability to securely hold or convert the crypto proceeds. Specialist legal support is important to ensure the structure is compliant, the mechanics are workable, and the transaction remains clear and enforceable end-to-end.
Using fiat proceeds from crypto to buy property
For most buyers, the practical route is not to pay in crypto, but to use the fiat proceeds from crypto, typically after selling cryptoassets via an exchange, broker or OTC desk, to fund the deposit and completion monies in GBP. From the seller’s perspective, and for the mechanics of conveyancing, the transaction itself is largely conventional.
For the buyer, there are a few procedural steps that need to be considered.
Liquidation and Off-ramping: The starting point is converting some or all of your crypto holdings into fiat currency (typically GBP) so the purchase can proceed through the conventional banking and conveyancing system. That conversion is often carried out via a centralised exchange, and because crypto markets can be volatile, timing and execution matter. Where large sums are involved, buyers frequently liquidate in tranches and may use more than one venue to secure better pricing and reduce slippage; in some cases, an OTC broker is used to facilitate larger sales more discreetly.
Banking Considerations: While banks are far more familiar with crypto than they were a few years ago, not every institution is crypto-friendly, and large incoming payments from exchanges can trigger questions, delays or enhanced checks. In some cases, banks may temporarily restrict or freeze an account while they seek further information to satisfy their internal AML and risk requirements. It can often help to liaise with your bank early on to advise them that you will be expecting an influx of funds and from where.
Tax Considerations: Alongside the practical mechanics mentioned above are legal and tax considerations. Depending on your activity, disposals and even crypto-to-crypto conversions may trigger capital gains tax and/or income tax depending on the nature of your crypto activity.
Legal Considerations: As the funds originated in crypto activity, the solicitors will need a clearer evidential chain than they would for a ‘salary-and-savings’ purchase. Essentially, we must be able to satisfy ourselves as to the Source of Funds (i.e. the specific money being used for the purchase such as the deposit and completion monies) and the Source of Wealth (i.e. how you built the overall wealth that has generated those funds). These checks aren’t optional. While they can feel like a friction point, regulators expect the position to be properly documented, and the SRA has been clear about the importance of robust source of funds enquiries and effective AML controls.
Where funds originate from crypto activity, the solicitor must be able to verify the provenance and legitimacy of those funds. Given that being able to do this properly often requires niche and specialist understanding of how crypto wealth can be generated and how transactions flow on-chain, it isn’t something every firm is equipped to handle. For that reason, before you instruct a solicitor for your purchase, it’s important to ensure they are genuinely comfortable dealing with crypto-derived funds.
Our team’s experience and track record in this sector are precisely where we add value. We understand the ways crypto wealth is generated and moved, and we translate complex on-chain activity into a clear, auditable source of funds/source of wealth report that meets regulatory requirements and keeps purchases moving without last-minute surprises.
What we need for source of funds and source of wealth checks
The information and documents required to clear AML checks are not “one size fits all” in crypto. What is needed depends on how the wealth was generated and how it has moved over time. For example, a long-term holder with a small number of historic purchases will look very different to a DeFi participant with many transactions across chains, or a founder with vested token allocations and multiple liquidity events.
Our team has assisted on a wide range of crypto profiles and portfolios, including early BTC miners and ETH presale investors, frequent traders, individuals remunerated in crypto (salary, bonuses or contractor payments), founders and advisors receiving token allocations, and clients whose wealth was created through specific market events such as memecoin cycles.
In each case, we collate the relevant activity, wallets, exchanges, transfers, disposals and bank records, into a clear structured evidence led report that demonstrates both source of funds (the money used for the purchase) and source of wealth (how the overall wealth was built), tailored to the fact pattern and proportionate to the transaction and risk profile.
The process typically starts with a short scoping call to understand your cryptoasset activity and then walk you through the specific documentation, records and evidence that we may need to satisfy source of funds and source of wealth checks, so you know exactly what to gather and what to expect.
From Crypto to Completion
Whether you are purchasing with the fiat proceeds of cryptoassets or settling all or part of the price directly in cryptoassets, these transactions are not only achievable, but are becoming more common. The key is recognising that crypto introduces a distinct set of legal, tax and compliance considerations.
That is where our specialist support makes the difference. Our team combines deep cryptoasset sector knowledge with experienced conveyancing capability, allowing us to translate all manner of crypto activity into clear, compliant source of funds and source of wealth evidence and to guide you through the practical mechanics from planning and off-ramping to exchange, completion and beyond. If you are considering using crypto wealth to buy property, we would be happy to discuss your circumstances and help you bridge your crypto wealth into the traditional property market smoothly and securely.
FAQs
Can I buy property with funds derived from crypto?
Yes. This is by far the most common and practical route for crypto holders who wish to purchase property. The key is being able to evidence source of funds and source of wealth.
I’ve been in crypto since 2013, my exchange no longer exists. Is that a problem?
Not necessarily. From New Liberty Standard and Localbitcoins.com to MtGox, we have seen a number of once prominent exchanges cease to exist. In many cases, we can reconstruct the history through wallets, bank records, contemporaneous records, and other corroborating evidence, and can guide you through the relevant steps to overcome this common issue.
What evidence will I need if my money came from crypto?
It depends on your activity, but the aim is always the same: a clear audit trail from acquisition to disposal and into fiat. Once we have ascertained what your cryptoasset profile and exposure looks like, we will be able to advise and work with you to obtain the required documents and records that will be needed.
What happens if my conveyancer says they can’t act because of crypto?
That can occur where a firm lacks the experience or risk appetite to interpret crypto transaction histories or cannot reach the required AML comfort in time. The best way to avoid this is to instruct a team that is genuinely comfortable with crypto-derived funds from the outset and this is precisely where our team can help.
Will my bank freeze funds from crypto?
Banks can sometimes place a temporary restriction on an account when a large payment arrives from an exchange or other crypto-related counterparty, particularly where the transaction is unusual for the account or the bank needs additional information to satisfy its internal AML and risk requirements. This does not necessarily imply wrongdoing and is often a compliance exercise while the bank asks questions and seeks supporting documentation.
If that happens, we can assist by preparing and presenting a clear report, and liaising with the bank and any other advisers to resolve the queries and get any restrictions lifted. In more serious cases, restrictions can also arise from external legal processes, including court orders affecting accounts such as account freezing orders and other external investigations, and we are experienced in advising on and responding to those scenarios.
I’m buying a property in Scotland -can you help?
Yes. We can support Scottish property purchases and have offices in Scotland (including Glasgow and Edinburgh).
Scottish conveyancing is conducted under a separate legal system with different process and documentation, and many England & Wales-only firms will not be able to handle a Scottish purchase without the right Scottish qualification/structure.
Do you have specialist experience in this area?
Yes. Our crypto sector offering is led by Asim Arshad, who has delivered this service as part of his practice since 2021 and built and pioneered a dedicated crypto-funded property practice at his previous firm before joining Irwin Mitchell.
Asim has advised and assisted clients across the full spectrum of crypto wealth creation from early adopters, miners, founders, traders, DeFi users, NFT creators/collectors, and clients whose wealth crystallised through specific market events such as memecoin cycles. That depth and breadth of experience matters because it allows us to identify the cleanest evidential route quickly and produce a source of funds/wealth report that works.
