Swyftx in New Zealand: free NZD rails, with a spread

Swyftx at a glance

Swyftx started in Brisbane in 2018, crossed the Tasman in September 2021 and has since become one of the biggest names in New Zealand crypto, largely because it bought Easy Crypto and inherited its customers. For a Kiwi the pitch is simple: you can deposit and withdraw NZD by ordinary bank transfer for free, buy from more than 410 assets, and use an app that most people find easy to get around.

The catch is in how Swyftx makes its money. On top of a 0.6% trading fee at the entry tier there is a spread — the gap between the price you pay and the market price — and swapping one coin for another is charged as two trades. None of that is hidden, but it means the “free NZD” headline isn’t the whole cost. Below we work through a real NZ$1,000 example. If you came here from a list of the best crypto exchanges in NZ, this is the detail behind the summary.

Who runs Swyftx in New Zealand?

Swyftx has two entries on the Financial Service Providers Register. Swyftx NZ Limited (FSP1010662, NZBN 9429048073257) was registered on 23 October 2025, and the Australian parent Swyftx Pty Ltd (FSP1000861) has been registered since 8 July 2021. Both give a Brisbane address in Milton, Queensland, although Swyftx says it has a New Zealand-based team and promised to keep a physical presence here after the Easy Crypto deal.

In Australia the group holds an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL 568543), reported as granted by ASIC in July 2026. That licence covers specific products in Australia rather than crypto trading in New Zealand, but it does tell you the group has been through a serious regulatory process. In 2025 Swyftx also agreed to buy Caleb & Brown, a Melbourne crypto brokerage for high-net-worth clients, in a deal reported at more than A$100 million — a sign of a well-funded business rather than a start-up. FSPR registration isn’t a licence, as our NZ crypto regulation guide explains, but it does give you access to an independent dispute resolution scheme.

Depositing NZD: bank transfer, card, Apple Pay

Bank transfer is the star here. Swyftx’s support article on NZD deposits (updated 31 August 2026) says there is no fee and no minimum, and the fees page puts the daily limit at NZ$100,000. Transfers usually land within a few hours but can take one to three business days, and they must come from an account in your own name. Card payments are faster but cost more, and the two pages Swyftx publishes don’t quite agree on how much.

The conflict: the fees page says card deposits “may incur a fee up to 2.4%”, while the NZD deposit help article quotes 2.734% for Stripe. We’d plan on the higher figure until Swyftx aligns them. Banxa’s 1.99% looks cheaper but can carry up to 4% of spread on top, so it isn’t necessarily the better deal. PayPal and Wise are not accepted, and we couldn’t find POLi or open-banking payments. For most people a bank transfer from your everyday account is the obvious choice; our step-by-step buying guide shows how to set one up, and our NZ banks guide covers how local banks treat exchange payments.

Trading fees, spreads and a worked NZ$1,000 example

Swyftx charges a percentage per trade based on your 30-day volume, measured in Australian dollars. The entry rate of 0.6% applies below A$100,000; it steps down through 0.55%, 0.5%, 0.45%, 0.4%, 0.35%, 0.3%, 0.25% and 0.2% to 0.1% once you trade more than A$6 million a month. Very few retail users ever leave the first tier.

Then there is the spread. The fees page describes a base spread plus a market-dependent component, so it varies by coin and by how volatile the market is. It is usually small on Bitcoin and Ethereum and wider on thinly traded altcoins. Swyftx shows the rate before you confirm, so compare it with a live market price if you want to know exactly what you’re paying.

Here is a NZ$1,000 purchase of Bitcoin by bank transfer: the deposit costs nothing, the 0.6% fee is NZ$6, and the spread adds a little more — so you should end up with a bit under NZ$994 of Bitcoin. Pay by card through Stripe instead and the card fee alone is about NZ$27.34 before the trade. Now say you later swap that Bitcoin into Solana: Swyftx sells BTC to a base currency and then buys SOL, charging 0.6% on each leg, so the swap costs about 1.2% plus spread. If you rotate between coins often, that adds up fast.

Coins, OTC desk and other features

With more than 410 assets, Swyftx lists far more coins than the old Easy Crypto menu, from Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP and Solana to stablecoins and newer tokens. Recurring buys, price alerts and a demo mode are part of the app. Orders above roughly A$50,000 go to the OTC trade desk, which prices separately and is worth a phone call if you’re moving serious money — our OTC guide compares the NZ options.

You can withdraw crypto to your own wallet, which is the main advantage over app-only brokers such as Sharesies Crypto. Network fees apply and vary by coin. Swyftx previously offered an interest-bearing “Earn” product but closed it after Australian regulators took action against similar products, so don’t expect a yield feature.

KYC, security and track record

Sign-up asks for the usual ID — a passport or NZ driver licence — and Swyftx makes a selfie check mandatory before your first NZD deposit. That catches some new users out, so verify fully before you send money, and send it from an account in your own name or it will bounce.

We found no reported hack of Swyftx and no penalty from a regulator in the sources we checked, though that search wasn’t exhaustive. As with any custodial exchange, your coins sit with the platform until you move them, so use two-factor authentication and consider a hardware wallet for long-term holdings — see our crypto wallet guide. Scammers have also targeted former Easy Crypto customers during the migration, which brings us to the takeover.

Swyftx app, login and customer support

Most Kiwis use Swyftx on a phone. The app mirrors the website: a portfolio view, a buy/sell screen that shows the rate and fee before you confirm, and deposit and withdrawal menus that walk you through bank details. Swyftx’s fees page claims a 4.5-star App Store rating; we haven’t independently checked that figure for the NZ store. Log in only through swyftx.com/nz or the official app, never through a link in an email or text, and turn on two-factor authentication on day one.

Support runs mainly through the help centre at support.swyftx.com, which has NZ-specific articles on deposits, withdrawals and fees. We couldn’t find a published New Zealand phone number, and searching for one is exactly how many people land on fake “support” lines, so be wary of any number you find outside Swyftx’s own pages. If a withdrawal seems stuck, check first that the receiving account is in your own name and that your bank details match — those two issues cause most delays. If you have a complaint Swyftx doesn’t resolve, the FSPR registration means you can escalate it to the independent dispute resolution scheme listed on the register, which is a real advantage over exchanges with no NZ presence.

For bigger withdrawals, allow an extra day and avoid requesting late on a Friday. NZD leaves Swyftx by ordinary bank transfer, so weekends and public holidays slow things down in the same way they would for any interbank payment.

The Easy Crypto takeover and what it means for you

Swyftx announced it was buying Easy Crypto, then New Zealand’s largest local crypto broker with around 350,000 customers, in March 2025. Easy Crypto stopped trading in New Zealand by 30 March 2026, and its customers were asked to open Swyftx accounts and move their coins using the Portfolio Migrator in the Easy Crypto Wallet app. Because the wallet was self-custodial, nothing moved automatically.

If you never moved your Easy Crypto funds, our Easy Crypto page explains what to do now, including how to export your transaction history for IRD. For tax purposes, moving coins between your own wallet and your own Swyftx account isn’t a sale, but keep records of the original cost — our crypto tax guide explains why.

Who should use Swyftx — and the alternatives

Swyftx suits Kiwis who want to buy and sell with NZD bank transfers and don’t want to pay to get their money back out. It is a natural home for former Easy Crypto customers and a solid first exchange for anyone buying a few hundred to a few thousand dollars at a time. Active traders will find the spread and double-charged swaps expensive compared with order-book exchanges.

If you’d rather pay by card and want a long-running global platform with lower trading fees, compare our CEX.IO review. For high-value trades, look at Independent Reserve; for the deepest markets, Binance. And when it’s time to cash out, our selling guide covers bank timing and tax.

Our verdict

Swyftx is the most straightforward way for a New Zealander to move NZD into crypto and back without paying deposit or withdrawal fees, and its NZ registration and Australian licence give it a solid footing. Its real cost lives in the spread and in swaps, so it rewards people who buy directly from NZD and hold rather than those who trade often. Our review method explains how we checked these fees.