xChange.bg vs Altcoins.bg: licence, custody, fees and accounts compared

Altcoins.bg and xChange.bg are both Bulgarian and both date their crypto business to 2017 (for Altcoins.bg, source 9), but in 2026 they do different jobs. Altcoins.bg is an exchange: you buy, sell and swap a long list of coins, and the platform keeps them for you. xChange.bg is an account: you get EUR and USD account details in your own name, incoming money becomes a stablecoin in a wallet you control, and outgoing money goes to a bank. This comparison sets out what each publishes, with the date we checked it.

Who each service is for

Altcoins.bg suits people who want exposure to many crypto-assets and are happy for the exchange to hold them. Its markets page lists 111 assets (source 6), it runs crypto-to-crypto pairs quoted in USDC, and it accepts EUR by bank transfer, EasyPay, cash terminals, IRIS Pay and in person at its Varna office (sources 5 and 9).

xChange.bg suits people and companies whose money is mostly euros and dollars: freelancers paid from abroad, importers paying suppliers, longtime crypto users who want a clean route between stablecoins and a bank. It is built around USDC, not a list of tokens to trade.

Licence and regulation

Altcoins.bg holds its own licence. The Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) granted Altcoins BG EOOD a MiCA licence as a crypto-asset service provider by decision No. 499-ДУКА of 21 July 2026 (source 1). The licence covers custody and administration of crypto-assets, exchange of crypto-assets for funds, exchange for other crypto-assets, and transfer services. The company appears in the FSC register of licensed providers (source 2) and in ESMA's interim MiCA register, where the cross-border field on 9 September 2026 listed only Bulgaria (source 3).

Our guide to MiCA in Bulgaria explains how the regime works.

xChange.bg is a technology provider. EUR and USD accounts and conversions are provided by regulated partner Bridge, a Stripe company.

Custody: who holds the keys

The two models are opposites. Altcoins.bg offers a free custodial crypto wallet. Its terms allow it to hold client assets on omnibus addresses in the company's name, with internal records per client, and to use sub-custodians (source 4, clauses 13.3 to 13.5). You rely on the exchange to keep and return your coins, which is what its custody licence is for.

xChange.bg uses a self-custody wallet. The customer holds the keys, and xChange.bg cannot freeze the balance. The trade-off is responsibility: nobody at a help desk can move funds back if you send them to the wrong address.

Money in and money out

Paying in. With Altcoins.bg you place an order and pay from a bank or payment account in your own name; its terms do not accept third-party payments unless agreed after source-of-funds checks (source 4, clauses 6.5 and 11.1). A single order is capped at EUR 2,500 to EUR 15,000 depending on the method (source 5). With xChange.bg you get an EUR IBAN in your name. You, your clients or a marketplace can send SEPA transfers to it, and each one lands as USDC.

Paying out. Altcoins.bg pays sales to your own account by bank transfer the same business day during bank hours, or through EasyPay or ePay within 15 minutes (source 5). xChange.bg sends EUR or USD to your own bank or to a supplier's account.

Dollars. xChange.bg adds USD account details for ACH and wire payments. Altcoins.bg does not publish a USD account or USD payout option.

Fees: what is published

xChange.bg publishes a flat schedule: account free, 1.5% on money in (minimum EUR 1), 1.25% on money out to a bank (minimum EUR 2), free transfers between xChange.bg clients and network cost only for on-chain transfers.

Altcoins.bg says its commission is included in the price you see on the site, with no hidden fees, and that method-dependent costs appear before you confirm (source 5). No percentage is published outside the logged-in platform, and it may offer a discount after EUR 100,000 of turnover (source 8). Because one side publishes a percentage and the other does not, we cannot give a fair EUR cost example. The practical test is to request a quote for the same amount on both platforms on the same day and compare what arrives. Our stablecoin fee calculator handles the xChange.bg side.

Where Altcoins.bg is stronger

• Its own licence. An FSC MiCA licence in its own name, with custody and exchange services listed.
• Choice of assets. 111 assets, while xChange.bg is built around USDC.
• Payment options. Cash terminals, EasyPay and paying at the office help people who do not use online banking.
• Phone support. Two published phone numbers, chat, and Saturday hours from 10:00 to 14:00 (source 7).
• No wallet to manage. Custody means no seed phrase or keys to look after.

Where xChange.bg is different

• Accounts in your name. An EUR IBAN and USD account details that others can pay into, which an exchange order flow does not give you.
• Custody. Stablecoins sit in a wallet you control rather than on an exchange balance.
• Published pricing. 1.5% in and 1.25% out, visible before you sign up.
• Payouts to third parties. You can pay a supplier's bank account, not only your own.

How to switch from Altcoins.bg to xChange.bg

1. Open an xChange.bg account online and complete identity verification.
2. Decide what to move. If you hold USDC on Altcoins.bg, copy your xChange.bg wallet address and check the network before withdrawing. If you hold other coins, sell them on Altcoins.bg to your bank account first, since xChange.bg does not trade them.
3. Send a small test amount and confirm it arrives.
4. Move the rest, then send future EUR income straight to your xChange.bg IBAN.

Selling or exchanging crypto can create taxable income in Bulgaria; see our crypto tax guide before you sell. You can also keep both: an exchange for trading coins and an account for everyday euros and dollars.