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Buy moves fiat into crypto in the user’s Uphold account, sourced from a linked fiat external account (card or bank). In one transaction Uphold both takes the deposit and converts it to crypto — no need to run a separate deposit and trade, each with its own quote and commit. Sell moves value out of the user’s Uphold crypto account to a linked fiat external account — a card (via OCT) or a bank account — converting crypto to fiat and paying out.

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Key concepts

  • cards capability — buying with a card deposit requires the user to have the cards capability enabled.
  • trades capability — any buy or sell that involves converting one asset to another requires the trades capability. UK retail users face a 24-hour post-onboarding cooldown before trading is available.
  • card-withdrawals capability — selling to a card via OCT requires the card-withdrawals capability.
  • 3DS authorization — card deposits may require user authorization via a 3DS challenge. When they do, the transaction response includes a confirmationUrl — redirect the user there to complete it.
  • octSupport — selling to a card requires the destination external account to have octSupport: "supported". Verify this when linking the payout card.

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Supported methods

DirectionSource / destinationNotes
BuyCardMay require 3DS authorization
BuyBank accountSEPA / FPS / ACH / FedNow / wire — see bank-transfer deposit guides for rail-specific setup
BuyAPMsApple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and Venmo — via the Payment Widget
SellCard (OCT)Requires octSupport: "supported" on the external account
SellBank accountSEPA / FPS / ACH / FedNow — see bank-transfer withdrawal guides for rail-specific setup
SellAPMsApple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and Venmo — via the Payment Widget

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Testing in sandbox

Use test card numbers to simulate card deposits and payouts in the sandbox. Crypto deposits can be triggered via the simulate crypto deposit endpoint.

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Start building

Buy via API

Buy crypto for users from a fiat payment method — card and bank — in a single transaction.

Sell via API

Sell crypto and pay out to a fiat destination — card and bank — in a single transaction.