It’s not just tax — here are other fees that crypto traders need to watch out for

• Investing in crypto involves a number of fees at every step.
• Depositing and withdrawing money from an exchange, and buying and selling coins are transactions that trigger fees.
• The most unpopular fee goes to the crypto mining network, called ‘gas fees’, paid to prioritise your transaction over others.

The era of fees and transaction charges at every step was thought to belong to banks of the past. The rise of cryptocurrency was hailed as a new age, free from centralised entities that extract fees at every turn. However, in sheer percentage terms, trading in cryptocurrency today is subject to more fees than banks levy upon fiat money transactions.

And, this doesn’t even include the 30% tax introduced by the Indian government during the budget this year.

As illustrated below, an investor is likely to pay about 4.1544% on average, just to participate in the crypto markets. That percentage is before accounting for multiple trades, withdrawals, NFTs or income taxes.

Here’s a quick look at all the fees and transactions charges that an investor should watch out for before investing in cryptocurrencies: