Bittiraha - Finland Bitcoin broker since 2012

Bittiraha - Finland's Bitcoin broker since 2012

Bittiraha.fi is not just another crypto exchange. It is the oldest actively operating Bitcoin service in Finland - founded in summer 2012 in Jyväskylä when eight enthusiasts together with professional poker player Henry Brade established Prasos Oy and launched a portal where Finns could purchase their first bitcoins with EUR transfers. In this in-depth review we explain how Bittiraha has evolved from a niche initiative into part of the Coinmotion group, which in summer 2025 became the first MiCA CASP-licensed crypto service provider in Finland.

Key facts at a glance

• Brand: Bittiraha.fi (historical Finnish retail BTC broker)
• Legal entity: Coinmotion Oy (formerly Prasos Oy)
• Founded: 2012, Jyväskylä, Finland
• Co-founders: Henry Brade and 8 partners
• Regulator: FIN-FSA (Finanssivalvonta), Finland
• MiCA CASP licence: June/July 2025 (first in Finland)
• Share of group revenue: ~22%
• Supported fiat: EUR (SEPA)
• Coin selection: ~10 largest cryptocurrencies
• Core audience: Finnish retail beginners
• NorriWire rating: 2.5 / 5

From Prasos Oy to the Coinmotion group

To understand what Bittiraha is today, you need to know where the company comes from. The story begins in summer 2012, when Henry Brade - then a professional poker player and early Bitcoin user since 2011 - together with eight other enthusiasts founded Prasos Oy. The goal was simple: make Bitcoin accessible to Finnish audiences with both a safe purchase service and educational content in Finnish.

The Bittiraha.fi domain became the group's first commercial product - a combined news portal and BTC purchase/sale service. Until 2016, the Bittiraha sales service and the later-added invoice payment service were the most significant business line at Prasos. In 2016, Prasos made a strategic business deal - it acquired the Coinmotion platform, which offered a more versatile investment and crypto-use experience than Bittiraha.

The next four years were spent developing both brands in parallel. In September 2020, Prasos Oy officially rebranded as Coinmotion Oy so the company name matched its largest and internationally most recognised service. Bittiraha.fi continued operating as the group's retail brand, while Coinmotion became the flagship platform with a broader coin selection and advanced functionality.

MiCA CASP - first in Finland

30 June 2025 was the deadline of the EU crypto regulation transition period in Finland. From that date only companies with a CASP (Crypto-Asset Service Provider) licence granted by FIN-FSA were allowed to offer crypto services in the Finnish market.

Coinmotion Oy met the requirements in time. In June/July 2025 it received the first MiCA CASP licence issued in Finland - an excellent result for a company that has been in the market for 13 years. The licence gives not only the right to operate in Finland, but also passporting rights to other EU/EEA member states, including Sweden, where Coinmotion is actively expanding.

Bittiraha.fi uses the same legal framework - retail customers get the Coinmotion group's security standards, AML/KYC procedures and MiCA protection, although Bittiraha technically remains a separate UX brand with a narrower product set.

How Bittiraha fits into the Coinmotion structure

In 2026 the Coinmotion group has three main business lines:

1. Coinmotion (flagship) - full crypto investment platform with broad coin selection, advanced order types, derivatives and institutional services.
2. Bittiraha.fi - simplified retail BTC purchase service with EUR SEPA and crypto educational content.
3. B2B / institutional services - OTC, treasury services and fintech integrations (mostly via the Coinmotion brand).

Bittiraha generates approximately 22% of the group's total revenue. The target audience is Finnish beginners - people who want to quickly and simply buy their first bitcoins without complex exchange interfaces. Bittiraha users typically make a few larger purchases per year rather than daily trading.

Fees and pricing structure

The Bittiraha pricing model differs significantly from a classic exchange structure:

• Spot maker/taker fees: not available (Bittiraha is not an order book exchange)
• Instant buy spread: ~2% from market price
• SEPA deposit/withdrawal: free
• Card deposit: not available at retail level

This instant buy spread is Bittiraha's biggest weakness. A 2% spread is significantly higher than competing Nordic platforms' fees - for example, Finnish Northcrypto offers trading at 0.6-1.0% maker/taker, while Dutch Bitvavo (also operating in Finland) fees start from 0.25%. For an investor planning to buy EUR 5000 worth of BTC, the difference between 2% and 0.5% fees means EUR 75 in additional costs per trade.

For active traders or investors with larger portfolios this cost gap makes Bittiraha suboptimal. For beginners making one or two purchases per year where simplicity matters, the 2% spread may be an acceptable price for comfort.

Security and cold storage practice

Bittiraha uses the Coinmotion group's security infrastructure, which includes:

• Cold storage - most customer crypto assets are stored offline, without internet connection
• Two-factor authentication (2FA) - mandatory for all active accounts
• FIN-FSA supervision - regular reporting to the Finnish financial regulator
• AML/KYC procedures - mandatory identity verification for all customers

However, Bittiraha (like Coinmotion) does not publish Proof of Reserves - cryptographically verifiable evidence that the platform's holdings cover all customer claims. After the FTX collapse in 2022, PoR has become an industry standard for major exchanges (Binance, Kraken, OKX), and the absence of PoR is a minor minus compared to competitors.

Features and limitations

Bittiraha offers:

• Purchase/sale of BTC and ~10 other cryptocurrencies
• EUR SEPA deposits and withdrawals
• Crypto news and educational content in Finnish
• User-friendly UX for beginners
• Coinmotion group security standards

Bittiraha does not offer:

• Mobile app (must use the separate Coinmotion mobile app)
• Advanced order types (limit, stop-loss, OCO)
• Derivatives (futures, perpetuals)
• Margin trading
• Bank ID support
• LV/LT/EE language interface (only FI/EN)
• Proof of Reserves

Comparison with Coinmotion proper

For many Finnish users the question is not whether to use the Coinmotion group, but which of the two brands to choose. The differences are significant:

Practical advice: if you want to use the Coinmotion group's services and are a more active user, open an account at Coinmotion rather than Bittiraha. UX and fees are better; security standards are the same.

Competition in the Nordics

In 2026 Bittiraha operates in a market with increasing competition. Main alternative options for Nordic users:

• Coinmotion - the same group's flagship platform with broader selection
• Northcrypto - another Finnish crypto service with competitive fees
• Bitvavo - Dutch exchange with low fees, also popular in Finland
• Kvarn X - Finnish premium service with broader coin selection
• Safello - Sweden's historical BTC broker (see Safello deep dive)
• LHV Pank - Estonian/UK bank with crypto services (see LHV MiCA review)

For Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian users Bittiraha is less suitable due to no LV/LT/EE language support - the entire interface and support is only in Finnish and English. Therefore for Baltic users a more convenient choice is often Bitvavo (NL), Coinbase (US/IE) or local services.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Historical brand - oldest Finnish crypto service (since 2012)
• Part of the Coinmotion group with FIN-FSA MiCA CASP licence (first in Finland)
• Simple UX for beginners
• Free SEPA deposits and withdrawals
• Extensive educational content in Finnish
• Coinmotion group security standards

Cons:

• High instant buy spread (~2%) - expensive compared to competition
• Very limited coin selection (~10 assets)
• No advanced order types or pro UI
• No mobile app (must use separate Coinmotion app)
• Only FI/EN languages - no LV/LT/EE support
• No published Proof of Reserves
• No derivatives or margin trading

Impact on Baltic/Nordic users

Bittiraha is technically available to all EU/EEA customers via Coinmotion Oy MiCA passporting rights, but practically it is not optimal for Baltic users for three reasons.

First, the language barrier - without LV/LT/EE interface users must communicate with support in English, which can create additional complications for beginners. Second, the high 2% spread makes Bittiraha suboptimal compared to Bitvavo (~0.25%) or Northcrypto (~0.6-1.0%). Third, the limited coin selection (~10) means a Baltic investor who wants to diversify their portfolio will soon hit this limit and be forced to add another platform.

That is why for Baltic users we recommend looking at Coinmotion proper (if you want this group), Bitvavo (best fees), Kvarn X (broader selection) or local alternatives.

MiCA and the future

The full MiCA regime took effect in January 2025, and the Finnish transition period ended in June. Bittiraha (via Coinmotion Oy) was among the first to receive the new regulated status, which opens several perspectives:

• EU-wide passporting - the Coinmotion group can freely offer services in 30 EEA countries
• Institutional client access - the MiCA licence makes the group more attractive to corporate and fintech clients
• Stablecoin operations - after MiCA 2 implementation (expected 2026-2027) there will be new opportunities in euro stablecoin services (see Qivalis consortium review and GENIUS Act analysis)

For the Bittiraha brand itself, however, there is no clear development trajectory that Coinmotion management has publicly announced. Most likely Bittiraha will continue operating as a historical retail brand for Finnish audiences, while strategic development happens at the Coinmotion proper level.

Our verdict: 2.5 / 5

Bittiraha.fi is a paradox - it is historically the most important Finnish crypto service, with a trusted brand, long operating history and FIN-FSA MiCA CASP licence via its parent company, yet at the same time a product that is hard to recommend to an active trader or diversified investor in 2026.

For beginners who want to make their first BTC purchase in Finnish and value simplicity, Bittiraha remains a valid choice - especially if they already know and trust the brand. For everyone else we recommend Coinmotion proper (the same group's better platform) or a competing service provider with lower fees and broader product range.

NorriWire rates Bittiraha at 2.5/5 stars, reflecting both appreciation of historical value and significant product limitations.

Sources

• Coinmotion: Prasos is now Coinmotion
• Coinmotion: Prasos Ltd turned 8 years
• Kaupr.io: Finnish Coinmotion wants to make regulated crypto mainstream in Sweden
• Kaupr.io: Finnish FSA ramps up MiCA Applications
• Finanssivalvonta: Crypto-asset activities
• NorriWire: Bittiraha exchange profile

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AI disclosure: An AI assistant was used in preparing this article. The facts and market data were verified by a NorriWire editor before publication.

This is not financial advice. Cryptocurrency values can fluctuate significantly. Familiarise yourself with the risks before investing.