The first bank in Estonia, LHV, the Country’s largest domestic financial group and capital provider announces trading in Litecoin and investing directly in crypto assets.

Through LHV, you can now invest directly in crypto assets.  For those who are new, Crypto assets are a digital form of money, which has proven to be a popular complement to “real” money. Crypto assets can be used on different platforms to pay for services or simply as a store of value in the given crypto instrument.

Platforms based on crypto assets are generally structured without a central owner – they remain stable due to their decentralized customer base. For now, crypto assets acquired by clients by LHV cannot be used on platforms to pay for services or make transfers. The best known decentralized crypto asset is currently Bitcoin.

Customers can hold crypto assets at LHV free of charge. A 0.5% service fee applies to buy and sell.  Access to eight popular crypto assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Uniswap, ChainLink, Stellar Lumens, Polygon and Aave.

You can buy crypto assets both as an individual and as a company. Note that different tax rules apply in each case.  Crypto assets are a high-risk financial instrument, so if you are trading these assets, be aware of the risks.

Open the LHV mobile app (link) and navigate to the “Investment” screen (third icon from left at the bottom). Select “+” at the top right and then “Buy Crypto Assets”.  Fill in the appropriateness questionnaire and accept the terms of service for the crypto transaction. Select the desired crypto asset from the search, specify the amount you want to buy, and click “Buy”. The crypto assets will show up on your account immediately.

LHV makes it very clear:  “If you’re trading crypto assets as an individual, bear in mind that any transaction that nets gains should be reported to the tax authorities and is subject to income tax. Note: Gains are not offset by losses. So, for example, if you have a capital gain of €20 from selling Bitcoin and make a loss of €30 later on, you still have to pay income tax on the €20 gain.”

Taxation for crypto assets for private persons apply.  Also, for legal persons, Gains from crypto assets are taxed in the same way as any other corporate income: the tax liability only arises if the company pays dividends, salaries or fringe benefits.

Community Reaction:  They only accept 8 coins and Litecoin is their third coin in ranking. Other banks and institutions have done the same. Litecoin is a sleeping giant and anyone not invested in LTC don’t deserve what’s coming.

It’s not a Litecoin thing. It’s just one of many you can buy.