Bitcoin
BTC · Bitcoin
Depositing and withdrawing BTC: the address formats you will meet, why it takes longer than other chains, fee behaviour, and how to read a pending transaction.
Address format
bc1… (bech32), or 1… / 3… (legacy)
Typical fee
Varies with demand; set by size, not amount sent
Typical time
30 to 60 minutes is ordinary
Confirmations
Usually 2 to 6 blocks
How it works on this chain
- Chain
- Bitcoin
- Block time
- About 10 minutes, on average
- Fee paid in
- BTC, priced per byte of transaction data
- Address types
- bech32 (bc1), P2SH (3), legacy P2PKH (1)
- Address checksum
- Yes — bech32 and base58check both detect typos
Depositing, step by step
- 1
Open Receive in BYCRYPTO and select BTC (Bitcoin).
- 2
Copy the address, or scan the QR code if you are on a phone. bc1… (bech32), or 1… / 3… (legacy).
- 3
In the wallet you are sending from, select Bitcoin again. This is the step people skip.
- 4
Send, then keep the transaction ID. 30 to 60 minutes is ordinary.
What goes wrong on Bitcoin
- Expecting it to be instant. Bitcoin is the slowest chain here by design; thirty minutes is not a problem.
- Paying a fee far below the going rate during a busy period, which can leave a transaction unconfirmed for a long time.
- Mixing up Bitcoin with a Bitcoin-derived chain. BTC sent on a different network with a similar address format does not arrive.
The Bitcoin fee depends on how much data your transaction takes up, not on how much you are sending. Sending $10,000 can cost the same as sending $100.
Bech32 addresses starting bc1 are the modern default and are cheaper to spend from later. All three formats work for receiving.
You can follow any transfer yourself on mempool.space, which is the public record for this chain.
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One sign-in, no identity checks, and no transfer fee until 31 December 2026.
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