This is a full-on review of Luno Malaysia. If you’re here looking for a referral and promo code to use for your sign-up, you can use my code LNDVDMAGIC50 , you will get RM50 worth of Bitcoin when you buy RM500 or more. That’s an instant 10% return on your investment.
My Crypto Portfolio on Luno
My latest Luno portfolio, which makes up the bulk of my crypto assets will be updated here. Previous updates can be found at the end of this article.
Moving forward, I’ll be updating my crypto portfolio on a monthly basis here.
November 2021
November update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM96,303
Capital gain: +837.44%
You can find my previous portfolio updates at the bottom of the page.
My Take on Luno Malaysia
Who Is Luno Malaysia?
If you’re into cryptocurrencies and you live in Malaysia, chances are you’ve heard of Luno Malaysia. They’re the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Malaysia.
As of May 2021, Luno Malaysia offers the following cryptocurrencies:
- Bitcoin (BTC)
- Ethereum (ETH)
- Ripple (XRP)
- Litecoin (LTC)
- Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
Is Luno Safe? Is Luno Legit?
Safety-wise, Luno is the first regulated cryptocurrency exchange in Malaysia. And that’s saying something.
They’re regulated by SC so there’s really nothing for us to worry about fraud from Luno as an exchange.
A cyber attack however is something entirely different. Attacks and hacks on an exchange can happen and has happened in the past. But then again, there’s really nothing we can do about it.
As of now, if you’re a Malaysian and looking for a crypto exchange, I’d say Luno is your safest bet. I have the majority of my coins stored with Luno.
Moving your Crypto to Luno
I have recently moved all my coins – Bitcoin, Ethereum and Bitcoin Cash to Luno’s platform.
The process was surprisingly simple and easy. Bear in mind that this is my first time sending / receiving coins.
It took around an hour for all my cryptocurrencies to arrive as they require confirmations on the blockchain.
As of today, my total crypto portfolio stands at RM3,808. For a roughly 1.5 year period, my return is about 200%.
I’ll be using Luno as a wallet to stash all my cryptocurrencies from this point on as well as an exchange to buy/sell.
The user interface is spot on and the support I’ve received from them with my inquiries has been outstanding.
Luno’s Wallet
Keeping your hard-earned bitcoins and other cryptos on Luno Malaysia itself is something all users can do. I myself do that but as my holdings grow in size, I will be thinking of moving them to a standalone wallet, maybe even an offline one.
Luno’s wallet is what is known as a custodial wallet. This means that your private keys are stored by a third party, in this case – Luno. Placing your coins in a custodial wallet is similar to the principles of placing your cash in a bank. The money remains yours, but you do not fully control your money when it is in their hands.
Advantages
- Interest generating. Some exchanges/custodians are giving you money to store your coins with them. Think of your coins as being used as a sort of money market fund. Hoping to see this come to Luno in the near future.
- Convenience. You’re able to manage all your funds in one place and at any time.
- You won’t lose or forget your private key and access to your coins.
Disadvantages
- The custodian has control over your money.
- Your coins can be seized by a court decision.
- If the wallet gets hacked, you may lose your coins.
Before you cry foul and move all your coins to your own private wallet, Luno actually has three layers of security for their wallets and your coins. The first layer is the industry standard where an external custodian secures the keys. This is for practical reasons otherwise moving funds would take too long.
The second and third layer is where the security intensifies and where the bulk of the coins are stored. Luno actually practices what they term ”deep freeze storage”. Essentially, the private key is broken up and stored in different places around the world.
For the reasons above, you may want to have a percentage of your coins with Luno and another in your own private wallet. If you plan to just hold for a very long time, keeping it on your own wallet would make more sense. Just don’t forget your keys.
However, if and when Luno announces the interest bearing feature, I think a lot of bitcoin holders will see value in keeping their coins with Luno.
As for security on your own side, please, please set up 2-Factor Authentication for your accounts. Better safe than sorry especially if you’ve got a significant percentage in cryptocurrencies.
Luno Malaysia’s Fees – Post Order Only
First off, sending and receiving your cryptocurrencies. When you receive, Luno doesn’t charge a fee. When you send, you’re charged a fee.
When actually buying and selling on Luno’s exchange, to save on fees, forget instant buy/sell and instead, do a post order. Tick the ”post-only order” and you’ll see the difference in your fees.
Right at the bottom, tick that. You won’t instantly get your coins if you’re buying, instead, set a price close to the market price. Creating a post-only order ensures that you won’t have to pay a taker fee. An order will only be added to the order book if it does not match with a pre-existing order. If it does, it will be canceled.
Besides that, to get a full picture of other fees, you can visit Luno’s page on it hERE.
Why Bitcoin?
As always, prior research and due diligence on your part is required before making investments. For any asset class.
I’ve been monitoring cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin on and off for a few years now and I have my reasons for investing in it.
My first venture into cryptocurrency was back in December 2018. I invested USD 288 (or approximately RM1,256) back then.
Back in August 2020, my portfolio stood at RM3,808.
Cryptocurrency investment has been one of my biggest regrets. I regret not having put more money here. Of course, hindsight is always 20-20 but nonetheless, it is one of many regrets for me.
BITCOIN AS A STORE OF VALUE
Firstly, I see bitcoin as digital gold. As we transition to a digital economy, bitcoin will eventually challenge gold as a global store of value.
Like gold, bitcoin is limited in its supply. Bitcoin is limited to only 21 million. Forever. Not only is bitcoin scarce and durable like gold, but bitcoin also improves upon many of physical gold’s characteristics. Bitcoin is divisible, verifiable, portable, and transferable.
If bitcoin were to take just a 10% share of the physical gold market, we could see its value increase 5X to $1 trillion.
With the continuous printing of money, bitcoin has been viewed as an asset similar to gold in the modern world as a hedge against inflation. A good article on this can be read hERE.
BITCOIN’S POTENTIAL
My next reason for investing in bitcoin is its sheer potential upside. There are many theories and thoughts on bitcoin’s adoption as a currency. Or even as a global settlement network for banks as businesses.
We’ve already seen PayPal recently move in that direction. Payment systems like Square Inc have bought into bitcoin. The potential is there. Unlike gold, gold has already plateaued whereas bitcoin’s potential is still vast.
I’ll be looking closely at Bitcoin and Ethereum especially moving forward. Although volatile in nature, with bigger upside potential, I’ll prefer buying Bitcoin to Gold when it comes to hedging.
Luno Malaysia Best Referral Code (RM50)
As part of a collaboration with Luno Malaysia, we’ve come up with the perfect promotion for new users wanting to invest in Bitcoin.
Using the following referral code – LNDVDMAGIC50 , you will get RM50 worth of Bitcoin when you buy RM500 or more. That’s an instant 10% return on your investment. Sign up hERE.
If you’ve been wanting to own some Bitcoins, now is really the time to start.
Unfortunately, this promo and referral code is for new users only. Also, make sure you use Luno’s instant buy (instead of a post-order) function to be eligible for this code.
After signing up, you enter the promo code as follows:
For mobile users, head to the Rewards tab at the bottom and enter the code: LNDVDMAGIC50
For desktop users, the Rewards tab is on the top right, enter the promo code: LNDVDMAGIC50
In short, to be eligible for the RM50 promo and referral code, you have to:
1. Register as a new Luno Malaysia customer;
2. Enter my Luno promo code: LNDVDMAGIC50 (BEFORE you make a deposit into your Luno account);
3. Make a purchase of at least RM500; and
4. Make sure the purchase is through Luno’s Instant Buy feature.
The full promo rules can be accessed hERE.
Please go through them carefully to meet the criteria for that RM50.
End.
I’ll be moving more of my cash into Luno and increasing the size of my crypto portfolio in the future when the price is right. At least that’s the plan right now.
Just as how I prefer to purchase a mother share over warrants and how I prefer to buy shares of the main company over its subsidiaries, I’ll be focusing more on Bitcoins compared to other coins.
As always, Facebook, Instagram, and now YouTube! Follow, keep up to date.
Update 30 April 2020
As of 30 April 2020, my crypto portfolio worth RM3,808 consists of the following.
- Bitcoin – RM2,763
- Ethereum – RM1,039
- Bitcoin Cash – RM4
Update 30 April 2021
Damn a year has passed and looking at my 2020 numbers, I just cannot believe the run crypto is on. I’ve gone from RM3,808 to RM72,058.
April update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM72,058
Capital gain: +601.43%
Let’s see where the next wave will take us.
Onwards and upwards!
Previous Updates
October 2021
October update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM78,308
Capital gain: +662.27%
An increase in my crypto portfolio. Still a long way to go to that magical 10X.
September 2021
September update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM71,194
Capital gain: +593.02%
Looks like meat’s back on the menu boys! We’re almost back to our all-time portfolio high. This time, thanks to ETH.
I’ve said it time and time again to prepare for a roller coaster ride when it comes to cryptocurrencies. You can have a look at my monthly updates at the bottom of this article to get a feel of how big the price swings were this year alone.
Totally uncharted waters for me but I think holding Bitcoin and Ethereum long-term has been a good move. Do remember to keep up to date on your research and the industry as a whole.
August 2021
August update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM54,564
Capital gain: +431.14%
With regards to the recent announcement by the Securities Commission on Binance being restricted in Malaysia, I’ll be moving my money back to Luno. Specifically, converting my holdings in Binance to XRP > Transfer > Convert back to BTC or ETH.
If you guys have got a better way to transfer, let us know!
I’m moving my coins back to Luno as I don’t want to take on unnecessary risks.
July 2021
July update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM47,314
Capital gain: +360.57%
How are you guys loving the volatility? I hope you’re able to stomach it.
A big drop in ETH prices has sent my crypto portfolio’s gain down again this month.
As mentioned in my article a few days back, I’ve moved some of my coins to Binance to learn firsthand – Crypto savings and staking.
Luno will still be where my main crypto portfolio is held. If you’re a Malaysian looking to start investing, my suggestion is and always will be Luno. Safety and regulation.
June 2021
June update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM53,802
Capital gain: +423.72%
Another roller coaster month for cryptos. Those of you who have been holding onto coins will have experienced it first hand. Volatility and your coins come hand in hand right now. I’d love to see some stability, at least for Bitcoin as we hodl into the future.
Value has dropped by a lot since my April update. To those of you who bought at a high, trust your own research, keep a cool head, and react accordingly. Onwards and upwards!
May 2021
May update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM59,240
Capital gain: +476.65%
A dip! Cryptocurrencies took a huge dip and the volatility continues today. I’m sure all of you have been following up with the antics of Elon Musk. Coupled with the crackdown from China’s government, cryptos were left battered.
I’ll of course be HODL-ing my coins. Still sitting at a pretty safe place right now. I hope those of you that have just gotten into cryptocurrencies don’t get too discouraged. Remember that volatility and cryptos come hand in hand.
April 2021
April update 🚀
Gross investment: RM10,273
Market value: RM72,058
Capital gain: +601.43%
March 2021
March update 🚀
Gross investment: RM13,808
Market value: RM78,330
Capital gain: +467.28%
Oh what regret to have sold at the RM200,000 range earlier in February. I’ve got about RM20,000 just sitting in Luno right now. =(
February 2021
February update 🚀
Gross investment: RM13,808
Market value: RM63,492
Capital gain: +359.82%
Sold 0.1 Bitcoin when it was at the RM200K range. Will be looking for an opportunity to head back in the future.
January 2021
Gross Investment: RM13,808
Market Value: RM48,754
Capital Gain/Loss: +253.08%
December 2020
RM111,907 per Bitcoin. I actually made a short term trade, selling at RM79K and buying again at RM77K. A little profit there to add to my crypto portfolio.
Gross Investment: RM13,808
Market Value: RM34,424
Capital Gain/Loss: +149.30%
Of course, a little remorse and regret at not having put a little more money in. But, seeing as it is within my target of 1-10% of my investment portfolio, I’m grateful.
September 2020
I’ll calculate my gross investment as RM3,808. It’s a rough estimate as this includes mining and unfortunately, I did not keep track of those properly back when I started in 2019.
Gross Investment: RM3,808
Market Value: RM5,528
Capital Gain/Loss: 45%
Bitcoin’s price today is at RM44,876 per bitcoin.
My total crypto portfolio stands at RM5,528.
It comprises of:
- 0.083395 BTC – RM3,742
- 1.200000 ETH – RM1,781
- 0.003866 BCH – RM4
Mining in the Past
Older readers of mine may also remember my crypto mining days.
My most recent update of cryptocurrencies was back in December 2018 when had about USD 288 (or approximately RM1,256). I have not made any additional investments since then.