Article Summary
This article explains why the most you can send may be lower than your balance, especially when you fund a send with cash.
When you send bitcoin, the most you can send may be a little lower than your balance. River leaves room for fees and price movement so that your send does not fail before it completes.
For instructions on how to send bitcoin using cash, please see this Help Center article.
- What lowers the amount I can send?
- Why does the amount change when I switch funding method or currency?
- What if I enter more than is available?
What lowers the amount I can send?
- Buy fee: When you fund a send with your cash balance or a linked bank account, River's buy fee comes out of the amount you can send.
- Spread: Cash-funded amounts are priced at River's buy price, which includes the spread.
- Price movement: When you fund a send with cash, River may hold back a small buffer in case bitcoin's price moves before the purchase completes.
- Network fee: The network fee for your send is paid from the same funding method. River Links have no network fee for the sender.
- Limits: Funds still in a holding period, your instant withdrawal limit, your ForceField send limit, and the maximums for Lightning and River Link sends can also lower the amount.
Why does the amount change when I switch funding method or currency?
Each funding method has its own available amount. Your bitcoin balance has no buy fee, so only the network fee applies. Your cash balance and linked bank accounts also cover the buy fee and spread.
Your maximum may change slightly when you switch between USD and BTC because of price updates and rounding.
What if I enter more than is available?
- If you enter a USD amount just above your maximum, River adjusts it to your maximum.
- If the selected funding method cannot cover the amount, River suggests another funding method that can.
- If a Lightning invoice has a fixed amount that no funding method can cover, you will not be able to continue.
Before you confirm, review your send amount. To see each fee, open the fee breakdown from your total.
Please note that this buffer is not a charge. River only charges the fees shown on the preview, and any unused amount stays in your account.