UK-based bitcoin buying and selling service Bittylicious has announced that EU citizens can now use Visa and MasterCard credit and debit cards to buy BTC via its platform.

Launched in June 2013, Bittylicious quickly grew in popularity among UK bitcoin users due to the difficulty posed by trading through popular international bitcoin exchanges.

Marc Warne, founder and director of Bittylicious, framed the new service as an extension of Bittylicious' goal of improving the experience of site users, saying:

With the news, credit and debit card purchases join Bittylicious' growing list of payment options, which also includes bank transfers and mobile payments.

Bittylicious said that, at press time, payments can only be made via credit and debit card in euros, though this functionality extends to cards with other EU currencies or British pounds as the primary currency, provided the user is willing to pay a conversion fee.

Only cards enabled with 3D secure, a feature that allows a cardholder to authenticate themselves when making a payment, will be able to use the service.

Buyers will be limited to purchases of 240 euros per transaction. However, this restriction can be lifted provided buyers submit valid identification documents.

Some service limitations will be lifted in the coming weeks, the company says, as it rolls out more features.

Bittylicious says that direct payments in British pounds will be available without fees in the upcoming weeks, though no official timeline for the rollout of this service was given.

For more on Bittylicious and its goals in the bitcoin marketplace, read our interview with Marc Warne.

Image via Bittylicious