The Easiest Ways to Buy Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin Cryptocurrency Summary
Bitcoin is now one of the many digital or virtual currencies.
What is it? Where do you buy it?
As of this writing, the price per coin is around 58K. Fractional coin purchases are permitted.
Several things are going for bitcoin. Its goal was to be a decentralized financial system. I describe Bitcoin as crypto gold because it the most popular cryptocurrency. But it will not be a peer-to-peer lending system. BTC is expensive to move. Transaction fees can be high compared to other cryptos like XLM. BTC has the first-mover advantage. Its historic rise was spurred by the religious following of its creator, Satoshi Nakamoto. His disappearance was even stranger then his appearance.
Problems with Bitcoin lead to the creation of other currencies with lower transactions, faster speeds, or even networks to run other applications.
These problems lead to many currencies: Bitcoin Gold, Tether, XRP, XLM, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and many others.
Ethereum BlockChain Summary
Think of blockchain as a unique computing network used to run applications. It is different than bitcoin in a lot of ways. It will not be used as payment, but there is potential to build payment processors on top of the network. The Ethereum network is now being used to sell all those NFTs you have been hearing about.
Validation is essential when scaling a blockchain network.
What is the process for validating transactions?
How secure is the process?
How fast is the process?
Since Ethereum was the first, many things could be fixed. Its early adoption has driven the price up like bitcoin.
These problems lead to many new blockchains: Cardano, Polkadot, EOS, Solana, HBAR, and many others.
I suggest researching the bear case on any crypto before buying it. Knowing the downside to any investment is helpful.
Where do you buy cryptos?
Coinbase is an exchange like the stock market. In my opinion, Coinbase is the most trusted exchange. They should have an IPO on the NYSE in 2021. Here you can buy cryptocurrencies and store in your unique wallet within the exchange.
Robinhood is an online stock brokerage where you can buy cryptocurrencies, but you don’t actually have them in a unique wallet. Robinhood is cheaper, but many people do not like storing bitcoin this way. In terms of safety, the best way to store crypto is to buy on an exchange and transfer to a hardware wallet like Ledger. Then I prefer my coins on an exchange like Coinbase or Kracken. Robinhood is great for beginners, but you may find yourself wanting to store elsewhere longterm.
What if you want cryptos that are unavailable on Coinbase or Robinhood?
I recommend using Coingecko.com ; This site can help you research particular and see what exchanges offer unique cryptos. Be careful when opening accounts on new exchanges and deposit small amounts at first.
Pro Tip:
I have found the cheapest currency to move between exchanges and hardware wallets is XLM or Stellar. When moving money between always double and triple check. Include the memo which is part of your unique wallet. If you forget the memo your funds can be recovered. Email support. It will take time, but I was able to recover my lost XLM from Kracken in about 20 days time.
Exchanges I use:
Gemini, BlockFi, Blockfolio, Kracken, Bittrex
Be safe. Never invest more than you are willing to lose. Do your own research.
I am not a Financial Advisor.
My holdings in ranking order: Bitcoin, Stellar, ADA, Polkadot, Ethereum, HBAR, Solana, and BAT
