When you want to buy or sell Bitcoin, you’ll need an online digital wallet you can link to the exchange site you want to use. Your digital wallet can also be created using software on your computer. Keeping a digital wallet on a physical device, like a hard drive, prevents users from accessing it through their computer unless they choose to.
We’ve created this article to help you get started with Bitcoin buying and selling, as well as answer some of your most frequently asked questions.
How to Buy and Sell Bitcoin
You can buy Bitcoin online from a variety of places, each with its own benefits and disadvantages. In order to ensure your safety when buying and selling Bitcoin, we have only listed exchanges with a good reputation.
When it comes to using an BTC Trading Platform, keep in mind that not all of them accept customers outside of the US. In addition, some exchanges accept wire transfers only, while others may accept other forms of payment. You need to make sure that the exchange you want to use is accessible from where you live.
A Bitcoin exchange usually charges a deposit fee, a transaction fee, a withdrawal fee, and a Bitcoin network fee. When investing, exchange rates and buying limits must also be considered.
Buying Bitcoin: How to stay safe
Buying Bitcoin carries certain risks. In fact, a lot of people have avoided investing their money into any kind of cryptocurrency because of the high amount of scams and cybercrime targeting new and even experienced investors.
It’s important to protect yourself and your money when buying Bitcoin. Let’s look at what you should do when you get started with Bitcoin and how to protect yourself and your money.
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Only use a secure device
There are a few things you can do to ensure your desktop PC, laptop, or mobile device is secure.
- Keep up with the latest updates and security patches.
- Check out our top picks for antivirus software.
- Use lowercase, uppercase, and special characters when creating passwords.
- You can learn more about using a VPN in step 4 below.
- When you access Bitcoin or exchanges, you should see a padlock and “https” in your browser.
- Do not click on or download suspicious files or programs.
- Wi-Fi networks and public computers should be avoided.
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Choose an exchange that is reputable
Whenever you are considering Bitcoin, you need to find an exchange that has a solid reputation. We’ve provided some examples above that are good places to start.
Choosing an exchange that accepts KYC and AML requirements is a wise move. KYC stands for Know Your Customer, and AML stands for Anti-Money Laundering. Each of these regulations helps to prevent money laundering and terrorism funding. It’s likely that you are making a smart choice if the exchange complies with these regulations.
The exchange service requires that you provide private information, such as your full name, email address, phone number, and mailing address, in order to sign up. KYC requirements require this information to keep people safe online — but they also require that you sacrifice some of your privacy.
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Choose the best Bitcoin wallet
The two traditional options are either an online wallet or an offline wallet after you’ve chosen an exchange.
Wallets interact with the blockchain network that cryptocurrencies run on. Each wallet has a private key – which should never be shared – and a public address for transactions.
In addition to making purchases, sending transfers, or moving money to exchanges, you can receive transactions by using the public blockchain address.
Bitcoin doesn’t feature any specific technologies that most private cryptocurrencies use, so your transactions are traceable regardless of whether you use a cold or hot wallet.