How To Buy Bitcoin

By Teddy Cleps

How to Buy Bitcoin

Have you decided to finally join the biggest financial revolution of our lifetime? Great, you are the right place! 

Buying cryptocurrencies today is a lot easier and safer than most people expect. There is no need to go on the Dark Web or any other illegal website to acquire some, there are plenty of legitimate ways to do so and the most common ways are the following:

Through an online exchange
Directly peer-to-peer
Directly from an ATM

Through an online exchange

Buying Bitcoin through an exchange is by far the easiest and most popular way. As long as you have a device with internet connection and a bank account you will be able to buy some Bitcoin.

There are plenty of exchanges but only a handful will allow you to purchase Bitcoin directly with fiat currency ( USD, EUR, GBP etc ) through a wire transfer / card transaction. Those exchanges will typically require you to pass a basic KYC verification, as you will have to verify your identify – and for that you will need to provide the following information:

Email address
Phone number
Passport, identity card or driving license
Proof of address
Bank details

Your first purchase will take a substantial of time, as it typically takes a couple of hours / days for your information and payment to get approved. However, following the first purchase you will always be able to buy / sell cryptocurrencies within seconds. So don’t get discouraged from your first attempt!

The exchange that I personally use and recommend to friends and family is called Coinbase; its by far the largest, easiest and most trusted exchange to use today.

Peer-to-peer

When using a peer-to-peer website you are dealing directly with humans from all over the world, meaning that you are not buying through a central exchange but actually discussing with the individual buyer / seller.

This allows users to maintain a higher degree of privacy as the required personal information to submit is drastically less; and flexibility as you can decide your desired exchange rate, currency and payment method – as you can agree to meet in person to buy Bitcoins with cash, or exchange from your device through an online payment.

When buying / selling cryptocurrencies face-to-face you are not protected from any exchange, and you are potentially putting your safety at risk. Traditionally users would meet in public locations like cafes or even police stations ( yes, it’s perfectly legal to do so ) for a cash exchange. Or you can simply use one of many online payment methods – but highly recommend using an escrow service!

How Escrow works

Escrows are neutral third parties during a transaction; they collect, hold and release payments only when the agreed cryptocurrency amount is confirmed to be received – it drastically minimises the risk of being scammed.

Buyer and seller agree to the terms of exchange
Buyer transfers fiat currency to an escrow provider
Seller sends cryptocurrencies to buyer
Buyer confirms that cryptocurrencies have been received
Escrow provider pays seller

The peer-to-peer website that I would recommend using is Local Bitcoin due to its popularity and thus the one with the most advertisements. Alternatively you can also look at Bisq, BitQuick, Hodl Hodl and Paxful

Bitcoin ATM

The last method to acquire your first Bitcoin may be directly from an ATM, which works exactly like a normal exchange but its p Finally the last method that you could use to acquire your Bitcoin may be directly from an ATM, which acts like a physical exchange. Today there are more than 4000 in the world, and surely there must be one close to you! The purpose of the ATM is to make the process of buying and selling cryptocurrencies as smooth and quick as possible with both cash or credit / debit card.

The main advantage of using an ATM machine is the speed of the transaction. They KYC process is a lot less extensive in comparison to traditional exchanges and you don’t have to look for personally invest time in looking for sellers like on peer-to-peer websites. You simply find a machine, scan your QR code, insert cash ( or card ) and wait for your Bitcoins to arrive directly within your wallet

An advantage of acquiring Bitcoins directly through an ATM is they belong to a registered company, in a scenario of a transaction going wrong you will be able to contact directly the supplier and have it fixed.

Additionally this is the safest way of converting cash to cryptocurrencies, as you don’t have to meet with strangers like unlike with peer-to-peer websites – however the main disadvantage is the fees are very high, up to 10% + This website will allow you to locate Bitcoin ATMs worldwide: https://coinatmradar.com