So you want to buy and use bitcoin or other crypto currencies but are unsure of how to go about it? Here I am going to run you through my experience of buying and selling bitcoin. I’m not going to go into the in’s and outs of what exactly bitcoin is. Here is a quote from BitcoinChaser:
“Bitcoin (BTC) was the first cryptocurrency. Created in 2009, it is the most expensive cryptocurrency in the world and is already accepted by thousands of merchants worldwide.”
What I will show is how an ordinary person just like yourselves goes about dealing with bitcoin.
Ok, to get things rolling you firstly need a crypto wallet, just like a wallet in real life, or your online bank account, this is where your money (bitcoin in this case) sits. It is from here you can then deposit onto a poker client, send crypto to friends & family, or make an online purchase from a number of increasing sites that are now accepting digital currency.
The wallet I use is called Blockchain. This can be accessed at https://www.blockchain.com/ or downloaded onto your phone or tablet. To buy/sell and setup your bank account you will need a blockchain exchange account, i will come back to this later.
Once you have made an account you will need to upgrade it first to silver (this level is fine for receiving and sending crypto) but to buy and sell on the exchange you will need a gold account.
Once you fill out the simple form your account will be upgraded to silver status. For gold verification you will need to Take a photo of yourself using your webcam, or phone camera if on the app. And then a photo of your passport. Make sure it is as clear as possible.
If all done correctly you will be verified anywhere between 5 minutes & a couple of hours
Once your account has become gold status, you are now ready to make a blockchain exchange account.
Click on buy & sell on the top left hand side of your homepage
On the next screen you want to click “launch the exchange”
This will take you to a screen where you will create a blockchain exchange account
You will now need to add your bank account to be able to buy or sell bitcoin or any other crypto currency you desire. To add your account, you will need to make a deposit (direct bank transfer) , this can be as little as £1 for uk residents, for other countries this will be off similar value.
To add your bank account click on your username top right
Select settings
Then select linked banks
On this screen you will be given details off a bank account and sort code for the account you will need to send money to, it is up to you if you want to send the minimum of £1 or deposit the amount you wish to be able to buy bitcoin. I chose to do the minimum as I already had bitcoin.
The next day my bank account was added, and the £1 was in my Exchange account.
Now your bank account has been added you are ready to buy or sell bitcoin.
Buying Crypto
To buy crypto you must have currency in your exchange wallet.
To deposit select “Balances” top right of the exchange homepage. At the bottom right select deposit .
You will now be given options as to which currency you want to deposit in.
If it is the same currency you verified your bank account with click on that, and you will be given the same bank details as before, these details should be saved on your banking app or online banking though.
Depending on your bank the funds should be in your exchange wallet almost instantly.
Now you have funds in your exchange account you are ready to buy the crypto of your choice.
Click on the + symbol circled red here.
This will bring up a vast number of fiat currencies and crypto currencies.
Select the crypto you desire to buy along with the fiat currency you will be purchasing it with, you can see that I have BTC for Bitcoin selected alongside GBP for Great british pounds (£)
Now you have selected what crypto you want and the method of payment, you need to enter the amount of crypto you want to purchase.
Once you have added the amount select place order. Your crypto will now be in your exchange account. To deposit onto a poker site, send to friends etc, you will need to get your bitcoin funds into your blockchain wallet.
To do this select balances
Select withdraw which is at the very bottom this will take you to the following page:
Select Bitcoin or your crypto purchase method, and then select withdraw, it will take upto an hour for your crypto to be in your blockchain wallet.
To withdraw to your bank account from your exchange wallet, do the same process as above but select the currency for your bank, I use GBP
And there you have it, once everything is set up, depositing, purchasing crypto, withdrawing to your bank account is very quick & easy.
Remember crypto is a commodity it’s price changes day to day, the same as oil, stocks and shares does. If you have any questions about this article, I’ll be more than happy to answer them 🙂