Bitcoin Beginner - Am I doing it Correctly?

glentoran99

jimjames wrote: »

"investing" in something that is meant to be a currency to me indicates that it is nothing of the sort. A currency is of no use if the value isn't stable as many countries have found in the past.

so people don't invest in currencys every day?

sadafmehreen

Can anyone please suggest any authentic source to get information or how it works?
I am thinking invest in it to gain some money.
Please also guide me if it is worth investing or not.
I will invest lowest to start.
I will appreciate suggestions and information on it.
Thanks

Malthusian

glentoran99 wrote: »

so people don't invest in currencys every day?

No. Nobody invests in currency. When someone buys currency in the hope they can sell it for more later, that is speculation.

_CC_

armchaireconomist wrote: »

" A bitcoin is essentially just a number and the current frenzy is an example of the "greater fool theory", not my thing at all TBH "


" Sorry despite interesting maths theory I struggle to understand how they are worth more than magic beans. "


What's the difference with that and your paper money with no standard?

Do you really see no difference between GBP and bitcoins?

angela2011

Thinking of joining coinbase to buy ethereum. Anyone had any dealings with them recently?

TIA

ColdIron

You could do a search on the main board, lots of posts there

WillCalderwood

To talk facts rather than scaremongering and sensationalising.

Bitcoins, as with every world currency are worth what people are willing to pay, it's no different. The value of bitcoin is also up approximately 10,000,000% in the last 8 years, so clearly, a lot of people do have faith in the system.

There are over 500 cryptocurrencies now, and while I have no doubt that they will become a major force in the future, which of those 500 will survive the test of time is a different matter. I'd guess that over the next 10-20 years it will all boil down to 5-10 cryptocurrencies with probably 2-3 major players.

Here's an up to date list.
https://www.worldcoinindex.com/trending/overview

Bitcoin is now considered the gold of the cryptocurrency world as it's the least volatile. It's only up about 700% this year, when most of the other big players are up 2500-4000%. While it doesn't shoot up as fast as the other currencies, it's also unlikely to shoot down as fast.

As a general rule, the higher the market cap of the currency, the less volatile it'll be.

To be frank, cryptocurrencies are a crazy game to be in, but you'd be crazy not to be in the game. I'd never put any money into cryptocurrencies that I couldn't afford to lose, but if you've got some spare cash and are happy with the risks then go for it!

Governments can't stop cryptocurrencies, so eventually, they'll have to accept and regulate them. Once that happens they'll become far more mainstream and more businesses will start to accept them as payment.

Unfortunately, no cryptocurrency exchanges that I'm aware of have UK based account, so you'll have to bounce everything through foreign accounts and Transferwise will refuse to help you with that (I guess cryptocurrencies are a threat to their long term business model.)

I use Kraken for getting money into the system, but that's an exchange and therefore slightly more complex. If you put money in, then I'd recommend doing it as USD because trading with GBP is slower.

If you just want to dabble, then you can set up a wallet on blockchain.info

https://blockchain.info/wallet/#/

This is a very secure site, and you can buy bitcoins through them, but you will pay a premium over the market rate. The one thing that you must be aware of with blockchain is that your entire account is encrypted using your password and they don't store your password in any way, shape or form. This makes it very secure, not even they can access your account, but it also means that if you lose your password then you can't ever get your account back, so make sure you and your nearest and dearest know your password if you ever want to see your money again.

Anyway, that's enough of that. Good luck!

Gambler101

WillCalderwood wrote: »

To talk facts rather than scaremongering and sensationalising.

Bitcoins, as with every world currency are worth what people are willing to pay, it's no different. The value of bitcoin is also up approximately 10,000,000% in the last 8 years, so clearly, a lot of people do have faith in the system.

There are over 500 cryptocurrencies now, and while I have no doubt that they will become a major force in the future, which of those 500 will survive the test of time is a different matter. I'd guess that over the next 10-20 years it will all boil down to 5-10 cryptocurrencies with probably 2-3 major players.

Here's an up to date list.
https://www.worldcoinindex.com/trending/overview

Sexcoin sounds good lol

ozaz

sadafmehreen wrote: »

Can anyone please suggest any authentic source to get information or how it works?
I am thinking invest in it to gain some money.
Please also guide me if it is worth investing or not.
I will invest lowest to start.
I will appreciate suggestions and information on it.
Thanks

Intro to Bitcoin:
https://www.coindesk.com/information/what-is-bitcoin/

To understand the hype (which transcends Bitcoin), be sure to read up on Blockchain technology:
https://www.coindesk.com/information/

Like the more pessimistic posters, I do consider putting money into Cryptocurrencies as very speculative. But I also see strong potential, particularly in blockchain tech. So I'm willing to risk a bit of money. I've put in 5% of my liquid assets (i.e. what I have excluding home and pension) but I won't be going any higher than that.

I've bought Bitcoin using GBP from Coinbase, Uphold, and Solidi without any problems.

Of these, Coinbase is the easiest but most expensive. Conveniently, you can fund your account using a UK credit/debit card, but they charge 4% for the privilege, which is steep. I'd recommend Coinbase to get started with small amounts and then consider other options if you later decide you want to put in larger amounts.

Some other options here
https://www.coindesk.com/information/buy-bitcoin-uk/

This site is useful for comparing prices
http://bittybot.co/uk/

I've exchanged Bitcoin to other Cryptocurrencies (so-called Altcoins) using Bittrex.

Maelzoid

There are a lot of opinions out there on this, but one thing I'm certain of: anybody who says Bitcoin will definitely fail does not know what they're talking about, and anybody who says Bitcoin will definitely succeed also does not know what they're talking about. It is a very interesting but also very unpredictable area at the moment.

Also, my experience is that as soon as someone mentions the words, Pyramid, Ponzi or Tulips, they are at best misinformed.

This article is a great start for those seeking further knowledge.

https://www.lrb.co.uk/v38/n08/john-lanchester/when-bitcoin-grows-up