In case you’ve been living under a rock for the last five years, Bitcoin is the digital currency, or ‘cryptocurrency’, that you can use to buy or sell items by virtual exchange, with no regulation from any country, treasury or central bank – meaning that the market value of Bitcoin is completely controlled by its users.
Bitcoin is operated using a system called ‘Blockchain’; a public ledger of every Bitcoin transaction taking place, with a network that updates each time a transaction is completed, allowing users on the network to validate each payment.
Since Bitcoin began to creep into public consciousness in 2013, its value has increased dramatically. In December 2013, after a volatile year, the price of one Bitcoin reached below $600 – now, in November 2018, it’s over $6000 ($6,362.02 on November 2nd).
That means that if you had purchased $10,000 of Bitcoin in December 2013, it would now be worth $106,000. There was a huge spike in the market in 2017, with the price of single Bitcoin reaching over $19,000 just before Christmas last year, and although the price has crashed since then the market now appears to have stabilised, with industry predictions that Bitcoin will only appreciate in value over the long term.
Quite simply; get Bitcoin now while it’s at a relative low and there’s a good chance you will prosper. But how do you get started?
Use a VPN
A VPN (virtual private network) allows you to extend a private network across a public network, enabling anonymity when sending or receiving data across a shared or public network.
Essentially, transactions running across a VPN – such as payments made from your Bitcoin wallet – will therefore benefit from added security and privacy, helping you use Bitcoin anonymously and stay safe online.
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Get a Bitcoin Wallet
Before you can buy Bitcoin, you first need to get a Bitcoin wallet. This contains public and private keys which give you the ability to stock, spend and receive Bitcoin and keep a record of all your transactions. You can also use a pseudonym for your Bitcoin account, protecting your legal right to remain anonymous on the internet.
There are a number of Bitcoin wallets to choose from, all offering different features and varying levels of security and control. You can check out the different wallets available. Be sure to educate yourself on the wallet you choose before setting it up, and you should certainly build up an extensive knowledge of Bitcoin before you use the cryptocurrency to make any transactions.
Buy Bitcoin
Once you have a Bitcoin wallet to store your currency, you can buy Bitcoin. Simply use a credit or debit card, or pay by bank transfer to get Bitcoins on a Bitcoin exchange site such as Coinbase.
Proceed with caution
As mentioned above, be sure you know what you’re getting yourself into before you invest in Bitcoin and make any transactions.
While there are already some Bitcoin millionaires out there, as with buying large amounts of any currency you are taking a significant risk and the market can be volatile. Be sure to keep up to date with Bitcoin news, and carefully consider any investments.
