Someone please help me buy BITCOIN

[Farang123]

17 hours ago, jumbo said:

 I wont go in details too....  but I set my account up in 24 hours, approval took long, and my funds were here in  24 hours as well with WISE and the purchase took around 5 minutes

That's great.  Did you wire money from a US bank?

[jumbo]

On 4/24/2021 at 1:32 PM, Farang123 said:

That's great.  Did you wire money from a US bank?

Yes... Through WISE

[Exploring Thailand]

On 3/30/2021 at 1:42 PM, Poet said:

I have a lot of friends who I would describe as "Bitcoin-curious" and I always tell them to open a free account at a reputable exchange, transfer in $100, and buy some Bitcoin.

 

I'm going to do something along these lines. Really just from curiosity, as you say. I have a couple of newbie questions. 

 

• I see that Bitkub is accepting new accounts again. Which would be better to get my feet wet, Bitkup or Kraken?
• There's discussion on this thread about the dangers of some exchanges. Am I right in thinking that you are only exposed to danger while you're waiting for the transaction to complete and that once you transfer the bitcoin to a wallet, it doesn't matter what happens to the exchange?
• From what I can see the Bitkub app also includes a wallet, whereas with Kraken I would have to install one. Is this difference important?
• How do you convert and transfer bitcoin from the wallet to a bank in Thailand? Can all wallets transfer to any bank in any country?

 

I've read the advice that TV is not the place to get advice about bitcoin, but I'm just testing the water. I'm not going to making significant purchases.

 

Thanks!

[Poet]

2 minutes ago, Exploring Thailand said:

I see that Bitkub is accepting new accounts again. Which would be better to get my feet wet, Bitkup or Kraken?

Personally, I keep business that doesn't need to be in Thailand out of Thailand.

I have not used Bitkup but they have clearly had some teething problems. I do not have a high opinion of the technical competence of Thai startups. Unless you have a compelling reason to use a Thai service, I would go for a more established and experienced Western service.
 

6 minutes ago, Exploring Thailand said:

There's discussion on this thread about the dangers of some exchanges. Am I right in thinking that you are only exposed to danger while you're waiting for the transaction to complete and that once you transfer the bitcoin to a wallet, it doesn't matter what happens to the exchange?

I have not read the entire thread but, typically in these threads, some people obsess over problems that are not, in fact, problems. Most are merely repeating things they have heard other people say. If you use a reputable exchange, there is practically no risk, and almost certainly less risk than storing your own coins. The notorious collapse, seven years ago, of the first big exchange, Mt. Gox, was due to inexperience and sloppy management. The industry has matured considerably since then.

Buying or selling on an exchange is instant. Transfering Bitcoin between exchanges or to your wallet takes anywhere between a few seconds and five minutes.

Yes, once the crypto is in your wallet, you have full possession of it.

 

10 minutes ago, Exploring Thailand said:

From what I can see the Bitkub app also includes a wallet, whereas with Kraken I would have to install one. Is this difference important?

Not an important difference. Personally, I would find out what the best wallet is and use that, regardless of what any particular exchange recommends or provides.

As it happens, I just keep my crypto on various exchanges. Reputable exchanges make so much money that it is in their interest to behave professionally and stay in business.
 

19 minutes ago, Exploring Thailand said:

How do you convert and transfer bitcoin from the wallet to a bank in Thailand? Can all wallets transfer to any bank in any country?

You must upload your coins to an exchange to sell them. Once in your exchange account, press the Sell button to convert your Bitcoin to a fiat currency (such as USD or EUR), then press the Withdraw button to send that money to your bank.

As far as I am aware, no wallet allows you to transfer money directly to a bank although, yes, you can send coins directly from one wallet to another.

 

24 minutes ago, Exploring Thailand said:

I've read the advice that TV is not the place to get advice about bitcoin

Crypto is becoming so common that you can get good advice almost anywhere. Just be careful to only listen people who actually own crypto rather than people who never actually got around to it and are now bitter. There are quite a few of those on TVF. The same crusty old characters here have been hysterically warning against Bitcoin since it was under a dollar ????

I am currently venturing out of my usual comfort zone (Bitcoin and Ethereum) and experimenting with a handful of carefully selected altcoins. I still believe that the vast majority of altcoins are nonsense, but am starting to accept that some have genuinely important features, especially new privacy coins such as Pirate Chain. They are riskier and far more volatile than Bitcoin but, being at an earlier stage, probably do have more growth potential, especially during the current lull in Bitcoin growth (currently ~$54k, down from a high of $64,863 a week or two back).

I expect Bitcoin to continue consilidating around $50k for the remainder of this month, before hitting a new high in early May. I am hoping to at least double my money in Pirate Chain before Bitcoin starts to rise again. Pirate Chain is currently ~$10, down from a high of $16.90 three days ago, I got in at $8 yesterday. I figure it will probably hit $20 at some point this week, but I have to be careful not to miss Bitcoin's next bull run.

I am using TradeOgre to buy the altcoins. These smaller, more specialized exchanges do not accept money, you have to transfer in some Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other coin. In my case, I transferred Bitcoin from Kraken, it took just a few minutes. I chose TradeOgre because they have a good reputation and the account setup was very easy, no need to show ID, just provide an email address and transfer in some crypto.

[JeffersLos]

On 3/29/2021 at 3:05 PM, bolt said:

blockfi rates

 

BlockFi Interest Account (BIA)

Annual Percentage Yield (APY)*

 

BlockFi Interest Account clients can deposit their crypto and earn interest.

Paid out at the beginning of every month, the interest earned by account holders compounds, increasing the annual yield for our clients.

Currency	Amount **	APY
BTC (Tier 1)	0 - 2.5	6%
BTC (Tier 2)	> 2.5	3.0%
LINK	> 0	5.5%
ETH	> 0	5.25%
LTC	> 0	6.5%
USDC	> 0	8.6%
GUSD	> 0	8.6%
PAX	> 0	8.6%
PAXG	> 0	5%
USDT	> 0	9.3%
BUSD	> 0	8.6%

 

So you just send them your bitcoin, and it earns 6% paid monthly?

 

 

Sounds legit. 

 

[Exploring Thailand]

29 minutes ago, Poet said:

Buying or selling on an exchange is instant. Transfering Bitcoin between exchanges or to your wallet takes anywhere between a few seconds and five minutes.

 

Thanks for the very helpful info. I've just been doing a bit more reading and see that the current "transaction fee" for Bitcoin is around $25. I take it that that is a fee that you only pay if you are actually buying something,  whereas transfers into and out of exchanges and wallets are either free or attract a relatively small percentage fee, is that right?

 

 

29 minutes ago, Poet said:

Pirate Chain is currently ~$10, down from a high of $16.90 three days ago, I got in at $8 yesterday. I figure it will probably hit $20 at some point this week, but I have to be careful not to miss Bitcoin's next bull run.

 

That sounds like a pretty turbulent ride!

[fdsa]

2 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

There's discussion on this thread about the dangers of some exchanges. Am I right in thinking that you are only exposed to danger while you're waiting for the transaction to complete and that once you transfer the bitcoin to a wallet, it doesn't matter what happens to the exchange?

yes, if it is a local wallet on your personal computer with a backup on USB drive plus on a piece of paper. If it is a some kind of online waller - you are still exposed to danger.

Crypto is similar to cash: if your money is not in your pocket - it is not your money, if your crypto is not in your computer - it is not your crypto.

 

2 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

From what I can see the Bitkub app also includes a wallet, whereas with Kraken I would have to install one. Is this difference important?

yes, it is important — crypto exchanges' apps are usually of low quality, being built by low educated & low paid freelancers, while dedicated crypto wallets are usually built by educated & high quality programmers (if these wallets are open source, of course).

I recommend using some open source crypto wallet, for example take a look at Electrum and its forks (I use it for most my coins - original Electrum for BTC, Electron Cash for BCH, Dash Electrum, Electrum LTC, et cetera).

 

3 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

How do you convert and transfer bitcoin from the wallet to a bank in Thailand? Can all wallets transfer to any bank in any country?

wallets can't send money to banks, they can only send coins to another wallet. Some wallets do that by sending coins to an intermediate exchanger which in its turn converts crypto to fiat and sends fiat to your bank account.

 

1 hour ago, Exploring Thailand said:

Thanks for the very helpful info. I've just been doing a bit more reading and see that the current "transaction fee" for Bitcoin is around $25. I take it that that is a fee that you only pay if you are actually buying something,  whereas transfers into and out of exchanges and wallets are either free or attract a relatively small percentage fee, is that right?

every transaction requires a fee, transfers in and out of exchanges are "transactions" too.

The current minimal fee is about $3, average $10, and $25 is very high - I assume the exchanger intentionally raises the fee to speed up the transaction confirmation time.

[Poet]

3 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

I take it that that is a fee that you only pay if you are actually buying something,  whereas transfers into and out of exchanges and wallets are either free or attract a relatively small percentage fee, is that right?

All transactions, even from one wallet to another, have to get written to the blockchain. The time it takes depends on the number of transactions happening and the capacity of the miners. If you opt to pay a higher fee your transaction will get snapped up more quickly.

When you hear about particularly high fees, it is usually due to some anonomolous situation, such as a major mining operation ceasing production for an hour or two. I have heard that Ether has horrifically high fees these days, and that appears to be more of a structural issues.

 

3 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

I've just been doing a bit more reading and see that the current "transaction fee" for Bitcoin is around $25.

Yesterday Kraken charged me, I think, $7 to transfer two bitcoins to another exchange, so, yeah, pretty high but still a lot cheaper than what banks or brokerages would charge you. I think it would be the same amount for just a few thousand or, even, a few hundred. dollars worth of Bitcoin They did not offer me an option to pay more or less. The transfer took a few minutes to show up, and a few more minutes to be double-confirmed before I could exchange it for altcoins.

Realistically, you are probably not going to be transfering your Bitcoin anywhere. You will buy it and, at some point, you will sell it on the same exchange, and then you'll pay about 50c to send the fiat money to your bank.

 

3 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

That sounds like a pretty turbulent ride!

Yeah, my head is spinning!

I thought, after so long in Bitcoin and Ethereum, that I was pretty comfortable with volatility but I'm actually finding this gut-wrenching. At points today I've been up $25K on that investment and then, minutes later, watched it transform into a $25k loss. Bitcoin is positively sedate compared to this.

I can understand, though, why active traders prefer this market. If my little experiment works out I might well decide I prefer it and go all in.

 

[Exploring Thailand]

13 hours ago, fdsa said:

every transaction requires a fee, transfers in and out of exchanges are "transactions" too.

The current minimal fee is about $3, average $10, and $25 is very high - I assume the exchanger intentionally raises the fee to speed up the transaction confirmation time.

 

11 hours ago, Poet said:

Realistically, you are probably not going to be transfering your Bitcoin anywhere. You will buy it and, at some point, you will sell it on the same exchange, and then you'll pay about 50c to send the fiat money to your bank.

 

This is one of the sources I used for fees. It says the fees are currently $37, up from $25 yesterday.  I guess as you say, the fees become less significant when you're transferring larger amount of money. I'm not too worried as I'm really just experimenting to see how it all works at the moment.

 

11 hours ago, Poet said:

At points today I've been up $25K on that investment and then, minutes later, watched it transform into a $25k loss. Bitcoin is positively sedate compared to this.

I can understand, though, why active traders prefer this market. If my little experiment works out I might well decide I prefer it and go all in.

 

Good luck with that! 

 

 

[fdsa]

1 hour ago, Exploring Thailand said:

 

This is one of the sources I used for fees. It says the fees are currently $37, up from $25 yesterday.

you should search for another source then.

 

this is the largest adequate fee (anything higher than that is just throwing money away):

(plus note the "Warning")

 

 

this is the recommended fee for fast transaction confirmation time:

 

 

 

and this is the minimal fee (your transaction still will be accepted but it will take some time to confirm):

 

 

 

 

 

[Exploring Thailand]

53 minutes ago, fdsa said:

this is the largest adequate fee (anything higher than that is just throwing money away):

(plus note the "Warning")

That's a useful tool. What is it? I saw that Exodus allows you to set maximum charges. I guess this is the same idea.  The fees associated with cryptocurrencies do take a bit of getting your head around. I see that there are credit/debit cards available which charge around 3% per transaction, which is considerably lower than the fees we've mentioned above. I also noticed that the TradeOgre site seems to charge around $30 to withdraw Bitcoin.

[fdsa]

2 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

What is it?

Electrum wallet https://bitcoin.org/en/wallets/desktop/windows/electrum/

 

2 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

The fees associated with cryptocurrencies do take a bit of getting your head around. I see that there are credit/debit cards available which charge around 3% per transaction, which is considerably lower than the fees we've mentioned above.

if you worry about fees then don't stick with just Bitcoin and Ethereum - they're the most costly to move around. If you need cryptos for everyday use then check Litecoin or Stellar, they're fast and cheap.

[Poet]

17 hours ago, Exploring Thailand said:

I also noticed that the TradeOgre site seems to charge around $30 to withdraw Bitcoin.

 

15 hours ago, fdsa said:

if you worry about fees then don't stick with just Bitcoin and Ethereum - they're the most costly to move around. If you need cryptos for everyday use then check Litecoin or Stellar, they're fast and cheap.

Yeah, in the case of TradeOgre the prices are set dynamically per coin, based on the mining cost at that time. Some reviews I read said that their withdrawal fees are good value compared to some others. I don't know if that is still true, perhaps there is an actively maintained list somewhere that compares all the exchanges' withdrawal fees at any given time, but it isn't something I have researched.

As fdsa says, when exiting an exchange you could first convert everything into a coin that is cheaper to withdraw. Shifting the whole lot into DOGE would reduce the withdrawal fee to under a dollar, while with PirateChain it would be under ten cents. Equally, shifting it to ETH would currently increase the withdrawal fee to $54 because, as I type, that coin is at an all-time high of $2,709.32.

With a cost of just 0.2% on all fulfilled trades, it is well worth shifting to the cheapest possible coin for withdrawals, especially as you can quickly convert them back to Bitcoin or whatever at the exchange you move them to.

The best thing, however, is probably to just leave any value you have in a particular exchange in play. Jump between coins there, sure, but give your overall investment in that exchange time to grow. If you are starting with just a hundred, you won't care about the withdrawal fee if you end up with a thousand or whatever by the end of the year.

Again, for beginners Kraken would be way better and, for whatever reason, their withdrawal fee for Bitcoin is 0.00014999, which was $7 the other night but would be $8.35 now because Bitcoin is rising again.

You would only need an exchange such as TradeOgre if you wanted to get into certain coins in their very early stages, before they are adopted by the major exchanges such as Kraken. The only reason I am bothering with TradeOgre at all is that, based on what I think is about to happening in the US, privacy-focused coins could be about to because very popular over the coming months, and my research has persuaded me that the currently tiny PirateChain will be a big winner. That will be an exciting experience for me - at this stage, I'm mainly in it for the thrills ????

 

 

[WaveHunter]

On 3/30/2021 at 1:42 PM, Poet said:

I use Kraken, but have not researched whether other exchanges might be marginally better. I would not use any Asian exchange. Bitkub seems to have had some serious teething problems, and I interpret technical incompetence as an indication of possible deeper problems.

For starting out, I would not bother with a hardware wallet or any complicated software. Keep it simple.

Anything related to crypto draws forth a lot of bitterness on this forum. Many of the most active posters are guys who are tech-savvy enough to use a forum, and who would have been aware of Bitcoin years ago, but simply didn't get into it back then. Perhaps they meant to but, like so many, never got around to actually laying down money and, now, feel they have "missed the boat". What you are seeing is an emotional reaction, not a logical one. Think about how you would feel in the same position.

You always hear that phrase relating to Bitcoin, "missed the boat", and it has never been true.  Sure, the best time to get into it was a decade ago when it cost 8 cents, but the second-best time has always been "today", whenever that happened to be. The important thing is the decision to take action and actually invest some money.

I have a lot of friends who I would describe as "Bitcoin-curious" and I always tell them to open a free account at a reputable exchange, transfer in $100, and buy some Bitcoin. Ignore all the other coins, no matter what hot tips you hear on YouTube - the factors I describe further down in this post will only fuel the rise of Bitcoin and, to a lesser extent, Ethereum. They are Coca-Cola and Pepsi of crypto.

Then, completely ignore your investment until the end of the year. The value will swing around like crazy, no one really knows whether it will be worth more or less tomorrow, but the general medium-term trend has always been upwards.

You should have a very nice surprise at the end of the year - my guess is that $100 invested today should be around $350 - and then you can decide whether you want to explore crypto more deeply. Just don't invest your $100 today if you will need it back next week.

*** Important point: You do not need to buy an entire Bitcoin, you can invest as little as a dollar if you want, it will still go up by the same percentage ***

So many of the people posting negatively on this thread said exactly the same things in a thread around the New Year, when Bitcoin was under $20K. Same for another thread, around the time of the Covid crash last March, when I urged everyone to get in at $5K. It was very clear to me that the pandemic had created an anomolous opportunity, and that the same factors would soon push it far higher.

I have quite a bit invested in Bitcoin and a lesser amount in Ethereum. I could withdraw it all in minutes and invest it elsewhere, but I keep it in crypto because I understand why it has gone up 12x over the past year and that we are only at the beginning:

Unprecedented levels of stimulus spending debasing fiat currencies worldwise, money sloshing around the world pushing up all asset prices, the looming shadow of crushing taxation to pay for the Covid overreaction, political instability in almost all countries, massively increased use of the Internet and faster introduction of entirely new populations in poorer countries, increasing adoption of Bitcoin by corporations and financial organizations clearly heading towards a tipping point, increasing mainstream awareness as a number of major exchanges head towards IPOs, and far easier on-ramps for consumers all over the world to own Bitcoin via their familar banking apps.

All of those factors, which have pushed Bitcoin up 12x over the past year, and 3x over the past three months, are only just beginning. Financially, the next two years are going to be rougher than anything we have seen in our lifetimes. The damage caused by the overreaction to Covid has been far more expensive than any war, and has quite clearly deranged significant portions of the public. The relationship between governments and their citizens has changed, and the inevitable increases in taxation, combined with the plummeting value of savings, benefits, and pensions are going to drive unprecedented levels of unrest and harsh crackdowns.

Just to be clear, while good for those of us with Bitcoin, all of this will be absolutely terrible for the vast majority of people on this planet. The stress and strain of the lockdowns are nothing compared to what is coming down the pike. Life is about to get a lot more expensive.

Some of the members here are on set pensions denominated in their home currencies. Unless they find an effective way to hedge against the debasement of those currencies, many will end up having to sell their houses in Thailand and return to their home countries to live out their remaining years in a far more limited way.

 

I'm reading this thread in its' entirety because I also am interested in putting money in BitCoin while living here in Thailand.  I would prefer to do it with a US based source, not a Thai source.

 

It seems that the Op is simply asking for feedback from seasoned crypto investors on where and from whom to buy coins. 

 

So far I am only on Page 2, but so far almost every response has been negative and/or hostile in answering this simple question WITHOUT any positive help at all?

 

Why all the assumptions that the Op is looking for a "get rich quick" scheme (I.e.: missing the boat), or claiming the investment of only 75% of his stimulus check is a joke? 

 

To me, the Op sound like someone who recognizes there is a crisis in the world of Fiat currencies, and wants to test the waters of cryptocurrencies.  TO me, that is a intelligent idea and worthy of a helpful reply from some of the more seasoned investors on this forum.

 

@Poet's post is first post so far that has seemed to be a positive and helpful response.  More importantly, he "hits the nail on the head" in discussing the vulnerability of fiat currencies in light of how Covid has resulted in massive and out-of -control spending, particularly in the US. 

 

ALl of this so-called relief spending is NOT going to help the poor or middle class at all.  They may receive their stimulus checks and feel happy about "free money" until they realize that they will be paying it back and a lot more besides in the form of the unprecedented hyper inflation that results from trillions of dollars of additional debt.

 

The ability to just print worthless money on this scale in a Fiat type of economy is going to have a devastating effect on the value of the US dollar, and it's probably going to happen a lot sooner than many realize. 

 

History shows that, without exception, every time that a major government has resorted to such unrestrained printing of money, the economy has crashed spectacularly! 

 

Just look at the hyperinflation that occured in the Weimar Republic between 1914 and 1923,  what happened in Zimbabwe in 2007, or Venezuela in 2016.  Covid has set the stage for it to happen again, but this time on a world-wide scale IMO.

 

As far as I'm concerned, the economic devastation caused by Covid is being vastly underestimated right now.  I think it will be far more impactful than the health consequences of Covid by comparison.

 

When you appreciate that one of the key features of a blockchain supported currency is that it can not be manipulated by central banks, in such a devastating way makes it a very attractive option to Fiat type currencies.

 

Hopefully as I read more pages of this thread, some people with a seemingly better understanding of the virtues of blockchain currencies will provide better answers than I've seen so far.

[fdsa]

43 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

one of the key features of a blockchain supported currency is that it can not be manipulated by central banks

but it can be manipulated by rogue cryptocurrency exchanges https://twitter.com/search?q=tether minted at Tether Treasury from%3Awhale_alert&src=typed_query&f=live

USDT printer goes BRRRR and pumps Bitcoin price up.

[Exploring Thailand]

51 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

I'm reading this thread in its' entirety because I also am interested in putting money in BitCoin while living here in Thailand

 

51 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

one of the key features of a blockchain supported currency is that it can not be manipulated by central banks

 

I'm in a similar situation to you. I've been reading up on crypto for a couple of days and it's apparent that you need to tread very carefully. For example, you can't print bitcoins, but you can create new coins, hype them, then, when people start to buy them, sell your holding at a big profit, leaving the price to crash behind you. 

[WaveHunter]

23 minutes ago, fdsa said:

but it can be manipulated by rogue cryptocurrency exchanges https://twitter.com/search?q=tether minted at Tether Treasury from%3Awhale_alert&src=typed_query&f=live

USDT printer goes BRRRR and pumps Bitcoin price up.

??  I don't understand what this twitter link is supposed to show or the point you are making ??  Can you explain?  I've casually read some articles about "rogue" crypto criminals, but my impression is that rogue cryptocurrency exchanges are a pretty much a thing of the past.  

[fdsa]

8 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

??  I don't understand what this twitter link is supposed to show or the point you are making ??  Can you explain?  I've casually read some articles about "rogue" crypto criminals, but my impression is that rogue cryptocurrency exchanges are a pretty much a thing of the past.  

 

a rogue cryptocurrency exchange called Bitfinex is printing billions of USDT "stablecoin" almost daily and pumps other cryptocurrencies' price by buying them with freshly printed USDTs.

a bit of history here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tether_(cryptocurrency)#History

 

most funny part:

Quote

In April 2019 New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a suit accusing Bitfinex of using Tether's reserves to cover up a loss of $850 million. Bitfinex had been unable to obtain a normal banking relationship, according to the lawsuit, so it deposited over $1 billion with a Panamanian payment processor known as Crypto Capital Corp. The funds were allegedly co-mingled corporate and client deposits and no contract was ever signed with Crypto Capital. James alleged that in 2018 Bitfinex and Tether knew or suspected that Crypto Capital had absconded with the money, but that their investors were never informed of the loss. In a settlement in February 2021, Bitfinex and Tether agreed to pay a penalty of $18.5 million.

1) send 850 mil of customers' money to a third party without signing any contracts

2) third party disappears

3) pay 18 mil fine for losing 850 mil customers' money

4) profit

[WaveHunter]

36 minutes ago, fdsa said:

 

a rogue cryptocurrency exchange called Bitfinex is printing billions of USDT "stablecoin" almost daily and pumps other cryptocurrencies' price by buying them with freshly printed USDTs.

a bit of history here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tether_(cryptocurrency)#History

 

most funny part:

1) send 850 mil of customers' money to a third party without signing any contracts

2) third party disappears

3) pay 18 mil fine for losing 850 mil customers' money

4) profit

My understanding is that Bitfinex is not available to US customers so that reaffirms my desire for a US based exchange...but isn't the "jury still out" with respect to whether or not Bitfinex is indeed up to no good? 

 

I mean, I'm just a neophyte in this realm but from what I've read, they are still "open for business", and still seem to be highly regarded by many advanced traders and those doing large scale trades (not that I'll be in either group in the near future)?

[fdsa]

22 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

they are still "open for business", and still seem to be highly regarded by many advanced traders and those doing large scale trades

yes, they are still open, they are still somewhat trusted in the crypto world, nevertheless they still print billions of USDT almost daily with very questionable coverage with "real" USD.

the twitter link above is a food for thought - whether to believe in "stablecoins" or whether to trust Bitfinex.

also in my understanding when exchange is not available to US customers it does not always mean that they simply don't want to partner with an IRS - also it could be that the exchange does not want to give US citizens a possibility to sue the exchange.

[WaveHunter]

16 minutes ago, fdsa said:

yes, they are still open, they are still somewhat trusted in the crypto world, nevertheless they still print billions of USDT almost daily with very questionable coverage with "real" USD.

the twitter link above is a food for thought - whether to believe in "stablecoins" or whether to trust Bitfinex.

Still working to understand the fundamentals of Cryptocurrency but I'll tuck your suggestion away as a good one for future reference. ????

 

I just started an 24 lecture online course  made available from MIT on Cryptocurrency & Blockchain technology (aimed at students without a technical background).  So far it's pretty impressive. 

 

It's actually real classroom video of the actual course taught at MIT, as though you are actually in the lecture hall, and includes interaction between the professor and students.  They even provide a list of required reading for each lecture. 

 

Pretty cool stuff, and a far cry from the typical Crypto Guru stuff you normally find on YouTube.

 

It is part of MIT's Open Courseware program.  If anyone else is interested, the course syllabus can be seen at:

 

https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/sloan-school-of-management/15-s12-blockchain-and-money-fall-2018/

[WaveHunter]

I've been casually following Cryptocurrency since 2014, more out of curiosity than anything else (until Covid's impact on the economy started making me seriously think of investing).

 

I can't count how many times over this period of time I've heard people say it's just a scam, "if you haven't already invested, you've missed the boat", it's a bubble about to burst, it's way too volatile, and such, year and year, after year.

 

Well, when I look at a graph of it's growth since its' inception, I don't see evidence of any of these dire things at all.  All I see is people turning away from Fiat currencies during times of crisis like what we're starting to experience as a result of Covid... and I emphasize the word "starting" because I think this growth spurt is not the end but the beginning.

 

I may not know much about crypto yet, but I know what's occurring with government spending response to Covid, and the resultant hyperinflation that's about to be realized.

 

So where's the bubble?  I see a bubble about to burst in the stock market, and I see one in real estate for sure, I see a rapid rise in prices for shipping, for oil, and for food...but in cryptocurrency (as an alternative to Fiat currency) I'm just not seeing a bubble, or anything but a rise in perceived value for what's coming our way.

 

 

[Heng]

22 hours ago, WaveHunter said:

I've been casually following Cryptocurrency since 2014, more out of curiosity than anything else (until Covid's impact on the economy started making me seriously think of investing).

 

I can't count how many times over this period of time I've heard people say it's just a scam, "if you haven't already invested, you've missed the boat", it's a bubble about to burst, it's way too volatile, and such, year and year, after year.

 

Well, when I look at a graph of it's growth since its' inception, I don't see evidence of any of these dire things at all.  All I see is people turning away from Fiat currencies during times of crisis like what we're starting to experience as a result of Covid... and I emphasize the word "starting" because I think this growth spurt is not the end but the beginning.

 

I may not know much about crypto yet, but I know what's occurring with government spending response to Covid, and the resultant hyperinflation that's about to be realized.

 

So where's the bubble?  I see a bubble about to burst in the stock market, and I see one in real estate for sure, I see a rapid rise in prices for shipping, for oil, and for food...but in cryptocurrency (as an alternative to Fiat currency) I'm just not seeing a bubble, or anything but a rise in perceived value for what's coming our way.

 

 

 

Generally speaking, people love successful people but not successful neighbors.     

[Farang123]

On 5/1/2021 at 12:05 PM, WaveHunter said:

I'm reading this thread in its' entirety because I also am interested in putting money in BitCoin while living here in Thailand.  I would prefer to do it with a US based source, not a Thai source.

 

It seems that the Op is simply asking for feedback from seasoned crypto investors on where and from whom to buy coins. 

 

So far I am only on Page 2, but so far almost every response has been negative and/or hostile in answering this simple question WITHOUT any positive help at all?

 

Why all the assumptions that the Op is looking for a "get rich quick" scheme (I.e.: missing the boat), or claiming the investment of only 75% of his stimulus check is a joke? 

 

To me, the Op sound like someone who recognizes there is a crisis in the world of Fiat currencies, and wants to test the waters of cryptocurrencies.  TO me, that is a intelligent idea and worthy of a helpful reply from some of the more seasoned investors on this forum.

 

@Poet's post is first post so far that has seemed to be a positive and helpful response.  More importantly, he "hits the nail on the head" in discussing the vulnerability of fiat currencies in light of how Covid has resulted in massive and out-of -control spending, particularly in the US. 

 

ALl of this so-called relief spending is NOT going to help the poor or middle class at all.  They may receive their stimulus checks and feel happy about "free money" until they realize that they will be paying it back and a lot more besides in the form of the unprecedented hyper inflation that results from trillions of dollars of additional debt.

 

The ability to just print worthless money on this scale in a Fiat type of economy is going to have a devastating effect on the value of the US dollar, and it's probably going to happen a lot sooner than many realize. 

 

History shows that, without exception, every time that a major government has resorted to such unrestrained printing of money, the economy has crashed spectacularly! 

 

Just look at the hyperinflation that occured in the Weimar Republic between 1914 and 1923,  what happened in Zimbabwe in 2007, or Venezuela in 2016.  Covid has set the stage for it to happen again, but this time on a world-wide scale IMO.

 

As far as I'm concerned, the economic devastation caused by Covid is being vastly underestimated right now.  I think it will be far more impactful than the health consequences of Covid by comparison.

 

When you appreciate that one of the key features of a blockchain supported currency is that it can not be manipulated by central banks, in such a devastating way makes it a very attractive option to Fiat type currencies.

 

Hopefully as I read more pages of this thread, some people with a seemingly better understanding of the virtues of blockchain currencies will provide better answers than I've seen so far.

Thanks for your post.  Yes, there are inevitably a lot of negative keyboard warriors who post on the internet in general, and especially here at ThaiVisa, but I'm glad I started this thread as there have been some useful posts by POET and a few others and it has also opened up space for other people who have similar questions to express themselves.

 

It's like you can't win, first people tell me something like "Oh, don't rush into it until you really know what you're doing as you will just lose money", then when I post that I still haven't purchased because of some different obstacles (after 1 month) someone chimes in "See the OP hasn't purchased even after one month, haha, better stay away!" or some other nonsense.

 

I still plan on purchasing bitcoin but it may have to wait until I return to the USA. That time may not be too far off either.

[GrandPapillon]

if you don't see the bubble and the scam in BTC then I have a bridge to sell for you ????

 

and yes the stock markets are also in that bubble, it will pop eventually. Let's see how BTC will hold then, my prediction, it will crash badly as it has strong correlations with financial assets ????

 

BTC has no value or no use. Let me correct that, BTC has no legal use except for laundering money and speculating for amateur traders who are missing out on other financial assets ????

 

I make more money trading stocks and futures than I could with BTC and the other scam coins ????

[Farang123]

Hey all!

 

Please watch the following YouTube video "The Tragic Story of Telling your Friends to Buy Bitcoin" for a good laugh.

 

It sums up the situation pretty well though, doesn't it?

 

The Tragic Struggle of Telling your Friends to Buy Bitcoin (2011-2021) - YouTube

[GrandPapillon]

the problem with those promoting Bitcoins is they are too young to remember any real financial crash or the last big financial scam, so they think this time is different

 

it's really a generation thing, with a clueless younger one trying to teach older generations and the world how they are wrong ????

 

haven't we heard that one before ????

[GrandPapillon]

I guess each generation needs its financial crash and painfull lesson ????

 

that's how we learn,

 

BTC and the GameStop mania is going to be that life lesson, that they will remember until they die and teach their children about that big big mistake

 

overconfidence in any asset can be financially dangerous ????

[fdsa]

2 hours ago, GrandPapillon said:

overconfidence in any asset can be financially dangerous ????

a truly wise words! so remember to invest in several different cryptos rather than Bitcoin only

[SCOTT FITZGERSLD]

go to the dark net and advertise yourself as a contact killer.

once they pay you with bitcoin take the money and run.