The popularity of cryptocurrencies is growing, but novice traders are often wary of difficulties. The fears are partially justified, since in principle, making money by trading is not as easy as it seems from the outside.
What is a cryptocurrency
Bitcoin or any other digital asset is a file that is stored on the blockchain. Each transaction with digital coins is recorded in the blockchain – an open database. Cryptography methods provide an unprecedented high level of protection for this data. They cannot be copied, edited, deleted or forged.
Crypto trading for beginners
To get started, you need to create a cryptocurrency wallet and register on a cryptocurrency exchange. However, if you are set up exclusively for long-term investment, this is not necessary. You can buy XEM and other coins in fast exchangers and some wallets directly from bank cards.
How to start a cryptocurrency wallet
The easiest way to start a crypto wallet is to register on a cryptocurrency exchange. When you create an account, a wallet is automatically opened in it. This is really simple, but not safe, since the coins are still not stored with you, but on the exchange, and you risk losing them in the event of a hack or bankruptcy of the site. As recent events have shown, this is not as impossible as one would like.
A third-party wallet that is not associated white label crypto exchange is a reasonable precaution. This could be PC software, a mobile app, or a small physical device.
A hardware wallet, including an MPC wallet, is akin to the most secure vault. As a rule, the devices themselves are quite well protected from physical influences, they are compact and do not have a permanent connection to the Internet. This is the best solution for long-term storage of cryptocurrency, but not the most convenient for active trading. In addition, the price of the device starts at about $50.
Mobile and desktop wallets are more convenient for everyday cryptocurrency transactions, but more vulnerable. This applies not only to probable remote attacks, but also to more banal troubles. Perhaps every modern person knows firsthand what a broken phone or coffee accidentally spilled on a laptop means.
Registration on a crypto exchange
First of all, you need to choose a reliable cryptocurrency exchange and register on it. Registration in general terms is no different from the standard procedure on any other site. After that, you will get access to the functionality of the exchange, full or partial. More and more sites require you to go through the KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
To complete KYC, you will need to verify at least your identity. Each site has its own maximum. The procedure for verifying the information provided can take from several tens of minutes to a week.
Actually crypto trading
So you have already registered on the exchange, opened a wallet, taken all the necessary cybersecurity measures and bought a few coins. However, this does not mean that tomorrow you will wake up a millionaire.
There is simply no universal win-win strategy. However, there are a few basic rules that will help you avoid a crash if something doesn’t go according to plan.
- Cryptocurrencies are very volatile. Do not invest in them all your savings, and even more so borrowed funds. This is almost a direct path to disaster. The maximum share of cryptocurrencies in the investment portfolio does not exceed 10% of its volume.
- Look to the long term. Fundamentally, the cryptocurrency market is growing, and its sharp drops are a completely natural phenomenon. Cryptocurrencies will not disappear, but the market will inevitably change.
- At the current stage of market development, Bitcoin plays the first violin. Altcoins, on the other hand, repeat its main patterns almost simultaneously. As soon as Bitcoin starts to grow, a revival among altcoins begins and vice versa, a fall in the price of BTC provokes a collapse of altcoins.
- Use market orders. Many exchanges and platforms allow you to place stop orders, which means that an order to buy or sell cryptocurrency will be automatically executed as soon as its value reaches the level you set. This way you will limit your losses and will definitely not miss the opportunity to profit from short-term price movements.
- Follow the news and market reaction. The cryptocurrency market is driven by the same factors that affect the pricing of other assets. Coronavirus pandemic, war between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, hacking Binance – all this one way or another influenced the prices of cryptocurrencies. However, it is still extremely difficult to predict the market reaction to this or that event.
Never invest your last money in digital assets. For reasons of your own financial security, you can only risk the amount that you are not afraid to lose.